This was such a fun read! A completely engrossing Victorian mystery with seances, swindlers, ghosts, and murder. I didn't want to put it down. Getting to know Genevieve was completely thrilling. Full of twist and turns and spooky things, I guarantee you'll love it from the first page. Such a unique story and concept, I can't wait to see what the author puts out next!

If you just MENTION Gothic, I'm there. This book had ALL the gothic vibes. I didn't read the synopsis past "gothic" before reading this one so I was surprised at the romance part of this one but pleasantly so. The plot was well paced and I didn't guess the ending or any of the twists! Will recommend!

I have a huge soft spot for Victorian gothic mysteries and this book exceeded my expectations. I kept reading and thinking ohhh a little Rebecca, and I'd read a little more and think hmmm maybe some Enola Holmes. The book is spooky, mysterious, and full of secrets. I loved having a fake spiritualist as the protagonist. She was a fabulous character. I was drawn to book by it's gorgeous cover and I'm so glad I went with my gut and picked it.

could have used another round of editing because the idea is good, it's just too. flabby? the plot needs to be tightened, the characters need a bit more development, etc

I have to say that I have a soft spot for narratives that are ambiguous. Is there life after death and can mediums contact loved ones and bring you comfort? Do ghosts exist? If so, are they evil, good, or neutral? Is it possible, or is it all just tricks and misdirection? In A Dreadful Spendor by B.R. Myers, readers can be very sure it is all tricks and mirrors as the spiritualist, Genevieve Timmons, admits she's a fraud—she's just trying to earn money to pay the rent in order to maintain her living quarters in Victorian London now that her mother has died.

However, she is arrested during what she hoped would be her last séance and the haul it would provide. Not just for fraud but also for murder. Luckily, a lawyer working for Mr Pemberton observes Miss Timmons offering solace to an officer who'd had a recent death in the family. He introduces himself as a lawyer who is willing to help her win her court case IF she will perform a séance for his master to ease his heart about the death of his betrothed, Lady Audra Linwood. Of course, she agreed – anything to not face hanging.

On arrival at Somerset Park, Genevieve learns Pemberton isn't heartbroken and he believes his betrothed was murdered. The estate is dark and creepy with a dour housekeeper, residents who have their own secrets, and weird occurrences that just might mean there really is a ghost in the mansion. It all puts Genevieve on high alert as her nightmares return and she's seeing things; writing that appears and disappears, voices in the night, and more.

Even worse, she is beginning to think she's been lied to by practically everyone in residence, including the staff, and nowhere and no one is safe here. She doesn't know who she can trust and her life depends on doing her job – but now she's not sure she can do what she was asked.

The story has enough Rebecca, Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights type atmosphere to raise the hair on the back of your neck as you worry about what is going to happen to Genevieve Timmons. She may be a fake spiritualist but she does have a moral compass – a bit of a flexible one, but one you understand from her flashbacks. Was Lady Audra murdered? Well, you will find out at the end but until the last pages, everything is in flux. Which is just perfect.

Thank you to the author and William Morrow for the gifted book ❤️ #gifted. My review is comprised of my honest thoughts. 

This book was interesting. I liked the atmosphere. Very gothic spooky feel. The murder mystery was slow. The romance was super quick and out of pocket sometimes. I do recommend this.

FINALLY got around to finishing this one (it's not you, book, it's me) but I'm glad I took the time to go back and really give it its due on my TBR. A delightful adult debut, and one that doesn't hesitate to lean into the spookiness of its subject — it speaks to how deftly the story was woven that I wasn't at all expecting the twist, though perhaps I should have given how often the book references circumventing the supernatural. Would have liked a little more romance, especially towards the end, but that's mostly my own sensibilities talking and it certainly didn't prohibit me from enjoying the book whatsoever. I feel like this one might very well be asking for a sequel, though, and I would love to see it become an ongoing series!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A very good Gothic mystery.  It was a quick read with excellent character development.  I will definitely read more of this author's work.

In A Dreadful Splendor, con artist Miss Genevieve (Jenny to friends) Timmons keeps a roof over her head by holding seances for the wealthy as cover for burglary. This time, when she's caught, it seems there will be no escape. Until help arrives from an unlikely source. She is hired to hold a seance for a man whose fiancee died (her last one, she promises herself) so that he can find peace. Shuttled off to his country manor, Jenny has no intention of seeing the job through. Mr. Gareth Pemberton has other ideas. He demands not a seance for peace but one for justice. Pemberton wants to use the theatrics to call out a murderer, eliciting a confession. With his threat of a return to jail and eventual hanging, Jenny has no choice but to start investigating the suspicious death, uncovering details she can use in her act to unmask a killer. Unfortunately for Jenny, a nonbeliever in the supernatural given her own methods, things start to get alarmingly spooky the deeper she digs (to be clear-- Jenny's alarmed, but I was not).

My first gripe with this book is the unnecessary romance. Early on, Pemberton gets upset when Jenny assumes he'd only care if she died because she couldn't finish her job-- a job he's blackmailing her into doing with her literal life on the line. He frequently reminds her of his threats while otherwise showing her disdain and distrust in every interaction. I'm not sure how she's supposed to intuit some level of care for her person from that. That kicks off their infatuation between plotting together and snooping for clues. Because it was so inexplicable from a character standpoint and yet somehow predictable from a trope and narrative standpoint, I found the romance superfluous and uninspiring.

