the Widow of Rose House

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Mrs. Alva Webster the most scandalous widow on two continents, has returned home to New York. Shunned by the society elite-including her parents-Alva has lost her reputation but gained her independence. Ignoring the whispers and gossip printed about her in the newspapers, Alva is determined to build a new life by restoring a crumbling Hyde Park mansion, rumors of hauntings be damned. Alva has her own haunted past, she has no place for ghosts in her future. And she especially has no place in her life or an eccentric genius who's taken an interest in her new home...and her.

   Professor Samuel Moore, a pioneer in electric lighting and member of a nationally adored family of scientists, is enchanted by the mysterious mansion and its beautiful owner. When spooky sightings halt Alva's plans for a new start, she turns to Sam's scientific services. As Sam and Alva explore the house's history, they uncover dark truths long buried by a high society family, some of which were never meant to be revealed. With the danger growing, Sam and Alva's love may be the only way to heal the past and light up the future.


This books find a way to my To Be Read pile by way of a weekly email I subscribed to from the Modern Mrs. Darcy website, which is the main site for the What Should I Read Next? podcast.

I honestly would not have ever known about this book if not for this site and podcast. 

But I'm so glad I now know.

This book surprised me in many ways. It is set in 1875 New York and has aspects of the Gothic, Romance, Historical and Suspense. Gothic and Suspense are not my normal genres of choice, but in this book the combination of all of them together works really well. It also has aspect of interior design, which I didn't even know was a thing back them. Not only did it have me Googling a few things to read more, but it also had me completely drawn into the story. Towards the end I did not want to put it down. 

I mean really...a book about a woman trying to overcome her past by remodeling a house in the 1800's, and writing a book about it, while dealing with a ghost and the unwanted affection of a scatterbrained scientist? It's like HGTV gone wild!

One word of caution however, there are a few "romantic" scenes that are quite detailed if you get my meaning. If that is not your thing, then you may want to avoid this book. Or maybe just skip over those parts. For those of you who like that type of scene, let me just say, you will NOT be disappointed in the ones in this book....wink, wink.

Overall this was a good read. It probably would be a good ghost story for the fall, but I'm glad I read it now. It was just meaty enough to be a good summer read too. The characters were charming even in their flaws. The story moved along at a good pace. It was romantic without being over the top, and the story was intriguing. I thoroughly enjoyed this book from beginning to end.

If any of this sounds good to you I encourage you to pick up a copy wherever you buy books, or maybe check it out from your local library like I did. 

If you choose to buy, don't forget about buying used from a book seller or from the website Thrift Books 

Stay tuned for more from my summer reading stack.


Happy Reading!


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