3,5 stars

I highly recommend reading The Turn of the Screw, or at least a summary of it before starting this book. It’s an homage to the classic and you will understand it better and enjoy it more after you’ve read the original story.

After the death of her Grandmere Marta has no choice but to become a governess. Her charge turns out to be a mentally disabled girl who can barely communicate, and the servants of the house are mostly hostile towards the new governess. Marta is not bothered much, she is not looking for friends. However she could use a powerful ally, the estranged heir to Fyneshade. It’s a bonus that she is attracted to him.

Marta was one of the least likable MCs I’ve ever read. But that was the point. She was calculating and ruthless and I kept wondering until the very end who was the real villain of this story. There were moments when I caught myself rooting for her (I feel low-key guilty about it) but generally she was not a character you want to relate to.

The writing was easy to follow and the story captivating. It’s a gothic horror so there were a few creepy scenes, but generally it was less scary than I had expected.

TW: child abuse, abortion (one before safe abortions were invented), murder

Thank you Serpent's Tail / Viper / Profile Books and NetGalley for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.historical netgalley64 s Priskah301 173

4,0 ???

( Audiobook)

What a clever story!
Loved it.30 s Marianne3,732 263

Fyneshade is the first stand-alone novel by British author, Kate Griffin. When her beloved Grandmere dies, Marta is sent to be a governess at Fyneshade in Derbyshire. It’s an imposing place, but she is well-equipped with Grandmere’s teaching about herbs and remedies, knowledge that saw her referred to as a witch.

When she meets her ten-year-old charge, Marta is surprised at Grace’s appearance (she has encountered the moonface features before) and that she is virtually non-verbal. She’s meant to teach this girl French, to transform her into a lady? Marta, it turns out, is not what the housekeeper, Mrs Gurney expected either: young and attractive is a concern.

It’s quickly clear that the staff at Fyneshade all love and care for Grace, that she’s a talented sketch artist, wilful, definitely not dumb, and possessed of a certain guile. And she knows every inch of the house the back of her hand.

But Fyneshade is filled with mysteries: the master, Sir William Pritchard, seems to be absent; excepting the groom, all the staff are freakishly unattractive women whose dis of Marta is soon plain; and the north wing is kept locked.

To Mrs Gurney’s consternation, Marta accidentally encounters Grace’s older brother Vaughan and his hawk. Marta realises that the housekeeper had acted to avoid this, and she now warns Marta off: Vaughan Pritchard may be the heir to Fyneshade, but he is barred from the house, and Marta should not trust him, he is a devil. Marta has her own ideas about that…

As she gets to know Fyneshade and its people better, Marta realises that deceit typifies every encounter, that everyone has secrets and none of what is said can be trusted. But Marta, too, is practiced at deception and coercion, and protecting her own interests above all.

Griffin gives the reader an enthralling gothic horror tale that might just be a prequel to a certain Henry James novella. If the reader is initially sympathetic of Marta’s plight, her emerging nastiness and cruelty might alter that a little, but by then it’s hard to look away. Clever, twisty and quite dark.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Serpent’s Tail/Viper.
26 s Natasha Leighton 524 405

Deliciously gothic and exquisitely atmospheric, Kate Griffin’s new brilliantly inventive historical thriller was a veritable feast for the senses—with secrets, lies and morally ambiguous characters I couldn’t get enough of!

Firstly, I’m a huge sucker for anything even remotely gothic, so I knew I had to read this as soon as I heard it compared to one of my all time fave novels, Jane Eyre—If Jane had been a witchy, calculating social climber eager to get her hands on the grand (but crumbling) manor.

And I’m glad to report that not only did it live up to my expectations, it actually surpassed them! The lush, mysteriously suspenseful descriptions were to die for and really wouldn’t be out of place in a Brontë novel.

wise, the hauntingly uncanny sense of dread that seems to encompass our protagonist, Marta as soon as she arrives at Fyneshade had me practically glued to my seat in anticipation.

For the most part, I did Marta, but she’s probably the least able protagonist I’ve ever encountered—with her fiendish, unfriendly demeanour on show to virtually everyone around her (barring the handsome and soon to be wealthy Vaughan) it was pretty difficult to decide whether to root for or against her at times, especially when considering her pretty abysmal treatment of Grace.

Still in mourning for her grandmother, and smarting from her banishment to a life of servitude (after her dalliance with a wealthy heir she was forbidden from marrying), Marta comes across as quite mercenary in her pursuit of fortune and refuses to socialise with any of the staff beyond Mrs. Gurney (the housekeeper) and Old Maggie (the nursemaid.) And yet, I still found myself inextricably drawn to her, eager to see how far her unapologetically manipulative nature would carry her.

This is a bit of a slow-burn, but the gorgeously atmospheric and tantalisingly psychological buildup will more than make up for it. Personally, I absolutely love a good, gothic slow-burn particularly when it’s as detailed, emotional and full of twists as this was.

