This is a very readable book, which is more of a fictional memoir than anything else. It does have some supernatural qualities, but it is more about an average person thrown into an exceptional circumstance, and how he deals with it. It’s a very step-by-step account of how Evan Morgan moves through the loss of his brother, pursuing the mystery of his death and his prior change in financial circumstances, all the while falling for his mysterious neighbor – the titular Aline Lloyd.

It’s not a fast-paced romance or fantasy thriller, digging rather deeply into Evan and Aline’s interpersonal relationship development and how Aline’s special talents dovetail into that. As the relationship develops, so follows necessarily Aline sharing more and more of her history and talents piece by piece with Evan. Along the way, tension is put upon both the relationship and specifically Aline, as outside forces invade with an agenda to learn more about her abilities.

While I enjoyed the story, it was milder than I expected. There is no crescendo, but rather a gentle process of unfolding, action/reaction and much internal introspection. Perhaps that is more aligned with how life goes and that is the point of the novel. In the process, it is an engaging story, albeit slower to move along at times and not as impactful as it could be. Again, perhaps that is the actual point. I give it 3.5 rounded up to 4 stars - it's not for everybody, but it is well-written and enjoyable to read.

Interesting premise, but the execution fell short. I was expecting a creepy paranormal story and instead got a verrry long-winded quasi-love story. I had a very hard time maintaining interest and ended up doing a lot of skimming.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers and author for an early copy.

A engaging storyline of a man who loses his brother and relocates to the remote Welsh cottage his brother leaves for him. When there he meets an intriguing woman. This Book delivers a slow precise mystery.
I look forward to reading other books from the author!!

The tale begins as in a memoir sort of way. An American gent meets a mysterious and spell binding woman, Aline. This is a first person story and not very hard to follow. It can be long and drawn out, which builds charcter. There are some secrets worth discovering and some not. There are also feel good parts and a very surprising ending. I do not want to give it all away. If you love fast paced stories, this is not for you. If you love a good romance, with historical tidbits, allure and a little bit of the supernatural, this is an excellent book for you.

So many books too little time...After reading the first 20% I was bored out of my mind. I expected a creepy horror novel instead I got a boring romancy one.

I received a copy of this from BHC Press through NetGalley, thank you for my copy.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with the ARC. I was intrigued by the premise of the book so thought I would try it out. Overall I think the concept is good and all the right ideas are there. The only thing I would say was I found myself bored in a few areas. I will however read from this author in the future!

The publisher's description is a bit misleading. I was expecting more of a horror novel, or at least serious suspense. While there was an X-Files vibe threading through the later part of the book, I was a bit let down by the ending.

The concept was interesting and overall I liked the book, even though I felt it was a bit slow and dragging in parts. Sometimes it felt like the story was trying to build to something a bit mysterious and thrilling, but really it was just a calm, fictionalized memoir of a relationship developing when and American man inherits some Welsh property.

The Seventh Life of Aline Lloyd, by Robert Davies. A well written, and intriguing novel. Evan's brother has just died and left him and his sister a considerable estate. Part of that estate is a house and land in Wales. His new neighbor is a careful woman with a lot of secrets. And as those secrets spill out things get a little creepy.

I liked the concept for this book but the story dragged a lot. There were interesting parts but the outtakes of the interviews were totally unnecessary.

The cover and the blurb had me anticipating a nice, creepy tale. I was under the impression that this was going to be an exciting horror story, but it was a relaxed, slow-paced fictional memoir of a man who falls in love with a nice lady who has a bit of magical woo-woo going on.

There was a delicious build up of suspense in the beginning. Evan, a middle class American who investigates plane accidents for a living, is called to Europe when his brother dies suddenly and is discovered to be unexpectedly wealthy. He is left a hefty inheritance, including a home in Wales. To add to the mystery, he learns that his brother had begun acting very strangely and moving his money around to different banks in different places right before his death.

