Publisher: Atria Books; Reprint edition (April 9, 2019)
Publication Date: April 9, 2019
Sold by: Simon and Schuster Digital Sales Inc
A post-mortem photographer unearths dark secrets from the past that may hold the key to his future in this “sensual, twisting gothic tale…in the tradition of A.S. Byatt’s Possession, Diane Setterfield’s The Thirteenth Tale, and Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights” (BookPage).All love stories are ghost stories in disguise. “This one happily succeeds at both” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review).
When famed Byronesque poet Hugh de Bonne is discovered dead in his bath one morning, his cousin Robert Highstead, a post-mortem photographer, is charged with a simple task: transport Hugh’s remains for burial in a chapel. This chapel, a stained-glass folly set on the moors, was built by de Bonne sixteen years earlier to house the remains of his beloved wife and muse, Ada. Since then, the chapel has been locked and abandoned, a pilgrimage site for the rabid fans of de Bonne’s last book, The Lost History of Dreams.
However, Ada’s grief-stricken niece refuses to open the glass chapel for Robert unless he agrees to her bargain: before he can lay Hugh to rest, Robert must record Isabelle’s story of Ada and Hugh’s ill-fated marriage over the course of five nights.
As the mystery of Ada and Hugh’s relationship unfolds, so too does the secret behind Robert’s own marriage—including that of his fragile wife, Sida, who has not been the same since a tragic accident three years earlier and the origins of his morbid profession that has him seeing things he shouldn’t...things from beyond the grave.
EDITORIAL REVIEWS:
"There is a Scheherazade-like structure to Isabelle's tale, and the haunting beauty of the love story makes Ada and Hugh come alive as characters. As in many gothic stories, the moldering old house that represents family tragedy is a fitting, creepy backdrop to the mysteries of the past. Waldherr avoids cliché in her rich descriptions and hints of supernatural presence that never cross into melodrama. Additionally, while most gothic tales offer only darkness and tragedy, a surprising amount of light and joy imbues the ending here. Fitting, perhaps, for a novel that uses stained glass as a symbol for heavenly possibility, even in the face of death. Waldherr writes that 'love stories are ghost stories in disguise.' This one, happily, succeeds as both."
—Kirkus Reviews, starred review
“Waldherr’s gripping debut mystery takes its inspiration from gothic-romance classics like Wuthering Heights…Waldherr plays with gothic tropes, from the plot devices of misty moors, unexpected fires, and uncovered letters to the gendered conventions of tragic romance. The novel builds into a surrealist, haunting tale of suspense where every prediction turns out to be merely a step toward a bigger reveal.”
—Booklist
“Kris Waldherr delivers an accomplished debut novel, The Lost History of Dreams, an atmospheric and hypnotic love story that not even death can end… a sensual, twisting gothic tale that embraces Victorian superstition much in the tradition of A.S. Byatt’s Possession, Diane Setterfield’s The Thirteenth Tale and Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights; the mystery is slyly developed, while the love story is tastefully titillating.”
—BookPage
THOUGHTS/REVIEW:
I savored this amazing gothic love story that had the atmospheric vibe of one of my favorite books, Wuthering Heights. Kris Waldherr wrote an exquisite book that is hauntingly beautiful from the prose to the characters. This was definitely a page turner for me and had me reading into the wee hours of the night to twilight figuring out the twists and wonderful surprises until the very end.
While reading this book, you will be moved for its tragic story about love, loss and grief. This paranormal gothic romance had its share of brooding atmosphere, Victorianesque magical sensuality, in a crumbling estate full of complex and darkly mysterious characters.
I adored this book and highly recommend it.
AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT
Oh... sounds very dark!
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