Henry James fans will also love the literary nod to his most influential supernatural tale, The Turn of The Screw-I don’t want to spoil the surprise on that front so I’ll leave things there, but trust me the payoff is definitely worth it!

And if me, you love flawed morally ambiguous characters then you need to add this to your TBRs immediately, as pretty much every character is suspect in some way; their secrets and lies muddying every single action —it’s absolutely glorious!

Also, a huge thank you to Viper Books for the finished copy and for my spot on the blog tour.2023 adult historical ...more23 s Paul1,282 2,055

“Many would find much to fear in Fyneshade’s dark and crumbling corridors, its unseen master and silent servants. But not I. For they have far more to fear from me”
Another slice of Victorian gothic, set in the 1840s. This has a large crumbling mansion with secret passages, locked rooms and possibly a ghost. There is, of course, a governess at the centre of it, some surly servants, a missing master, a wayward and dangerous son, some herbal shenanigans, dodgy narrators, a mysterious child (in this incarnation with a learning disability), seduction, twists and turns, betrayal, loveable dog and plenty of architecture. There are definite shades of Jane Eyre, The Secret Garden and The Turn of the Screw. In actuality it much more Vanity Fair than Jane Eyre and the narrator/governess is no shrinking violet. Griffin does a good job of trying to make a rather evil antagonist into a able protagonist. Most of the gothic tropes are here, but there’s also a touch of Hammer Horror as well
There is a significant twist at the end: it is an easy one to spot, but the second twist is a little more hidden. It is all very atmospheric and it does make a change to have the main female character not being the put upon heroine. The child is used by everyone. There is an afterword which is best not read at the beginning. As gothic goes this is ok and there’s plenty of tropes to spot.
gothic14 s Willow Heath227 1,105 Read

With Fyneshade, Kate Griffin has crafted not only a true dedication to the legacy of gothic fiction, but also a modern addition to that great canon. This is a novel that demonstrates the power of the grand house, of secrets and legacies and shame, and of the governess. It walks in the footsteps of Jane Eyre and The Turn of the Screw and it looks great doing it.

Our protagonist, Marta, was raised as an orphan by her grandmother, a cunning woman versed in ancient and secretive occult knowledge. When the novel begins, she is invited to work as a governess at the titular Fyneshade: an old house full of dark corners and secret passageways. Though the house’s master is suspiciously absent, Marta is a companion to his daughter, Grace, and soon becomes intrigued by Grace’s older brother, Vaughan.

My full thoughts: https://booksandbao.com/essential-got...13 s Roman Clodia2,615 3,547

I'm surprised so many mention The Turn of the Screw (well, yes, of course I know why...) but none of the ones I've read mention Jane Eyre, the debt to which was far more overt to my eyes: the governess, the housekeeper, the pupil, the sort of master, the dog, the secret in the locked wing. I was also reminded of Wideacre, a historical novel with a far more successful scheming narrator.

What I d about this is Griffin's writing on the sentence level: this oozes lavish Gothic atmosphere with dark and baroque interiors and that ominous sense of corruption just out of sight. The very air of the book exudes hints of opium and decadence.

Sadly, though, not much seems to happen. Our narrator sets herself up with witchy family credentials and a history of wickedness but that doesn't really get acted out for us - and I could see the end coming whereas her prediction skills are shown to be useless. It seemed very obvious that she was being played rather than being the manipulative player she rather stupidly considers herself. And then... turns out she's Miss Jessell from The Turn of the Screw and this book ends as she's about to enter that second literary adventure!

Overall, then, great writing but a disappointing plotline that collapses in on itself - but I did skim-read to the end to find out what happens. 10 s Ana Lopes Miura284 129

A deliciously cruel, creepy and clever Gothic. A modern classic and a great homage to…you’ll find out.

4.5 8 s Christine61 3

A gothic masterpiece.
A gothic masterpiece.

We meet Marta, who is in mourning after the death of her grandmere. Scourned by her aunt and deemed undesireable by the family of the man she loves, Marta is placed at Fyneshade as governess to Grace.  

What starts as a familiar storyline with a character you’d expect to be sympathetic towards soon twists as governess, Marta reveals a real nasty side. Arrogant and selfish, she is quick to make enemies and instead of nurturing young Grace, she under-estimates and manipulates her to suit Marta’s scheming plans. An anti-heroine twist in what is generally a classic Victorian gothic setting. I was so curious to see how Marta’s cunning plan to rise above her station unfold.

A lonely mansion house, secret passage ways, witchy folklore, forbidden love affairs. This was a slow burner but the secrets and the gothic atmosphere made this a compelling read.  The pace picked up half way through, drawing all the elements together for an explosive ending that had me rereading it several times to come to terms with it all.

A gloriously gothic and creepy novel. A must read for fans of Jane Eyre and The Turn of the Screw.6 s Kayleigh | Welsh Book Fairy749 92

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