When Evan goes to inspect the home before selling it, he is warned that the last few people who attempted to live there were chased off by the mentally ill and all-around creepy neighbor, Aline, and that he should keep a polite distance from her because no one knows what she is capable of. Indeed, when he first encounters Aline, she is staring him down from across the field, and he sees her again in a cloak running around barefoot in freezing weather. Creepy neighbor, indeed.

Yet, when she introduces herself to him, she appears to be a delightfully witty and beautiful lady from Cardiff, and there is immediate sexual tension and a budding romance. Odd, sure, but as a reader, I'm thinking, hey, maybe this is going to turn into some sort Fatal Attraction "I"m not going to be ignored, Dan!" situation. It certainly feels that way in their first intimate encounter when she starts chanting in a language he can't understand. Despite all the bizarre red flags, Evan decides to stay in Wales to be closer to Aline, and a perfectly normal relationship blooms.

Nothing really happens in terms of moving the plot forward to some sort of conflict or climax until well past the half way point, and the vast majority of the book seems to be them just getting to know each other and falling in love the way any couple does. Yeah, Aline has a few supernatural talents, but I'm not going to spoil the explanation for why.

There is a small blip in their otherwise pleasant and bucolic life when shadowy government officials show up. They had discovered some evidence of her using her powers to defend herself against two men who had attacked her in an alley a few years before. After a lot of confrontational back-and-forth, Aline consents to some testing and interviews about her abilities, and then she and Evan go on a six month long vacation around the world afterwards to unwind.

Remember his brother's mysterious death and finances? What about all the people Aline chased off? It's all explained, almost as an afterthought, in a page or so at the end. I wouldn't worry about it.

The end.

OVERALL: I enjoyed reading it, but mainly because I was interested in 1) finding out who/what Aline was, 2) solving the mystery behind Evan's brother's death, and 3) discovering when the excitement would begin. But I was disappointed in the answers.

ALSO: A more accurate cover would be a cute couple taking a stroll hand-in-hand past their sunny pastoral Welsh country cottage.

The Seventh Life of Arline Lloyd has a interesting storyline and characters. A quick read and I would read more by this author.

The concept is rich in possibility: what happens when a well educated, but very normal person finds that the object of their passion has unearthly powers. Aline Lloyd is not exactly a witch as understood in popular mythology but nevertheless equipped with beauty and deadly abilities, The book is not about the endless possibilities that Aline's powers could bring, but describes events as seen through the eyes of her lover, Evan Morgan. The first third of the book is the story of their meeting and falling in love and his struggle, first to believe that the powers exist and, second to come to terms with the fact that the woman he loves has them. Although the story is novel and interesting, and well written in an almost old fashioned detail, because it is written in the first person the success of it depends largely on the character of Evan Morgan. The fact is that he comes across as a bit dim. Far too much time is spent on getting over his disbelief and getting his head around the situation. The lovers do find themselves under threat from a sinister group of shady bureaucrats but that threat lacks dramatic impact simply because they are bureaucrats and not obvious villains. Having sorted that out the couple pursue their undemanding ambition of being left alone in peace. This is gently satisfying if not exactly gripping.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers and author for an early copy. I really like the story line and the character development. I look forward to reading other books from the author!!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book.

Goodness me was this book easy to fly through. It is a story of a man who loses his brother and relocates to the remote Welsh cottage his brother leaves for him. When there he meets a woman, a seemingly strange woman – but there is more than meets the eye with Aline. I will leave my overview there as I think it is best to learn more through reading the book and the way Davies tells it. The book is a nice mix of gentle plot development and character building and I was surprised at the end to get the impression that it would not be part of a series – the amount of character building would lend itself to more in than one book.

Being Welsh it is nice to see a more modern book set in the beautiful country that is Wales (rather than more historic timelines) and it is clear to that Davies knows what he is talking about with regards to Wales - which is a bonus.

I will say that I like my books a little lighter in the fantasy department than I would like and some of the actions/dialogue felt a little forced/unrealistic but this did not hinder my reading experience too much.

If you’re in the mood for a quick and easy (light) fantasy read then I would recommend this one. 3.5/5 - rounded to 4 for Netgalley.