A startlingly brilliant debut from AJ West. A Spirit Engineer is a wonderful tale - full of mystery, intriguing characters and also a surprising amount of humour.
William Crawford is such a complex man - clever, naive at times, obsessive and often not very likeable - he is certainly a character to stir up emotions. I loved how the writing was in the first person, and felt that this meant I experienced everything William did first hand.
The short chapters made the story zip along brilliantly and I loved it.

Sad to say that I did not finish this - after fourteen chapters, I put it aside, and found that West's blog was much more interesting.

The year is 1914 in Belfast.

William Jackson Crawford thinks the height of his problems are suddenly losing his housekeeper for his upper-middle class family, but little does he know. Since the Titanic disaster two years prior, the upper elite of society have begun dabbling in the occult, driven by grief to try and contact their dearly departed - including his wife. William prides himself on being a man of logic and science, a proud skeptic, but there are things even he cannot explain when he meets a young medium named Kathleen.

He is driven to find the facts behind the strange and spiritually occurances - is this just a cruel trick, or is something else lurking just behind the veil?

Based on the true story of William Crawford and the famous mystic Kathleen Goligher, along with familar characters such as Houdini and Doyle, this fictional retelling of a chilling story is one to read with the lights on.

The Spirit Engineer opens up to scenes of upper-middle class domesticity, a beautiful family with less than beautiful pride. The man of the house, William Crawford, is immediately thrust into the spotlight and never steps out of our view the whole time. He is sexist and classist, such as you would expect with the times and his status, but it made for a strange feeling - how odd it is to go through the story loathing the main character for their attittude but being so intruiged in their life and still hoping for their success along the way.

Victim or Villian? That's up to you to figure out.

The other characters, from his family, to the friends he meets along the way were so full of life - so brilliantly crafted that it feels the reader could reach out and touch them.

This might be a ghost story, but it's about the ghosts that haunt us in real life too - about loss, family and the pressures we face in the world of the living.

Written in period language, there was a small adjustment period with this book but after a few chapters I was completely immersed in the story - it started off slow, almost mundane, before descending into utter, spine-chilling chaos in the most unexpected ways.

It's no secret this book has been highly anticipated, so I was definitely concerned this wouldn't live up to the hype around it's name - but I was not disappointed. Atmospheric, eerie and otherworldly - this was like if 'The Greatest Showman' was set in a graveyard during the witching hour and I loved every page of it.



"A mystery is only a fact in disguise."




RATING: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I picked up this book because the premise sounded really interesting and despite not being a horror fan thought I would give it a go.

I found the book very easy to read and the writing style was solid. Unfortunately this is where I start to differ from other readers, the story is very slow and I found myself a little bored. I wanted the book to get going and it just didn’t for the longest time.

The MC was not particularly likeable but having said that most of the characters weren’t. I also felt that there were characters in it that did not need to be in the story.

The last thing I will say is that the ‘twists’ were not that shocking to me or perhaps how they were supposed to come off.

I didn’t hate this book don’t get me wrong but I did not enjoy it either.

I went into this without knowing anything about this family or its history. I chose the book based on its description and other reviews. I was not disappointed at all. It did start off a bit slow for me but quickly took off and I was hooked. You will find yourself going back and forth between is it real or staged. I did figure out a central plot point early on but it in no way altered my experience. Put this book on your reading list! Thanks to NetGalley, the author and publishers for an e-arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

I thought this book was well written and the author really captured the era of the story. That being said though it really was not to my taste. The writing was fast paced, however I felt the story was slow to unfold. I do think the issues I have are really just down to personal preference, and I have seen plenty of positive reviews.

The Spirit Engineer was a surprise for me in so many ways. It is a debut novel written with such confidence, and the level of research (and resulting historical accuracy) into the world of spiritualism in the early 1900’s, creates an unsettling atmosphere, which perfectly represents the struggle between the desperate need to believe in the paranormal phenomenon and the scientific and logical arguments which counteracted it.

The encounters between William and Lady Carter were hilarious – having this dark and dry sense of humour running throughout the book was unexpected but brilliant. It broke up some very intense scenes, ensuring that what could have been a heavy and dark storyline was lessened and made the characters more believable.

