The Curse of Morton Abbey- Book Review

The Curse of Morton Abbey by Clarissa Harwood

Publication Date: 26th Oct 2021
Genre: Historical Mystery, Gothic Romance 

3.8 Stars 

One Liner: Atmospheric setting with a feminist heroine, but lacks the punch of a good mystery. 

Vaughan Springthorpe has been her father’s assistant for a long time. She finally has a chance to prove that she’s a worthy solicitor when women were limited to manage the house and attending parties.  

Despite her mother’s doubts, Vaughan goes to Morton Abbey in Yorkshire to assist Sir Peter Spencer with the sale of the estate. Of course, her employer is away from the dark, gloomy, and mysterious place. 

Vaughan has to live in the same house with a grumpy butler, a talkative housekeeper, and Peter’s invalid younger brother, Nicholas. The strange sounds and unexplained silence of the members scare Vaughan, but she’s determined to get her job done. 

The job itself proves to be difficult with the library and the papers in the most kind of mess she’s ever seen. As days pass into weeks, Vaughan sets things in order. She meets Nicholas as well as Joe, the gardener at the Abbey. None of them seem to have any explanation for the incidents that trouble her mind. Moreover, she realizes that people aren’t always what they seem to be. 

The nearest village, Netherton, seems to be picture-perfect until Vaughan realizes that there’s something not right. Things get complicated as Vaughan learns new things. However, some incidents are still a mystery, and she is determined to get to the bottom of them. Can Vaughan succeed in revealing the curse of Morton Abbey and finding what her heart desires? 

The book has a slow start but picks up momentum later on. The writing is neither too descriptive nor bland. The mix of show and tell works well to establish the setting and the characters. While we realize a few things at the same time as Vaughan does, the other hints are provided for us to connect the dots. 

Vaughan is the narrator of the story, and we see the change in her as she grows through the book. She is an independent woman wanting to make her mark in the male-dominated society. While that’s great, some of her comments seem a little too condescending about other women and their approach to life. 

The other characters seem to be a hit and miss. While I loved Nicholas Spencer’s mood swings and erratic behavior, and Joe was the too-good-to-be-true kind of guy, the rest of them were pretty much casual. The romance did keep me interested to see what would happen at the end. 

The mystery tends to go in and out of the spotlight. The final reveal somehow fell flat and didn’t seem to be justice to the title. 

The book did have an epilogue of sorts, but even that ended almost abruptly. That kind of approach works for a short story than a full-length novel. When I read almost 400 pages, I want a better and more settled ending (especially since I’m a fan of HEA). 

To sum up, The Curse of Morton Abbey is a decent atmospheric novel with elements of romance and suspense. It would make for a good one-time read. 

Thank you, NetGalley and Thornfield Press, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. 

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