An eerie, complex and brilliantly written historical ghost story.

Only after I finished this novel did I realise that this was based on a true story!

This novel had everything you could want in a ghost story, from terrifying descriptions of the ghosts (and the humans), to the uncertainty of whether Crawford was even really seeing these ghosts, if it was in his head, or if he was being hoaxed.

I was so impressed with AJ's writing, it was complex in places, but I could vividly picture each character and the places he described, and it was also incredibly intense in some places, especially in the third part of the novel. I also found it comedic in some places, with some brilliant one-liners from both Crawford himself, as well as other characters, such as Blithe.

I found that William was a very unlikeable character from the offset, he treats both his wife and children unkindly, and sees himself higher up the social hierarchy than his peers, due to his engineering role and that he is a soon-to-be published author. My dislike of him took nothing away from the story however, it simply made it even more interesting to find out what would happen to Crawford.

Without going into too much detail as I do not wish to spoil the story, I was completely taken by surprise by the huge twist at the end. Awestruck and dumbfounded, I thought it was absolutely brilliant! Did not expect it all all, and thoroughly impressed!

Overall, I really enjoyed this book, and I will recommend it to anyone that loves a a spooky story!

Unfortunately, this book was a bit of a miss for my personal reading taste.
I don't think this was a necessarily bad book and certainly not badly written but there were a few issues I had that interrupted my enjoyment of it.

This was a very slow start to get going. Even by 50% through it was still a bit of a struggle for me to be gripped by the story and become invested.
I think this was also perhaps due to the narrator of the story. I found him so insufferably arrogant and ignorant to the point of hilarity, which I think was the author's intent but it was just a little too much for me to be able to connect to him on any level. You really don't see much or learn much about other characters in his family in depth and his POV is honestly quite insufferable to read from after a while because of who his character is. I realise this character was set around a true historical figure, but I just feel I would have enjoyed getting a deeper look into some of the other family members like his wife or Kathleen as well. Especially during a time where women's social standing was so limited.

Coupled with the slow start, I think perhaps this book would be better off marketed as more of a historical fiction story rather than focusing overly on the seance and spiritualism aspect. As it takes such a long time to become a prominent element in the story, the way the synopsis comes across, I think anyone coming into the book purely based on a supernatural/spiritualism interest may feel disappointed.
There was quite a lot of commentary about social circles and standing of the time and of the political climate in Europe before the war, another reason I think it may be better marketed to historical fiction readers.

I wanted to love this book so much but I ended up finding it hard to get through. A lot of my struggle with it was due to the first person narration. I just don't expect it in adult books and don't like it much but it was an understandable choice for this novel. I also thought the jumps in the timeline were harsh and didn't care for William's character (which might explain why I didn't like him as a narrator) he's self-important and dismissive of others, particularly his family.

I did enjoy the premise of the book though and I though West did a wonderful job creating a spooky turn of the century atmosphere. I think Spiritualism and it's historical significance is really interesting so it was enjoyable to read a spooky novel about the topic, especially once I learned that it was based on true events.

I was interested in this book from the moment I saw it & read the blurb but when @_treatyoshelves_ told me her glowing reviews I just knew instantly I was going to love it so I bumped it up on my TBR.

This is the perfect october/spooky season read, it's got such a mix of themes throughout, it's set in the 1900's in Belfast Ireland & it's got a beautiful gothic feel to it throughout, it's so eerie & the build up is just done so excellently followed with the most perfect execution of an ending.

It dips a lot into Séances & the use of contacting spirits & the belief of afterlife which is something that interests me a lot anyway but I mean you'll always have your sceptics & that's most certainly the case for William in this story but how far will he go to prove its all a hoax? You'll honestly have to read and find out.

The ending for me was the absolute best experience a book has given me, It literally made me sit up in my bed covered in goosebumps after gasping outloud & then as some of you may have seen on my stories I was too spooked to sleep until like 3am too, if that doesn't sell it to you I don't know what will.

