Sarah Penner entrances us once again with her latest novel. The London Séance Society centers around Lenna Wilkes, who's traveled from London to Paris in an effort to find out who murdered her sister. Evie had been a very eager student of a world renowned medium whose main claim to fame was the conjuring spirits of murder victims to find out who killed them. Lenna is now that very medium's understudy. Will she keep her steadfast trust in facts and science, or open her eyes and mind to the supernatural?

There’s no sophomore slump for Sarah Penner! She knocked it out of the park again with The London Séance Society.

I’ll be totally honest - this one took a bit longer to draw me in than The Lost Apothecary did and that made me a little nervous… But once it got going, it really took off and kept me wanting more. The web of mystery in London and Paris society, tied in with the zenith of the Victorian spiritualist movement (and all that that entails), makes for a truly unique story with a rather clever ending.

Sarah Penner's historical fiction is unmatched. The London Seance Society instantly transports you to 19th-century London. Atmospheric, well-written, and obviously well-researched, Penner is now on my list of auto-buy authors. Excellent book!

Lenna wants answers to the brutal murder of her sister, Evie, even if that means becoming an understudy to the world’s most renowned medium. Vaudeline is widely known to be an authentic conjurer of spirits who were victims of violent crimes. She uses her gifts to learn who was responsible for their deaths. Lenna has joined her in Paris to learn the art of séances, and despite being a skeptic herself, she has a natural talent for supernatural gifts.

Vaudeline receives word that a friend of hers in England has been murdered. Mr. Volckman was the founder and leader of the London Séance Society, an exclusive gentlemen’s club that rose in notoriety at the height of the 1873 Victorian spiritualist movement. Vaudeline and Lenna set out to discover the truth behind what happened to Mr. Volckman. Lenna also hopes that returning to England where her sister was murdered will mean they can finally learn the truth of that mystery too. But the plots run deeper than either of them expected and they quickly become entangled in sinister schemes beyond their imagining.

Everything we loved about her writing in her previous debut, The Lost Apothecary, is back and better than ever! This is sure to be another massively popular release. It’s got a vividly constructed historical setting, creeping tension in the plot, and an atmospheric feel to the prose and style. The paranormal elements really come to life in a believable way. Suspense and illusions will keep you guessing with so many unexpected twists.

The feminist underpinnings create nuances in the plot and the themes of women empowerment are strong. There is an intensity in the way that Lenna explores her sexuality, with even some mildly spicy moments which I was pleasantly surprised about. Women during that time were largely suppressed and I enjoyed the journey that Lenna takes in learning to love and express herself, even if it was in ways that were not the status quo.

But the true driver of this story is that the bonds and loyalty between siblings transcends even death. Even through all of the danger and discoveries, Lenna never loses sight of her ambition for justice for her sister. This is the kind of historical book that I just love to read, with just enough of the magical to make it entrancing. And there is even a section at the end of the story with research and information about the climate of society during that time-period. The story is passionate, dramatic, and sinister. If you love the possibility that the supernatural is real, an unlikely Victorian-era female heroine, and a complex murder-mystery plot, then this is the book for you.

This book was so fun, a page turner if there ever was one. Engaging and fascinating all the way through. I loved the setting and time period at the height of spiritualism at the time, the characters, the mystery of the society. Haven't read Penner's previous novel but will absolutely add it to my list of to-reads. I mean, this was just a blast to read.

This was a very interesting read. I really liked the story, but I will have to say that it took a little while for it to pick up and really peak my interest. I also found Lenna as a character to be frustratingly stubborn at times, but I did end up really liking her by the end. This is definitely a very fun, spooky mystery that is full of twists and intrigue!

I have previously read The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner and it is one of my favorite books of all time. I was hoping that The London Seance Society would give off similar vibes. While this book does still have a mystical, magical kind of vibe to it, it is not the same as The Lost Apothecary.

Told from alternating viewpoints, The London Seance Society explores the relationship between the head of the society and a woman who lost her sister. The Seance Society performs seances for individuals who wish to reconnect with the dead. In some cases, they are able to solve cold cases. The main character, Lenna, becomes interested in The London Seance Society when she finds out that her deceased sister had been spending a lot of time with some of the members. The majority of the book expands upon Lenna's interest in the society. The book unfolds to reveal who killed who.

While I enjoyed the idea of this book, I didn't necessarily enjoy my time reading it as much as I had hoped. While I think the language was meant to mimic the time period, I found some of the phrasing to be a bit laughable. Overall, it was interesting to read about seances. However, I will not be reading this book again and I would be reluctant to recommend to others unless I knew that the content was something that they would thoroughly enjoy.

