Gaston Hall – L.B. Stimson

5/5 stars

Gaston Hall was kind of a sleeper for me. I went into it expecting an average, run of the mill book about hauntings, but I was completely enamoured with Elsie and the children from the start.

It took me longer than I want to admit to figure out what was actually going on with Elsie, but once I had the light bulb moment, I was hooked. Things suddenly made a lot more sense, and the story became a whole lot more tragic.

Stimson did a great job with the political climate that this book was written in, and she gave me characters that I couldn’t help but be charmed by. I wish that Della would’ve been a touch more developed, so I had a greater understanding of what she was doing in Gaston Hall that was so horrifying, but the story reads just fine as it is.

This book makes you think. It’s full of subtle nuances that give a deeper layer to the story that you’re reading and your understanding of how these characters came to be. Everything really came full circle, and it was an extremely satisfying reading experience for me at the end!

I can’t wait to read the next book in this series! While not overtly connected to Gaston Hall, I’ve fallen in love with Stimson’s writing style and definitely want to read more by her!