I can't recommend this book enough & AJ is one of the most kind, grounded authors I've had the pleasure of speaking too on here ❤

While this is a historical fiction, it’s easy to read with a flowing, lyrical writing style that captures the essence of the time, but isn’t hard to follow. In the beginning, the narrative reflects a dry humor which is exacerbated by William’s curmudgeonly attitude. He seems like an old man with the way that he’s constantly searching for his pipe and how little he can relate to his children. If it were modern times, he would be the guy standing on his porch, shrieking at the neighbourhood children to “get off my lawn!” Then, it’s revealed that he’s thirty-four. I laughed out loud at that point, and while I realize that people aged a little faster back then, he is definitely an old soul.

This humour didn’t detract from the tension prevalent from the very first pages. There are quite a few surprising turns of events in the storyline, and I genuinely didn’t know what was going to happen. One thing that disappointed me slightly was the fact that Harry Houdini and Arthur Conan Doyle, while mentioned on the back of the book, don’t show up until very far into the book. I understand that their names were likely a selling point for the novel, and eeeverything is about marketing these days (groan) but I couldn’t help but feel disappointed that they didn’t play a larger role in the plot. That in no way affects my rating or my review, because I understand that the author and his story has nothing to do with this. It’s just the publishers and their marketing of the book!

The entire book carries an air of mystery throughout, and at times the story is quite chilling. The reader never really knows what to believe. Are ghosts and the spiritual real, or just an elaborate hoax? At times, the book reads like a psychological thriller because of this.

While the story occasionally suffered from issues with pacing, particularly in the middle (there are a lot of characters to keep track of, and they’re not quite distinct enough), the end makes up for this tenfold. There’s a fabulous twist that I didn’t see coming, even though there were clues throughout.

I recommend this book to those who like a historical thriller/mystery with paranormal themes and a chilling atmosphere.

This was a slow read for me but absolutely worth it for the twists at the end.

The Spirit Engineer is an incredibly atmospheric and gothic read. Starting in Belfast 1914, I really enjoyed how the setting and time influenced and played its own part in the story. The sinking of the Titanic and the First World War both cast a shadow over events and West uses this and other historical events and figures to full advantage, adding another layer to the book.

Now knowing how the book ends I have even more appreciation for the writing than I did whilst reading it. There are moments when you want more action, or for the story to move forward but looking back it’s clear to see how West is laying all the puzzles pieces which come together for the ending. And the last quarter of the book is certainly filled with all the action you need!

The main character, William Crawford, is erratic and unlikeable and yet you also come to feel sorry for him and even root for him! There are also some really intriguing women in this book who I would have loved to be explored further but this story is being told from Williams point of view and it’s very in keeping with his personality that they don’t get the time they deserve.

This book is pretty haunting and but knowing it is based on real people and events, although embellished, makes it even more so.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

When I spotted a book blurb that included the Titanic, seances, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and Harry Houdini, I couldn’t resist picking it up—an impulse that only got stronger when I realized that The Spirit Engineer by A. J. West was based on a true story that happened in Belfast around 100 years ago.

William Jackson Crawford is a professor at the Belfast Technical Institute, a man of science desperate to work his way up through the ranks of society and sit at the top table during the Institute’s regular galas. For now, however, he is reliant on a busybody of an elderly benefactor as he tries to make ends meet for his wife and three children. His wife Elizabeth has been distraught since the death of her brother Arthur on the Titanic two years previously—something William is secretly harboring guilt over—and seems to be drifting away from him. Believing her to be having an affair, William instead discovers that his wife has been secretly attending seances at the home of the downtrodden Goligher family in the hopes of speaking with Arthur.

After a personal tragedy, and finding himself wrapped up in a high society bet that could raise his family’s fortunes forever, William becomes obsessed with the Golighers. He designs countless experiments to prove whether or not the family’s young medium Kathleen is truly in contact with the dead or whether everything he and his wife have experienced has been a hoax. As William’s mental state deteriorates and his relationship with Kathleen grows ever more unseemly, William’s grasp on reality weakens and threatens both himself and his family.