In terms of the mystery, I saw many reveals coming due to more reliance on tropes. Some of the plot devices were exactly the same as those used in another Gothic vibes mystery I read this very month. The one twist that eluded me relied on a woman's unanticipated cruelty (cool) and unhinged madness (le sigh), so it left a slightly sour taste in my mouth. I'm tired of mad Victorian women. Also, Jenny starts the book living in a brothel, and her distaste for the sex workers isn't unpacked at all to examine social mores and biases. It's perfectly reasonable for her to fear being forced into that position herself, but a particular interaction where she acts disgusted and ashamed of someone else's choices is a step past that. She regrets her vitriol but not necessarily what it represents on a deeper level, and I think that required more self-reflection on her part.

From both a mystery and romantic standpoint, I was underwhelmed by this attempt at Gothicism. All the same, thanks to William Morrow for my copy to read and review.

I received this book for free from netgalley for an honest review.

Really well thought-out book with amazing characters and excellent setting.

I originally requested this book because of it's pretty cover, I just couldn't resist! A Dreadful Splendor is a YA gothic murder mystery novel involving con artest Genevieve who's facing murder charges. There's murder, romance, and a pretty standard mystery story. I felt the story was a bit slow for me, I put it down several times and just couldn't vibe with it all too much but that's probably more on me than the author. Overall I probably wo't ever read this again but for the girlies who love murder/mysteries I'm sure they would enjoy it.

Thank you so much to William Morrow for providing me with an eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A Dreadful Splendor is a wonderfully evocative gothic mystery romance by B. R. Myers. Released 23rd Aug 2022 by HarperCollins on their William Morrow imprint, it's 416 pages and is available in paperback, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.

This is a very well written and deliciously creepy fable featuring a young orphaned heroine making her way in the world as best she can. Much of her existence revolves around spiritualism, being a fake medium, and conducting seances for rich patrons. Her plans go awry and when she's caught and jailed, her prospects seem quite hopeless. In a plot twist worthy of a Brontë, she's sprung from jail to perform a (fake) seance to comfort a nobleman; but she finds him much different than expected, and he's quite sure his deceased wife was murdered and wishes her to help him prove it.

The mystery itself is fairly well wrought, but it was the atmospheric writing that took the starring role. The author manages to conjure the period without being clunky or difficult to read and the scene setting and dialogue are precise and immersively written. The whole has a very YA feel, and there are parts of the plot arc which are moderately trope-y, but as previously stated, the writing is superlative.

Four stars. Worth a read, especially for fans of YA(ish) gothic mysteries.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes

This book wasn’t what I thought it would be and that made it much more enjoyable. I have been reading a number of (fiction and nonfiction) accounts of spiritualism and this one is one of the top books I’ve read. It definitely had a fair number of twists and turns that kept the reader guessing. If you enjoy books that are focused on this era of time, you’ll enjoy this.

This novel is a historical mystery featuring a fake psychic. I really loved Genevieve! I found her to be a really fun character! She was very independent, spunky, and clever! Therefore, I found her to be a very engaging heroine! I also loved the romance, and I thought it was well-developed! I loved how it was a slow-burn romance! The mystery itself was very compelling! It was filled with many twists and turns! I did not know who the killer was until the end! The only thing that I did not like about the book was that the beginning was very slow and was hard to engage myself in tel he novel. However, the middle picked up and led to a fantastic conclusion! Thus, A Dreadful Splendor is very haunting, atmospheric, and mysterious! I recommend this for fans of The Other Side of Midnight, Tiffany Blues, and The Widow of Pale Harbor!

It gives Peaky Blinders meeting Enola Holmes and every second was simply AMAZING. You can really tell that the main characters have sizzling chemistry and the adventure makes it even hotter. I would totally recommend this to all the historical romance lovings girlies!

A Dreadful Splendor by B. R. Myers Is a gothic Tale of secrets and blackmail that I wasn't able to really get into. The book started out very slow for me and while there were some compelling scenes. It didn't really keep my interest. Genevieve was a good character but I felt like she could have been fleshed out a bit more. She also kind of annoyed me. The love story was boring and All in all, I felt like this book was just a compilation of the less interesting parts of other Victorian mystery types.

This book reminded me a lot of Rebecca which is probably why I enjoyed it so much.  This one was a lot of fun.

I loved this authors other story but this one was a rollercoaster of feelings. I felt like the pacing was off. It would speed up and slow down and was really just ok.  I think that if you check this one out I would try it from the library first before spending your money.  I really didn't care about the characters so that made the story hard to enjoy.

A Dreadful Splendor got me through a (dreadful) reading slump. This book was a delight-- very Miss Fisher by way of Enola Holmes with a smack of spookiness.  I look forward to more books by this author!

A stunningly spooky whodunit! I loved every bit of this story and honestly never guessed who did it until the very end… such a shocker! Highly recommend this read!