The Darkling Bride by Laura Andersen
Summary
Three generations of Irish nobles face their family secrets in this spellbinding novel from the award-winning author of the Boleyn King trilogy.
The Gallagher family has called Deeprath Castle home for seven hundred years. Nestled in the Wicklow Mountains of Ireland, the estate is now slated to become a public trust, and book lover and scholar Carragh Ryan is hired to take inventory of its historic library. But after meeting Aidan, the current Viscount Gallagher, and his enigmatic family, Carragh knows that her task will be more challenging than she’d thought.
Two decades before, Aidan’s parents died violently at Deeprath. The case, which was never closed, has recently been taken up by a new detective determined to find the truth. The couple’s unusual deaths harken back a century, when twenty-three-year-old Lady Jenny Gallagher also died at Deeprath under mysterious circumstances, leaving behind an infant son and her husband, a renowned writer who never published again. These incidents only fueled fantastical theories about the Darkling Bride, a local legend of a sultry and dangerous woman from long ago whose wrath continues to haunt the castle.
The past catches up to the present, and odd clues in the house soon have Carragh wondering if there are unseen forces stalking the Gallagher family. As secrets emerge from the shadows and Carragh gets closer to answers—and to Aidan—could she be the Darkling Bride’s next victim?
Book Details
The Darkling Bride by Laura Andersen
On Sale Date: March 6, 2018
Fiction / Historical / Gothic / Mystery
Published by Ballantine Books
Hardcover, 368 Pages
Source: Publisher
My Rating: 4 of 5 Stars
Book Review
An ancient Irish Castle, rumored to be haunted by ghosts, sets the stage for this gorgeously atmospheric Gothic romance. THE DARKLING BRIDE weaves a spellbinding tale of mystery. One of dark family secrets and fairytales, of doomed love and murder.
THE DARKLING BRIDE is one of those reads that just fills you with lush atmosphere and a spine-tingling mystery, that is hard to put down. I love it when a setting is so strong it is a character in itself, and that is exactly what you get in Andersen's THE DARKLING BRIDE. Gothic overtones riddle this story with the dark and mysterious, yet there some surprising modern twists that I really enjoyed.
Aidan Gallagher is the darkly handsome and mercurial owner of Deeprath Castle, the last in its line after losing both his parents to a murder that has never been solved. Now, twenty years later, as the Gallagher family is brought together once more to donate the castle, it seems as if some force is determined to reveal the castle's secrets.
The protagonist Carragh Ryan is hired to catalog Deeprath's historic library. Independent and resourceful, she holds a secret fascination with the legends surrounding the Castle. After meeting the handsome Aiden, she realizes that she may just be the person to help unravel of the mystery behind the Darkling Bride and its connection to the murder of Aiden's parents.
Following clues left to Carragh by some unknown force, two narratives emerged. One of Lady Jenny Gallagher set in 1879, and one of the present, where the legend of the Darkling Bride's fate seem to tie together both. Someone or something at Deeprath Castle is bringing Carragh close to the answers and to Aidan—but also to possibly becoming its next victim.
In the End
THE DARKLING BRIDE is a perfect choice if you are a fan of Gothic romance and suspense. Vivid historical details and a rich landscape set in an ancient Irish castle make a wonderfully atmospheric read. A haunting love story and intertwined stories of the Gallagher family ensures a twisty mystery.