I love the fact that one book can make you want to laugh, cry and hide behind a cushion in one sitting. Split into four parts, the first three were interesting and well written, but the fourth part was something else! Knowing that the book was based on a true story, I deliberately avoided looking into the characters before reading it and the final scenes were so explosive and hard-hitting as the truth was revealed. I could barely bring myself to read on as it suddenly dawned on me the way in which the story was heading, while at the same time I was unable to put it down. An authentic, engrossing and emotional novel.

Thanks to NetGalley and Duckworth Books for the opportunity to read an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was excited to receive this ARC and as I had read so many glowing reviews I bumped it up my TBR list. I will admit to then being a little concerned that it wouldn’t live up to my expectations but I loved it!

To me, the book has been well thought out and I enjoyed the writing style. It has some humour with some very funny descriptions which made me laugh out loud so it’s not all scary. Don’t get me wrong though it does have sadness and gets very dark and creepy at times.

The main character William is very complex and I did swing to and fro between liking and disliking him numerous times but that’s what makes it interesting.

Thank you to #NetGalley and the publisher #DuckworthBooks for the copy of the book in exchange for an honest review. #TheSpiritEngineer #AJWest

Based on a true story of William Jackson and Kathleen Goligher, based in Belfast in 1914. The Titanic is still in the news. People are searching for lost loved ones.

The spirit engender, named by his daughter, is searching for his beloved son Robert who has passed on. Not convinced that the seaces aren't rigged in someway he beginning to do experiences with the seer and those around the table. As his experiments begin to be known he receives public acknowledgement. He writes a book explaining his theory.

With such public notice he is receives a request to meet with Arthur Conon Doule and Harry Houdin which provides the reader with historical balance.

Excellent read. Readers will get a feel for the time period, the spiritual movement which will come to the United States.

Set in 1914 Belfast, this is a haunting story based around real life characters. The story is narrated by William Crawford, a professor of engineering at the local institute. As a scientist, William is sceptical of the seances that his wife has been attending but is persuaded to investigate further. The historical setting is well done.
For me this story dragged. It was a very slow start and whilst the ending built up the pace, the twists in the plot where a bit late arriving and as such easily anticipated. The character of William was totally unlikable. Unfortunately, none of the other characters were substantial enough to be engaging either. The ending was quite moving but overall the book was rather disappointing.

This is a very dark and creepy book, full of ghosts, hauntings and seances. Harry Houdini and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle have cameos in it and they are amongst my favorite historical figures. It’s well written and very atmospheric so it has all the ingredients for me to love a novel, but I just didn’t like it. This may be a matter of personal taste; the story is riddled with many details and this is not something I enjoy. It also devotes a lot of paragraphs to historical details that were not too pertinent to the story so I found them distracting but will be a plus for fans of these kinds of background. I think my biggest problem was with the narrator and main character. William is a despicable man from the very beginning, so it was so hard to root for him. The twists are well done, but I saw them coming. I’m glad to see that the book has received great reviews from other readers, it was just not for me.
I chose to read this book and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased. Thank you, NetGalley/ Duckworth Books!

Very authentic Victorian Gothic novel -I felt transported back in time. I loved the story and I loved the detailed Victorian pen and ink illustrations at the beginning of each section of the book.
The protagonist, who teaches Engineering in Belfast, Ireland at the turn of the 19th century, after World War 1, is well developed. We get to know exactly the type man he is and how he reacts to events beyond his control
It is interesting that this straight laced man of science becomes completely enamored of the spiritual world - he has suffered some personal losses and after the sinking of the Titanic, his reaction to the rising popularity of seances to commune with dead friends and relatives, causes him to become a famous spiritualist himself with a wealthy sponsor.
An unexpected twist at the end was a little confusing to me, but otherwise this was an enjoyable read.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read this book.
I absolutely loved this book!
I may be a bit biased as I live near Belfast and I've never read anything based there before.
I loved all the descriptions of Belfast in the 1900's it really transported me there.
I also really loved the Houdini and Arthur Conan Doyle cameo!
This book was spooky and I definitely think it would be perfect for Halloween and I highly recommend it!