The Spirit Engineer was broken up into four parts (plus an epilogue) and I honestly felt as if the entirety of part one could have been condensed into a single chapter or a prologue. While intended to connect readers with the book’s characters, in particular, William and his family, it instead dragged on for what felt like far too long with nothing really happening. It wasn’t until part two when the Golighers are properly introduced that the story really kicks off.

Once it was going, The Spirit Engineer was a fascinating and twisted piece of historical fiction that kept me guessing right until the end about whether or not Kathleen’s abilities were real. The gothic style of writing reminded me of The Woman in Black or The Turn of the Screw with more psychological terrors than gross-out or jump scares. William’s guilt over Arthur’s death haunts him and colors his interpretation of what he experiences in the seances, as do his feelings regarding the other tragedies the family experience. I did find that the book’s big reveal seemed to come entirely out of the blue, but I found that it made me want to go back and read the book again to look for clues.

One thing I really loved about this book came after I had finished it. The author’s website is filled with detailed research into the real people on whom the story is based, including interviews with their living descendants. Reading this information and watching the numerous videos not only allowed me to connect more with the book but also reassured me that the descendants of these people are happy with how their relatives are being portrayed, especially as the portrayals are often unflattering and, on occasion, vary wildly from the truth.

The Spirit Engineer will appeal to anyone who enjoys historical and gothic fiction in the classic style, and I encourage you to read further about its two main characters to discover a fascinating true story to boot.

So creepy it was great! I loved the cover from the start and it hooked me. Then I read the description and was hooked even further. Actually reading the book and I was being dragged willingly along side the characters into this fantastic world created by A.J. West.

The Spirit Engineer is an adaptation of the true story of William Jackson Crawford and the Goligher Circle. In 1914, two years after the sinking of the Titanic and before the start of the First World War. Belfast’s high society become obsessed with seances to handle their collective grief. At the centre of these seances were the Goligher family.

When Crawford’s wife starts attending these seances, he follows her one night and soon beings to investigate the meeting. As a professor of science, he uses his analytical brain to study Kathleen Goligher and dubs himself the Spirit Engineer.

This book has five parts. The first seems like a very boring account of the Crawford household, with children arguing and parents worrying over financial issues. But, in the later parts, the story picks up as Crawford discovers the seances. Soon he witnesses an appearance of his recently dead son. As well as hearing his dead mother’s voice at one of the gatherings.

The final parts focus on when Crawford (and Kathleen Goligher) gain fame. This is after he publishes his book, and they travel to London. There he meets Arthur Conan Doyle and Harry Houdini. Soon after, Crawford starts to re-examine the evidence from the seances. He questions all his findings and devels deeper into the Goligher Family and Kathleen’s claims.

Whilst this isn’t the sort of book I tend to read. I enjoyed West’s writing style, and I would recommend it to you if you liked The Devil in The White City.

I was intrigued by the premise of The Spirit Engineer from the very beginning: set in 1914, Belfast is still reeling from the sinking of the Titanic, built in its shipyard. High society has become obsessed with Spiritualism, particularly séances and physical mediumship. The protagonist, William Jackson Crawford, is Professor of Engineering at the Municipal Technical institute, and a man of science. His wife, Elizabeth, is still grieving the death of her brother aboard the ill-fated Titanic, and there are problems both in their marriage and with their children. When additional tragedy strikes, William discovers that Elizabeth has been drawn into the world of Spiritualism, and sets out to prove or disprove the existence of the spirit world — hence the title of this novel.

