scijessreads

Sometimes I find the most interesting books on the “Read Now” shelves in Netgalley. And this was one of those sneaky good finds. I read this book as a free ARC via Netgalley and the publisher, Quill & Crow Publishing House.

An eerie stillness. Mysterious absences of people. Closed off parts of giant manor homes. Strange sounds and unexplained events. All of these are things that make up a good Gothic story. And The Quiet Stillness of Empty Houses (by L.V. Russell) is a good Gothic story. It has the faint, restless unease that follows our main character, Theodora, as she works as a governess at Broken Oak Manor. A manor with one housekeeper and a Lord, Cassias, that seems broken and lost and not sure how to care for his daughter, Ottoline. Theodora is there, caring for them both, in a way. She provides a sharp counterpoint to the festering wounds that surround the house and its’ occupants. Her own life is not without sorrows, but at Broken Oak, they only serve to give her insight into her new companions and their apparent predicaments.

As with any Gothic tale, it is only in the end, after Theodora builds relationships with both Ottoline and Cassias, that the strange occurrences and air of melancholy finally take shape in a twist both familiar and yet somewhat unexpected. The story may have been short, but it wove a deft tale of life and hope, and understanding. Theodora mentions that she has “an affinity for things that refuse to know their place.” That seems to be both a truth and a lie for all of the people at Broken Oak. For stories like this know their place, and yet also seek to break out of it just enough to make themselves a little more interesting.