The Haunting of Maddy Clare
A woman of limited means and even less experience must confront a vengeful spirit in this haunting novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Broken Girls and The Sun Down Motel.
1920s England. Sarah Piper’s lonely, threadbare existence changes when her temporary agency sends her to assist an obsessed ghost hunter. Alistair Gellis—rich, handsome, and scarred by World War I—has been summoned to investigate the spirit of the nineteen-year-old maid Maddy Clare, who is said to haunt the barn where she committed suicide.
Maddy hated men in life, and she will not speak to them in death. But Sarah is unprepared to confront an angry ghost—real or imagined—on her own. She’s even less prepared for the arrival of Alistair’s associate, rough, unsettling Matthew Ryder, also a veteran of the trenches, whose scars go deeper than Sarah can reach.
Soon, Sarah is caught up in a desperate struggle. For Maddy’s ghost is no hoax—she’s real, she’s angry, and she has powers that defy all reason. Now, Sarah and Matthew must discover who Maddy was, where she came from, and what is driving her desire for vengeance—before she destroys them all....
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Community Reviews
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 4 stars
You can always count on Simone St. James for a good ghost story. While I didn’t enjoy The Haunting of Maddy Clare quite as much as The Sun Down Motel and The Book of Cold Cases, it’s still a great spooky read.
It’s atmospheric and tragic, but also filled with hope, empowerment, and budding romance.
With a ghost set on deadly revenge, it’s up to Sarah to help Maddy find justice and the peace she so rightly deserves.
You can always count on Simone St. James for a good ghost story. While I didn’t enjoy The Haunting of Maddy Clare quite as much as The Sun Down Motel and The Book of Cold Cases, it’s still a great spooky read.
It’s atmospheric and tragic, but also filled with hope, empowerment, and budding romance.
With a ghost set on deadly revenge, it’s up to Sarah to help Maddy find justice and the peace she so rightly deserves.
After reading Silence for the Dead, I checked out some of St James other work and came across some good reviews for this book from other members I follow (thx Michelle & Jeanette😊). I like spooky, gothic, historical ghost stories and already knew that St James has a penchant for them and is a really good writer and storyteller. I also like her preference towards bold, snarky, smart@$$, female MC’s – my fave MC’s.
The book summary basically lays out the premise for the primary storyline of why Maddie is haunting the Clare’s (an older couple who found her and took her in for seven years) barn and what does she want? What the book summary doesn’t mention is that Maddie left a suicide note and while Mrs. Clare has no idea what it means, Sarah, Alistair and Matthew are determined to find out the meaning for it. There are also secondary storylines like the appearance of Alistair’s former flame, who Sarah and Matthew believe has convinced Alistair to do something for her, something that may put the team in harm’s way. There is another storyline of the developing physical attraction between Sarah and Matthew.
In the first half of the story, there are two incidents, first Sarah and then later the team come into contact with Maddie’s spirit. I stop short of saying her ghost because, at this point, no one, not even Mrs Clare, has ever “seen” Maddie’s ghost. However, all of them have felt the presence of her, felt the overwhelming change in the atmosphere when Maddie is present, and Maddie has actually spoken to Sarah. It’s Maddie’s creepy and ominous message to Sarah that drives the team to desperation to do whatever Maddie tells them to.
It's into the second half when both Sarah and Matthew pasts are revealed. Maddie makes more appearances and provides more details of her past that come to light when Mrs. Clare thinks Maddie has finally left; she hasn’t, she’s just changed locations. Also, Sarah and Matthew realize what Maddie’s suicide note means and then the story takes a REALLY scary and sinister turn. The ending was intense and scary and very satisfying.
St James really outdid herself on this one. I actually liked this one more than the other one. This one seemed so much more chilling and unnerving and overall had a scarier and creepier feel and tone to it. I listened to the audiobook narrated by Pamela Garelick and her British accent and all of her different voices. I have added Broken Girls to my to-read list and look forward to getting to it.