As a character, William is unlikeable and challenging: embroiled in his own self-importance, he can be dismissive of those around him, unless he perceives them to be valuable in raising his position in society. We know from the beginning how it ends for William, which should garner some sympathy in the reader, but I struggled to resonate with him at first. The writing style is very much evocative of the time period, and it took me a little while to acclimatise to this, but once I had I appreciated the stylistic choices made. There is a constant, unsettling atmosphere of dread that pervades this novel and this presented in a wonderfully creepy way, hooking the reader into the gothic despair of pre-war Belfast. The disturbing activity in the Crawford home is also deftly handled, and is shrouded in mystery.

Despite starting slowly, the novel soon picked up pace and I was obsessed with the story and the motivations of the characters. Knowing a bit about Spiritualism and the history of séances and physical mediumship, I was rewarded with a story which has some solid research at its back. I was constantly reminded of the Britten Memorial Museum and Library (now the Britten Museum and Library) in Essex, UK, which I visited several times in my late teens and early twenties, where photographs, papers, and artefacts celebrate the history of Spiritualism and both mental and physical mediumship.

When William attends several séances and is financially sponsored to investigate the truth behind the medium Kathleen Goligher, he slowly becomes obsessed with the spirit world and the potential communications across the veil. As much as the reader is drawn into William’s story, William is drawn into a downward spiral of mental health issues and paranoia, and I really felt for him by the end of the book, which ended up being a gripping tale based on meticulous historical research into the lives of William Jackson Crawford, Kathleen Goligher, and others, with some famous names popping up toward the end.

I truly enjoyed this book and hope to see much more from the author. Highly recommended.

I received an e-ARC from the publisher, Duckworth Books, through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Beyond the veil ★★☆☆☆

After several family bereavements William Jackson Crawford finds himself drawn into a world of seances and spirits. A logical sceptic, William seeks to expose medium Kathleen Goligher as a fraud. However, he finds himself increasingly convinced by her powers. Is this genuine proof of something after death?

I struggled to empathise with William: a bluff and self-important character who is quick to dismiss others, especially his wife and children. His narrative and experiments can feel a little dry although this style would appeal more to readers of late nineteenth century fiction which is often more descriptive and formal.

The spooky goings on in the house – a white lady who walks the halls at night, the shrine to the dead brother – don’t reach their potential for creating gothic atmosphere and mystery as the story is dominated by the experiments. The true power of the seances and the mystery of the Crawford family is revealed in a grand finale: a creepy ending yet one that could not have been guessed by the reader.

An early-twentieth-century quest for scientific answers about death in a time of war, loss, and uncertainty.

This was an interesting read, fiction but based on a real person in 1920's Belfast. William Jackson Crawford was an engineer, a man who dealt in facts, science and that which could be seen, measured and tested. When he ends up attending a seance, all this is slowly turned upon its head as he hears and sees things which he cannot explain. He carries out experiments, over the course of several years, to try and prove whether these spirits really exist. I felt the book had good pace and gave us a good picture of what the city was like at that time and how life was for people of William's class. The descriptions of the seances was very captivating, you could feel the tension in the room. Interesting that it is a work of fiction but the central character was based on a real person. I would recommend the author's website for more background.

Absolutely brilliant! This is *the* book for Halloween. It’s an immersive, fascinating and truly creepy read. I was so sold on the cover that I didn’t even bother reading the synopsis and had no idea what to expect, let alone that it’s based on real events.

The characters are well drawn and believable, as the story is told from William’s perspective, we see the others through his eyes. As a man of science, William brings a healthy dose of scepticism to the growing fashion for seances. People are desperately attempting to contact their loved ones who died on the Titanic. Drawn in for financial reasons, William begins to approach these seances with his engineer’s precision and all the rigours of an ongoing scientific experiment. I didn't particularly like any of the characters, but that didn't in any way detract from my enjoyment of the book.

