Book Review: The Haunting of Maddy Clare by Simone St. James

A historical suspense with a big dose of the paranormal, “The Haunting of Maddy Clare” is a ghost story, with the titular character as the ghost.

But, though the story revolves around Maddy Clare, the protagonist is Sarah Piper, a temp whose agency sent her to assist the rich and handsome ghost hunter, Alistair Gellis. And if one good looking male is not enough, the other assistant Sarah has to work with is Matthew Ryder who has all the vibes of a bad boy, 1920s style.

Yes, it was the 1920s and author Simone St. James dressed her characters appropriately from Sarah’s hats, day dresses and shoes to the men’s coats and dress shirts. Reading it, you can actually see in your mind’s eye the costumes that the character are wearing.

“The Haunting of Maddy Clare” is not just a ghost story. It is the story of a small town. It is also a story of the Great War and how survivors were dealing with it. It is a story of friendship. It is a story of a love that was lost and then found again. It is also the story of a new love, that though it wants to bloom, it had to be restrained.

A beautiful and compelling read, which in my case is actually “listen” because this is a review of the audio book. Narrated by Pamela Garelick, it was an all star cast recording as the narrator gave every character their own voice.

“The Haunting of Maddy Clare” is Rated T for teens due to violence and some sexual content which was implied. The sex scenes are not graphic.