My favorite part of writing is researching. That includes history fact-finding to ensure that my universe stays realistic and grounded (dragons and krakens aside) as well as reading books. And as an author, I also firmly believe it's my duty to bring attention to underappreciated books, especially when written by other independent authors, so join me on the book hunt!
Introduction:
Title: Who Put Bella in the Wych Elm?
Author: Blake Myers
Genre(s): Ghost Thriller, Ghost Fiction, Historical Thriller
Series Number: 1 of 1
Purchase Link: Buy Here on Amazon
KindleUnlimited Available: No
Triggers: Multiple Deaths, Death of a Spouse [Mentioned], Stalking (Ghost), Suicide, Losing a Limb, Disfigurement, Bearing the Responsibility for Many Deaths, Failing to Save Someone's Life
Analysis:
Characters: The main character Dr. Emma Lloyd is a CSI tech who hopes to reinvent herself as a forensic investigator. She approaches her work searching for evidence and facts, using that to form her conclusion. Which of course makes it all the more fun when that conclusion is "there's a vengeful ghost stalking me". We mainly follow the story from her point of view with a few snippets from other characters throughout the years. She has her own tragic past (because hello, look at the genre), but she is determined to start anew amidst all this fantastical horror. She's a rule follower, which ironically leads her to break some rules that her bosses give her that go against regulation. It's that very fact that drives the past forward, and as anyone who knows me will know, I'm a sucker for a good character-driven story. She might make some mistakes that had me yelling at her through the pages, but she wasn't one of those main characters you see in horror films that has you smacking your forehead from their level of stupidity. I was rooting for her to get her happy ending and fighting with myself not to peak at the ending to see if that happened.
I will admit that in the beginning there were several characters introduced back-to-back, and I was a bit confused who was who. I would definitely suggest any readers take a look at the dates Myers provides to get a sense of the timeline to help with this. But the background characters were definitely fun once I got to know them. There were some that I begged to keep alive and one in particular I was furious survived so long. I say both of those as the highest compliment. Myers really made a certain character VERY easy to hate, and it made his/her eventual death all the more satisfying.
Plot: This book follows most infamous cold the mysterious 80-year-old murder of a Jane Doe found discarded in a tree’s hollow. A woman the locals have come to know as Bella. Ever since her death, this Jane Doe has been haunting the town and driving the townspeople crazy demanding to know who killed her. And the coolest part about this? It's actually based on a real case in British history. (A fact that MAY or may not have ensured I read this book during the day only... Hey I'm only human.)
Haunted by Bella’s vengeful ghost, Emma realizes fairly quickly that this is far more dangerous than she imagined. She has to deal with townspeople who have a specific way of dealing with the "town curse". This means ordering her to follow THEIR rules even if it goes against regulation, refusing to answer her questions (or answering them but then immediately trying to kill her), and treating the whole thing as a conspiracy theory rather than a true case that's still haunting the town.
Revenge plots are one of my favorite tropes, except this time revenge isn’t just reaped against the murderer/those standing in the way of said revenge. The entire town is Bella's victim. For Emma, the mystery becomes less about solving the case and more about self-preservation, even as she (and myself by extension) become more invested in the decades’ old cold case. Like Emma, every new lead left me with more questions than answers. And even as I became more and more sympathetic to Bella’s plight, I wanted to shake her and tell her to stop killing everyone (except that one person, but that’s a spoiler you’ll just have to enjoy first-hand).
Worldbuilding: You know you're fully engrossed in a world when the writer just writing "thump-shush" of the ghost's limping steps has you looking over your shoulder. Myers created a world grounded in reality, even with the ghostly horror stalking the town. And let me tell you, that made it all the more creepy in the best way.
Conclusion:
I’ve always been a fan of horror but was blessed to realize that it was just fiction the moment the last page was turned/credits rolled… until now. I had to read this during the day, and even now thinking of certain scenes just gives me the chills. In summary, I would definitely recommend this book to lovers of the genre, but remember… Whisper carefully.
My Final Rating: 3.5 stars
Buy on Amazon here!
Book Review Requests for Indie Authors:
Want a free review? I will give an honest review in exchange for a free copy of your book. For all requested reviews, I will post my review to both Amazon and Goodreads. I prefer fantasy and historical fiction (bonus points for romantic subplot) but will consider any genre. Just email me at brandedje@gmail.com with the following:
- In the subject, include "Book Request" followed by the title of the book
- Genre(s) & Subgenre(s)
- Book Blurb
- Amazon link
I can't wait to see what wonderful stories my fellow indie authors have come up with!
