Fantastic and creepy and a worthy entry by the already wonderful Elly Griffiths. Well written and the place and time is eerily evoked in places. Loved the glimpses of school/academic life.

I was intrigued by the layered premise of this book, and it’s stunning cover. This follows Clare Cassidy, who teaches English at a secondary school and occasionally creative writing for adults in Talgarth school, which was formerly the house of a Gothic writer, who wrote The Stranger, on whose life Clare is also writing a biography. One evening Clare hears that her colleague at the school has been murdered and a note appeared beside her body quoting The Stranger. Then Clare finds a line in her diary written by someone else...
This story was layered and pacy with lots of POVs from Clare, to her daughter Georgie, and DS Harpinder Gaur. There were lots of twists and turns. I did find, however, the climax disappointing as the villain’s motivation was melodramatic for my taste and a caricature. Overall a fun read. 3.5/5

I've really enjoyed Elly Griffiths' series of books featuring Dr Ruth Galloway and I was intrigued about this standalone offering. The Gothic element seemed different, although I was nervous at some reviews hinting it would be super creepy. In the end, it wasn't frightening and I'd class it was a mystery with some Gothic elements thrown in. Plot wise, it was great and I enjoyed the changing perspectives of Clare (one of the victim's friends), Harbinder (one of the detectives investigating the case) and Georgia (Clare's daughter). Some scenes were from the perspectives of more than one character, which was interesting, especially for throwing doubt onto characters. Some good twists and turns and I didn't guess the perpetrator until just before it was revealed. I did guess wrongly earlier on! Highly recommended.

The Stranger Diaries is a stand-alone novel by Elly Griffiths. It is part murder mystery, part gothic thriller that is an ideal read for a long winter read. I loved it.

A creepy gothic thriller with a spooky murder mystery. A perfectly paced classic whodunnit set in an old mansion.

This is a stand-alone novel from Elly Griffiths, following on from her two successful series featuring Ruth Galloway and Stephens & Mephisto. I already love her books so was excited to see how this would pan out - clue: I wasn't disappointed.

Our central character is Clare Cassidy, single parent, teacher and would-be author. She works at a school where a long-dead author, the mysterious R.M.Holland used to live (think M.R.James). Clare likes to read some of his spooky stories to her classes to help them improve their writing. The start of the book sees the death of one of Clare's colleagues and a tantalising link to the writing of Holland. The police think that the killer may have a link to the school.

Clare has a habit of keeping a diary and the police ask her to recall her friendship with Ella and of a particular event in both of their lives. Flicking back through the diaries, Clare discovers some writing at the bottom of one of the pages - only the handwriting isn't hers! Who wrote it, how did they get hold of her diary, and what do they want with Clare?

A second death occurs and the link to Holland is now firmly in place, as is a second diary note left for Clare. It would seem that the killer is reading her diaries and is trying to protect Clare from those who may have upset her. Clare doesn't know what to do, should she leave the school and take her daughter Georgia with her to protect her from this situation or by remaining at Talgarth High will it draw the killer out?

Elly Griffiths holds the tension with her settings, and even when Clare and Georgia escape up to Scotland, she keeps the atmosphere going. I didn't guess who the killer was, though with hindsight I probably could have, but for me that isn't what the story is about. It is about relationships, and keeping secrets, and emotions and how real life is affected by all of these.

This isn’t my usual type of book to read but I throughly enjoyed it. A great dark spooky thriller to keep the reader enthralled. Great book

Many thanks to Netgalley and Elly Griffiths for the copy of this book. I agreed to give my unbiased opinion voluntarily.

Unsettling Gothic thriller, loved the several points of view as this keeps it interesting. I'm just not a big fan of the paranormal so that is the only downside.

The Stranger Diaries tells us of Clare, an English teacher who is writing a book about the Victorian author R. M. Holland. Clare lives with her daughter Georgie and her dog Herbert (named after the dog in one of Holland’s books). When a colleague and friend of Clare’s is murdered there are eerie echoes from the short story of Holland’s she often studies with her adult students, The Stranger. As events moves on it becomes evident that Clare is inextricably linked with the murders despite having no idea why. Who is committing these crimes? And are she and her family in danger?

This book was a bit of a mixed bag for me. It just seemed to take a while to get off the ground and for the story to become intriguing. It did though, in time, and I am glad I continued with it. We hear from three different points of view; Clare, Georgie and Harbinder, the detective conducting the investigation. Alongside that we are given excerpts from The Stranger by Holland. This all lends a suitably eerie atmosphere and tension to the book which is brilliantly written and contains some great characters. I disliked Harbinder at first, writing her off as rather bitter, but she becomes more and more likeable as the story progresses. Likewise Clare is a character full of contradictions who, at times, I wasn’t sure I liked, but as I got to know her that changed a great deal.

This is a great book for those who enjoy a thriller with a sprinkling of the supernatural thrown in. Yes, it was a slow burner for me initially but ultimately it is an entertaining and slightly quirky read which I enjoyed.