Parlor tricks…or something more? The Spirit Engineer takes a fictional look at real people in the hopes of filling in the blanks as to what really went on.

Spiritualism had its hey day in the early part of the 20th century. After all, with the tragedies of The Titanic (which impacts this story), WWI, and the Spanish Flu, it is understandable as to why so many grieving families would want to reach out to their deceased loved ones. And into the void entered many schysters and schemers (and a few well meaners). To which camp Kathleen and her family belonged in, well, dear reader, that is up to you to surmise. (I think we can all agree which camp William was a member of).

This is a haunting story (pun sorta intended) that shows not everything is what it seems, not everyone is who they say they are, and if you wait until about 75% in, the dynamic duo of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Harry Houdini make a chapter long cameo.

Recommended.

PS - watching the videos the author has on YouTube was fascinating and I highly recommend watching them in conjunction with reading this book.

The Spirit Engineer - AJ West

Belfast, 1914. Two years after the sinking of the Titanic, high society has become obsessed with spiritualism, attending séances in the hope they might reach their departed loved ones.

William Jackson Crawford is a man of science and a sceptic, but one night with everyone sitting around the circle, voices come to him – seemingly from beyond the veil – placing doubt in his heart and a seed of obsession in his mind. Could the spirits truly be communicating with him or is this one of Kathleen Golighers parlour tricks gone too far?

This is in a way an interesting study of the human psyche and one man’s experience - that of Professor William Jackson Crawford.
It starts quite slowly as we learn about this sceptical man of science, his Edwardian stand off ish nature with his family, his suspicions of his wife’s behaviour, his intolerance of his children, yet you do get a real sense of the love he has for them all.
Elizabeth, his wife, attends seances to contact her brother, drowned on the Titanic, but when William attends he hears voices and is tasked with investigating the Goligher medium Kathleen.
Crawford seems to relish his new celebrity, he goes from an almost meek man to one who feels confident in his new role as Spirit Engineer. He becomes controlling, overbearing and almost monstrous in nature, beholden to the power of celebrity and money.
With modern day eyes and a scientist background you can clearly pick holes in his ‘experiments’ , this is a rollicking read.
The author draws you in setting the scene with little tell tale clues as to what may happen, it is well done - much as the Golighers must have done to the real Crawford. With cameos by Harry Houdini and Arthur Conan Doyle, which were fabulous, the story races to its shocking conclusion, there are a few twists I can tell you!

It is difficult to comprehend the importance of Spiritualism to Edwardian society, a way of making sense of the world, a need to be able to cope with what was thrown at them at the time of the Great War and having the huge Titanic disaster occurring just prior to this too.

This is a tense, paranoid tale of how suggestible the human mind can be and will haunt you…read it at night…if you dare!

Wow! This was even better than I expected.
Deeply engrossing, spellbinding and well crafted.
This grabbed me from the get go, and did not let go.
I highly recommend this book.

I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy of this book.

A lot of reviews of this book have centred on the fact that the lead character, who is, unsurprisingly, male, is grossly unlikeable. Par for the course in modern books for a male character to be portrayed in this way, but A.J. West takes things to extremes in his debut novel, “The Spirit Engineer”. To be fair, William Crawford is not the only unpleasant character, but he is the lead so he is more prominent.
Many celebrities are quoted on the publicity for this book, so one is expected to believe that they have actually read it, but to be honest the novel is very mediocre so I wouldn’t be surprised if they skimmed it. The story is confusing at times and, whilst initially intriguing, suffers with lag in the middle before picking up for the ending. It is genuinely creepy in parts but at other times, very dull.
If you enjoy books like “Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell” you should enjoy this, just be prepared for a slow read and to dislike practically everyone.

I had to read parts of this during the day because at night it gave me a really creepy feeling!


Set in 1914 in Belfast. We follow William Jackson Crawford, the main character who despite his flaws at the beginning is rather funny in his own way. William is a highly respected member of science. He finds out his wife has been going to seances and he joins her to prove if they are real or not , hence the name The Spirit Engineer.