The London Séance Society was a fun read. It delved into spirit world with séance in Victorian times. The object of the séance was to get in touch with the murder victims, in hopes to find out who killed them, and put their spirit to rest. Lenna Wickes was an apprentice for Vaudeline D’Aillaire. Vaudeline was well known for her ability to speak with the dead through séance. When Vaudeline and Lenna are requested to find out how the President of the London Séance Society, and Lenna’s sister died. They ended up finding out something that threatened their life. There are twist and turns and an ending I didn’t expect. Highly recommend The London Séance Society.

Thank you NetGalley, and Harlequin Trade Publishing, Park Row for the ARC for my honest review.

I LOVED The Lost Apothecary so I was so excited to see that Sarah Penner has a new book coming out! This novel is just as enjoyable as her first. I loved the creepy magical elements with the seances! And this cover is stunning!! Sarah Penner is becoming one of my favorite and auto-buy authors.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed are completely my own.

After reading The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner and loving it, I was looking forward to her second book. Her sophomore book was everything I hoped it to be!! The London Séance Society takes places in 1873 at the height of the Victorian spiritualist movement. The beginning of the book lays out the background of the gentleman's club called the London Séance Society, and fleshes out the characters of Vaudeline D'Allaire (medium), Lenna and Evie Wickes (sisters and understudies to Vaudeline), Mr. Morley and Mr. Volckman (both leaders of the London Séance Society). Once you think you know the characters, the author throws some fun twists and turns into the story that had my jaw drop. Just when you think you know a character, something happens that makes you rethink what you have been told. It is such a fun ride. As a fan of historical fiction and anything London, I loved this story and how the author created a unique story about mediums and séances that make them seem real. She developed her own incantations to conduct a séance, and her creativity and research that share all the deceptions that could have been used to scam grieving families was intriguing from ventriloquists to trick candles. I read the last 100 pages in one sitting. I couldn't read fast enough to find out how Lenna got herself out of the convoluted situation she found herself in. If you are looking for something in historical fiction that has nothing to do with war or spies and does have a few creative and strong women outfoxing the men, I highly recommend this book.

Thank you Harlequin Trade Publishing and Net Galley for an ARC of The London Séance Society by Sarah Penner for an honest review.

The London Seance Society will transport you to Victorian London, a time when spiritualism was the latest craze, and the leisure class spent their evenings participating in seances. Lenna Wickes is studying the art of the seance under renowned spiritualist, Vaudeline D'Aillaire, while also trying to uncover the details surrounding her sister's death. When Vaudeline travels from Paris to London to investigate another murder, Lenna joins Vaudeline as her apprentice. The two women uncover more than they bargained for once they begin their investigation. Sarah Penner does an excellent job bringing the time period to life, and the plot is full of twists and turns that I didn't see coming. Highly recommended for fans of historical fiction and the paranormal. Thank you to Netgalley, Park Row, and the author for the librarian preview!

This is a book about the spiritual world in Victorian England. Lenna has recently lost her sister to murder and wants to learn the art of the seance to speak with her. She gets drawn into a seance at the London Seance Society and uncovers a mystery.

Such a fun read! I was worried it wouldn't live up to my love of The Lost Apothecary, but I thought this one was just as good. Perfect premise for upcoming fall weather and I loved the feminism aspect of the storyline. Would definitely recommend.

Equal parts spooky and charming, THE LONDON SEANCE SOCIETY is a novel that will for sure read into the future of many readers' hearts.

This book is fantastic! I could not fathom that anything could be better than the lost Apothecary but Penner had done it again! This was so creative and well written and the facts about the Victorian era made it so remarkable, the recipies at the end were so much fun! This will be another best seller!

I always look for a gothic Victorian tale and so many times there is something missing.
That's not the case in The London Seance Society. It has the right amount of paranormal, romance and mystery. Sarah Penner does historical fiction well and you'll enjoy being taken to 19th Century London.

3.75 stars
This was a great historical mystery! I really enjoyed The lost apothecary and was glad to see that this book was equally as good!
The characters were written well and the mystery was just right (not overboard).
I very much enjoyed reading this book.

Skeptic Lena Wickes, apprentice to famous medium Vaudeline D’Allaire is about to help with a seance that will identify her sisters killer and the only reason Lena has embraced the supernatural. She and her sister had fought many times about believing the dead can return, ruining their relationship, and Lena’s devastated knowing she can never apologize or understand why her sister was so interested in the London Seance Society a male only establishment that conducts seances.
Part mystery, part historical novel, this is every bit as good as Penner’s first novel The Lost Apothecary.