The plot is well paced and draws the reader in straight away; the book has a starting hook featuring an event towards the end of the story but then goes back to the beginning, so we learn the events which lead up to this juncture. West’s writing is wonderfully descriptive, and the historical setting is perfect, every detail feels accurate and genuine. It features real events and people (e.g., Houdini and Conan Doyle) which gives it a true authority and makes the spooky scenes even more believable and spine chilling. As the compulsion to pursue the truth and increasing paranoia reach fever pitch, I found I couldn’t put this book down.

I love that this is based on real events and people, especially as I’d not heard of William Jackson Crawford nor of Kathleen Goligher. Theirs is a fascinating and frightening cautionary tale, which stays with the reader long after the story is finished. Clearly very well research and an absolute triumph to read. Each section of the book is separated by a marvellous surreal etching.

William Jackson Crawford is skeptical of the seances that are popular in England after World War I. But his skepticism turns to wonder after he meets Kathleen Goligher, who allows him to talk to his beloved mother’s spirit. William spends years trying to prove Kathleen is a genuine medium. After publishing astounding photographs of psychic ectoplasm in a popular science book, he begins touring the world as a guest lecturer calling himself The Spirit Engineer.

The first third of the book is a slow yawn of a tale. It’s all atmosphere and setting with little forward momentum. However, the last third is a heart-thumping twisty thrill ride. I was definitely surprised by the ending as I’m sure you will be too.

The Spirit Engineer begins as a slow-paced historical fiction tale. But the pulse-pounding whipsaw conclusion is definitely worth waiting for. 4.5 stars rounded up to 5 stars!

Thanks to Duckworth Books for providing an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Wow, this book was a blast! From a highly intriguing introduction to the brilliantly gripping ending.

Based on a true story, it follows a man of science, William Jackson Crawford, as he sets out to disprove the increasingly popular trend of spiritualism in the early twentieth century. However, things take a different turn as he becomes more and more convinced that the spirits are real.

He's an incredibly unlikeable character who is totally self-absorbed. He neglects his family and treats his work colleagues with contempt. But this only makes the novel more readable as you know eventually that his behaviour will catch up with him (I'm not giving anything away there, it's obvious from the opening chapter!)

It's packed with tension, very readable and when I wasn't reading it I was thinking about it. I can highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys a spooky historical read.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC copy of this work!

I would likely never have read this "interesting" (understatement!) book if not for NetGalley!

This is a unique, haunting, scary, unusual. unforgettable, challenging read. All of my family is from Belfast so when I saw this book I had to try it!

This is highly recommended. You WILL NOT FORGET IT!

Tom

This is so so so so good. The main character, William is a man of science, but becomes invoked with spiritualism, determined to debunk it all.

William as a character, I went from liking to then thinking he’s not that nice at all, then back to, thinking he’s ok, he’s a man of that era, while everyone else just bobbed along in the background. Everyone takes second stage to him, so we spend the majority of the book not knowing much at all about everyone else, but we do discover more later on, to complete the story.

This book absolutely blew me away. Absolutely, completely and utterly. Just wow.

Excellent story! Totally engrossing!. Looking forward to reading more by this author! Could not put this down!

This novel will keep you hooked. This isn't my favourite book of the year, mand you, but for sure it will be one I remember for a long time. It's tragic, yet also funny, it's gripping and a little spooky, while also being very melodramatic. A wide spectre of emotions, maybe not always fun, but always engaging!

You will be transported into the past, so vividly! Follow William Jackson Crawford and how he became The Spirit Engineer. From beginning to the end a worthwhile reading that will entertain you and keep you in this amazing world the author has opened the window for you to peek through. Brilliant!

What a fascinating well written tale this was. Based on a real person, William Jackson Crawford, a scientist who set out to prove that the seances of Kathleen Goligher, a famous medium, were a scam. The characters were fascinating and there was much humour at the beginning - the character Lady Adelia Carter providing much of it. The methods used by Professor Crawford are explained in depth and despite being a sceptic myself I became very involved and found it fascinating.
Many thanks to Netgalley/A.J. West/Duckworth Books for a digital copy of this title. All opinions expressed are my own.