Plot: When a fellow teacher at Clare Cassidy’s school is found murdered, her life and work collide as clues around the body hint of a connection to RM Holland, a writer whose life Clare is currently investigating. Then the mystery gets even deeper when a mysterious note appears in her private diary where she has confided her suspicions, but who wrote it and how could it have got there?

My thoughts: This story had an excellent combination of a potentially haunted school, a slightly gothic style murder and a sharp witted female detective – everything that makes a wonderful mystery story for me. While Clare’s character was at times pretty stereotypical of a lead in a book like this, there were some other brilliant characters – I really liked her teenage daughter and the female detective who broke the mould. The story itself was good enough to keep me interested throughout and very well-paced with a creepy atmosphere.

My first Elly Griffiths' novel but certainly not my last - I so enjoyed her writing. This takes the form of a gothic novel within a novel. Clare Cassidy is an English teacher who also coaches a writing class and is trying to write a book about R.M. Holland who wrote The Stranger (the gothic novel) - this story is told in part during the book and then in its entirety at the end.
Clare's best friend is killed and from there we follow the characters involved in this story. It is well told and there is much humour in the writing with wonderful descriptions and very up to date references. An entertaining and enthralling read with ghostly overtones.
Many thanks to Netgalley/Elly Griffiths/Quercus Books for a digital copy of this title. All opinions expressed are my own.

This one kept me reading. Good twists and turns. Although I’m not normally a fan of ghost stories, the way the supernatural theme was handled added to the intrigue. Love the literary background to the present day story, which gave this thriller a whole added dimension.

Clare is a teacher working at a school in Sussex. Whilst the school is a little rough around the edges it does allow Clare to work on her book about RM Holland. Holland was a Victorian writer of ghost stories who used to live at the school and his study is still preserved. Holland's most famous work was a story called 'The Stranger' about a series of ghostly goings-on and murders around Halloween. When Clare's friend Ella is murdered Clare comes under the spotlight but as more deaths occur Clare moves from suspect to potential victim.
I love Griffiths' books and have enjoyed both the Ruth Galloway series and the Mephisto novels so I approached this with mixed feelings as horror/supernatural books are one of my least favourite genres. I needn't fear. Whilst there is a plot line that hints at all of this in the writings of MR James-type, actually it is a straightforward thriller with lots to like. Clare is a very unlikable person but I really thought the three narrators model worked well, especially DS Kaur (who could be developed as a character in sequels). It's another enjoyable read from a very accomplished writer.

Having read several of Elly Griffiths other books I was really looking forward to this and wasn't disappointed.
A well written story, fabulous characterisation and a plot that grabs you and draws you in. A compelling page turner that I found it difficult to put down.

LOVED this book. It’s just the right amount of gothic. A really pacy thriller about a spate of murders at a school which used to be the home of a famous horror writer. There’s lots of mystery elements. Generally just a really good read, especially if you love books as there’s a lot of literary references. I’d give it 4/5 stars.

Thankyou to NetGalley, Quercus Books and the author, Elly Griffiths, for the opportunity to read a digital copy of The Stranger Diaries in exchange for an honest and unbiased opinion.
I was very excited to receive a copy of this book. I find this author a pleasure to read and this book was no exception. I thought the storyline was well thought out, written and thoroughly intriguing.
Well worth a read

Full review to come.
I deeply apologize, but life is a handful lately and I'm using all my free time to read, not review. I hope everybody understands.

As a basic introduction to this book, it is difficult to see how a book about an investigation into a 'Gothic horror' story and author and their links to a modern day murder all wrapped in a crime novel could be anything else other than gripping. Feel free to read that last sentence with or without irony… if Gothic horror and police procedurals are your thing (as they are mine), this book will grip from the first page on. However, if you find prose constructed and contained within a novel as if written by a fictional author a bit much, well, you are in the wrong place!

Other than the Gothic elements of this book, it is very contemporary in terms of style and references and feels very much like a modern novel in its composition but it is still unlike virtually anything else I have read. Other authors have certainly written prose as if previously written by another author and there have unquestionably been many books where links have been drawn between past and present ‘happenings’. But this is the first time I have experienced that style of writing in the crime genre.

The prose is fairly concise and the plot moves at a surprisingly good rate being propelled by a number of protagonists’ voices and diary entries. There are very few dull spots or unnecessary parts in this novel and indeed there are some genuinely chilling and possibly disturbing portions where the reader is left feeling unsettled, but in a good way! In addition, and in the tradition of a Gothic horror novel, the potential of a supernatural explanation to the events of the story hangs over this novel to the end – does everything that happens have a purely rational explanation or is there a supernatural element directing the narrative? Well I’m not going to answer that!

This is, if not truly a unique book it is certainly quite unusual and I have to say I enjoyed every minute I spent reading it.

Brilliant, well written and described. Full of twists and turns, excellent storyline and really good read. Struggled to put down from the beginning.

Scary! Very atmospheric and a real page turner! This really had me on the edge of my seat. I love a book that’s different and this is one of those. Will be reading more by this author.