I cannot say too much more about the book as it would ruin it for anyone wanting to read it. But oh my goodness! That ending was not what I expected at all and while reading it I was saying ‘What! oh my god’
I loved this book and when I can get a hold of a physical copy I will be so I can keep it and re read it again.


Highly recommended but just one tip … read during the daytime!

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with this book in exchange for my honest opinion. The Spirit Engineer will be available October 7th.

I will be honest: I didn’t know much about William Jackson Crawford going into The Spirit Engineer, so everything written was a surprise to me. That being said, if I had been an expert on his life, I still would have been engrossed. The Spirit Engineer is an engrossing book that delves deep into the subjects of loss, paranoia, belief, and what can happen when a person’s beliefs are questioned.

Professor William Jackson Crawford is a man of science who doesn’t subscribe to paranormal nonsense, thank you very much. He thinks himself too smart to fall for any trickery and is preoccupied with dreams of rising far in his field. However, William learns that his wife has been visiting mediums and takes it upon himself to disprove the idea of communicating with the deceased. Thus, the Spirit Engineer is born.

I don’t usually comment on the characteristics of those that are based on real people, but William is not likeable at all. Nor is he relatable. At most, I could say he’s pitiable, and even that is a stretch. William is condescending and feels he is superior to others. He is a man who desperately wants to be in control of himself, of his work, of others. The more he feels his orderly life slipping away, the more paranoid and desperate he becomes. Things go in unexpected directions when, instead of proving the medium is a fraud, William sees and hears the spirits himself. Is he deceived? Or has he stumbled upon something otherworldly? Of course, I don’t need a character to be likable or relatable to enjoy a book. Instead, he was fascinating, which is much more important to me.

The writing was fantastic. It was smart and engaging. I’m assuming that there was some embellishment, but the author obviously tried to stay close to the sprit (pun intended) of the facts. The story developed well and the pacing was perfect. It didn’t skip over details, but it also didn’t drag. I raced through this book because I just couldn’t put it down.

The Spirit Engineer is a riveting book. While it’s interesting from a historical standpoint, what really drew me in was the exploration of the human psyche because, when it comes right down to it, that’s much more fascinating and mysterious than anything supernatural.

First of all, can we all just agree that this is one of the best debuts - nay books - I’ve ever read.

However you can get hold of a copy - buy it, rent it, borrow it, read it over someone’s shoulder, steal it (don’t do that) - you must read this book before 2021 is out. It’s not out until October but I was lucky enough to receive an early copy and I’m so glad I did, I’m not sure I could wait another two months to receive what I now know to be an absolutely stupendous book.

For someone who hates scary movies, I’ve never found myself being frightened by a book before. So when reviews said you should only read this during the day and with never alone, I thought that was an exaggeration. I tell you now - it definitely wasn’t. For someone who believes in ghosts and spirits, it takes a very special writer to get under my skin with them, but AJ does just that with his debut novel.

It may be the e-book version I had, but the illustrations in it are so gorgeous and so clever, I can only imagine what they look like in a hardback copy, and I may have to buy one for myself just so I can hold them in my hands.

The characters that AJ has created feel so familiar, and yet so new and fresh. They feel like friends, but ones we haven’t seen for many years. Whilst it’s not a main plot point, the infrequent mentions of WW1 and the horrors and injuries experienced are done so with sensitivity and respect, avoiding using them as mere entertainment devices.

Considering this is set 100 odd years ago, it is amazing how little things have changed in the world of ghosts and spiritualism. Yes it may be more accepted to believe in it now, but you still get the skeptics determined to damn anyone who dare believe anything different.

Once the twists and turns start coming, they come thick and fast, they are mind blowing and mind boggling, and that epilogue! Wow. I can’t see a sequel happening so I will read this again and again, wishing it was the first time again. And the fact it’s based on a true story just adds to the mystique.

Oh, one more thing. When this is inevitably made into a film, please can Tom Hiddleston be cast as the main protagonist as I saw him from page one. Oh and obviously with me playing his wife, for reasons I don’t really need to get into here, but you know why.