The book summary basically lays out the premise for the primary storyline of why Maddie is haunting the Clare’s (an older couple who found her and took her in for seven years) barn and what does she want? What the book summary doesn’t mention is that Maddie left a suicide note and while Mrs. Clare has no idea what it means, Sarah, Alistair and Matthew are determined to find out the meaning for it. There are also secondary storylines like the appearance of Alistair’s former flame, who Sarah and Matthew believe has convinced Alistair to do something for her, something that may put the team in harm’s way. There is another storyline of the developing physical attraction between Sarah and Matthew.
In the first half of the story, there are two incidents, first Sarah and then later the team come into contact with Maddie’s spirit. I stop short of saying her ghost because, at this point, no one, not even Mrs Clare, has ever “seen” Maddie’s ghost. However, all of them have felt the presence of her, felt the overwhelming change in the atmosphere when Maddie is present, and Maddie has actually spoken to Sarah. It’s Maddie’s creepy and ominous message to Sarah that drives the team to desperation to do whatever Maddie tells them to.
It's into the second half when both Sarah and Matthew pasts are revealed. Maddie makes more appearances and provides more details of her past that come to light when Mrs. Clare thinks Maddie has finally left; she hasn’t, she’s just changed locations. Also, Sarah and Matthew realize what Maddie’s suicide note means and then the story takes a REALLY scary and sinister turn. The ending was intense and scary and very satisfying.
St James really outdid herself on this one. I actually liked this one more than the other one. This one seemed so much more chilling and unnerving and overall had a scarier and creepier feel and tone to it. I listened to the audiobook narrated by Pamela Garelick and her British accent and all of her different voices. I have added Broken Girls to my to-read list and look forward to getting to it.
I had high hopes for this book. Unfortunately, most of them were disappointed. This book was tritely predictable, though some of the descriptions of the hauntings were riveting, and it didn't feel well researched at all. It was supposed to be set in 1922 England and the author seemed to be trying too hard to make it seem historically appropriate, even if it never gelled or felt forced.
However, my biggest annoyance about this book was the narrator, Sarah Piper. Despite scenes explicitly written to counteract this, she was weak, shrill, naive, and hopelessly buffeted about by forces stronger and more powerful than herself. She would loudly proclaim she was brave enough to go into a haunted barn then immediately spend five pages detailing how scared she was. And not in the, "she was scared but then overcame it" sort of way, but the "she was scared and then eventually chickened out and was even more scared" kind of a way. She kept trying to portray herself as a modest woman, but then there was all this highly scandalous loose behavior! Which, I must add, I had a really hard time believing for 1922. What, is she the most modern of flappers? Because I'm pretty sure the level of promiscuity she was boasting about would have still been socially unacceptable, especially for how she always, always describes herself, which is destitute. Ultimately, she was a bundle of hypocrisy. The author would portray her one way and then try to get her to announce she wasn't that way. Actions speak louder than words.
Ultimately, it was an entertaining tale (I really did fall in love a little bit with the main leading man) but I so couldn't stand the narrator that it left a bad taste in my mouth. Really, this is more like 2.5 stars and I really wouldn't recommend it.
However, my biggest annoyance about this book was the narrator, Sarah Piper. Despite scenes explicitly written to counteract this, she was weak, shrill, naive, and hopelessly buffeted about by forces stronger and more powerful than herself. She would loudly proclaim she was brave enough to go into a haunted barn then immediately spend five pages detailing how scared she was. And not in the, "she was scared but then overcame it" sort of way, but the "she was scared and then eventually chickened out and was even more scared" kind of a way. She kept trying to portray herself as a modest woman, but then there was all this highly scandalous loose behavior! Which, I must add, I had a really hard time believing for 1922. What, is she the most modern of flappers? Because I'm pretty sure the level of promiscuity she was boasting about would have still been socially unacceptable, especially for how she always, always describes herself, which is destitute. Ultimately, she was a bundle of hypocrisy. The author would portray her one way and then try to get her to announce she wasn't that way. Actions speak louder than words.
Ultimately, it was an entertaining tale (I really did fall in love a little bit with the main leading man) but I so couldn't stand the narrator that it left a bad taste in my mouth. Really, this is more like 2.5 stars and I really wouldn't recommend it.