I’m afraid I have to DNF this after three attempts. The writing and prose are incredibly pretty and atmospheric. However, there are too many elements in the plot itself that feel off and disengaged to me. Even the handling and presentation of the themes (feminism, sexual assault, misogyny, pedophilia—to name a few) was poor and lackluster. I see the vision, but the execution fell flat.

Thank you Netgalley and Northstar Editions for the ARC! :> This review is also published on Goodreads at May 6, 2024.

Firstly, I would like to take the time to thank Netgalley & North Star Editions for providing me with a digital copy of The Lamplighter. While I am incredibly grateful, the thoughts I will be sharing about this book are completely my own and are my honest opinions based on my reading experience.

Starting with the positives, I think The Lamplighter was wonderfully atmospheric and the author’s inclusion of descriptive language made everything feel super lush. I can understand how some people might be pulled into the book from all of the eerie fog and mystery.

Unfortunately, this book was not for me. I found myself at various times, frustrated by the lack of communication between characters and it prevented me from truly getting invested in The Lamplighter. I also found a lot of relationships to be lacking (ex: Josiah & Tempe). As the reader you’re constantly told about how much they care for one another but the emotional connection wasn’t really present (at least in my opinion). Additionally, I found the villain to be quite obvious from the start of the book which made it difficult for me to stay engaged with the story. The various deaths that occur had absolutely no emotional impact on me and the ending left me unsatisfied. That being said, I’m sure there are some readers out there that will really enjoy The Lamplighter. However, before you consider picking the book up (or recommending it), please look up the trigger warnings (there are depictions of predatory behavior and assault, etc).

This chilling novel takes place in the whaling town of Warbler, Connecticut, where people routinely go missing in a mysterious, ever-present fog. Our protagonist, Temperance, lights the lamps to keep people safe at night, having taken the place of her father who committed suicide a few years before. When her younger sister Prudence announces that she wishes to marry local woodworker Gideon, a man who once assaulted Temperance, she is thrown into the regional mystery of missing women and set upon a dark path herself.
On the plus side, this book is nuanced, posing moral and ethical questions about autonomy, our relationship to the environment, revenge, and justice. However, I found Tempe a very frustrating protagonist, and not just because her name is also a city in Arizona. She is too wrapped up in her own musings about Pru being forced to grow up too fast to actually listen to the words Pru is saying and the things that are important to her. She also vents her frustrations too harshly on Josiah, her own love interest, in a relationship that there is absolutely no reason to root for, which causes some later events to fall flat.
This story centers on extremely important topics: sexual assault, women not being able to exist safely in the world, women not being able to report assaults without being dismissed, and consequences of enablers of assault chief among them. However, each of these points were hammered home within an inch of their lives to the point where it really felt like Bell didn’t trust her audience - YA audiences are certainly capable of understanding these issues without having them so blatantly explained every other chapter. The setting to me as someone who grew up on the New England coast also seems…not like the New England coast. There’s a very specific energy to seaside towns here and this book solidly missed the mark on vibes.
All this to say this book is certainly not a bad read, but it wasn’t my favorite either.

3.5 stars

This is the feminist Over the Garden Wall you didn't know you needed.
I will say, to be quite honest, that the first two thirds didn't got me at all. I was actually quite bored with everything that was going on and I didn't even put my heart into making any theories. But the last third picked up and delivered a very satisfactory conclusion to Tempe's story.
I really liked the setting and the relationship in between the sisters. I still felt very big plot holes but the read is overall very enjoyable.
Highly recommended for mystery fans

The Lamplighter is an auto conclusive book that surprised me because i didn't think i would like it as much as i did, it's premise and cover are eye catching . It managed to captivate me in such a way that I finished it quickly, because like every mystery or suspense book, I wanted to finally get to the part where that “secret” is revealed and to know how it was going to end.

Although I must admit that it can be somewhat predictable if you manage to catch some small signs or clues beforehand, which are somewhat obvious, but there were still things that took me by surprise, like the ending.

Above all, I liked the author's approach to mental health, that how in difficult times we don't have to carry everything but share that concern with loved ones or close ones. That it's possible and important to ask for help and not feel guilty or sorry for it.

The only thing that didn't completely convince me was the noticeable age gap between two important characters, even though in the era in which the book is based it was seen as something normal.

Crystal J. Bell manages to perfectly immerse you in that peculiar atmosphere that The Lamplighter has and for me that is very important in a book.

Overall, it has a very original premise, it managed to get me hooked quickly and has an ending that I didn't see coming. I will definitely keep an eye out for any future books from her.

The Lamplighter is a perfect read for autumn or spooky season!

*FYI this book contains several trigger warnings

Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced digital copy of "The Lamplighter". This book is an eerie and unsettling debut that sucks you in from the first pageand keeps you up all night. I loved the atmosphere, the flawed characters and their complicated relationships.

"It's an honor to bring light to the dark. The nineteenth-century whaling village of Warbler is famous for its lucky ship figureheads - and infamous for people disappearing into the nightly fog. In this murky locale, the lamplighter is synonymous with safety and protection, and it's a position Temperance assumes when her father is found hanging from one of the lampposts. Though Tempe proves competent, the town is still hesitant to let a woman handle this responsibility. When a girl disappears after two lamps go out, Tempe's ability to provide for her mother and younger sister hangs in the balance. She scrambles for answers, hindered at every turn by the village authorities' call for her removal. As more villagers vanish under her watch, Tempe discovers unsettling truths about the famous Warbler figureheads and her own beloved father. But her warnings of a monster are ignored, even by her own family. Now she must follow the light out of her own fog of despair, as she faces the choice to look the other way or risk speaking out and possibly dooming herself and her sister to be among the lost."

I mean, obviously there has to be a monster in the fog right? Even if it's shaped like a man, it's still a monster...

While the atmosphere was incredible and the bare bones of the mystery were creative, this book suffers from a rash and impulsive main character incapable of thinking things through or gathering evidence. There was a lot of circular thinking that grew very tiresome.

2.5 stars

“I’m the one who brings light to the dark.”

I should have loved this book. A horror novel that takes place in a 19th century whaling village? Love the concept.

It failed in the execution for me. The pace was horrendously slow and the characters were sort of unbearable. In an attempt to fill the story with atmosphere, it killed the stories ability to create suspense and the actual horror of the story was flat. I very much skimmed post page 100.

I will say, the epilogue was interesting. I would rather a book that started there than ending on that note. Now THAT would be a folklore/horror novel.

I found the feminist narrative in this one to be surprisingly heavy-handed and as a result, tiresome. This one sadly didn’t work for me the way I was hoping, but I'm hoping it will find its audience!

TW: abuse, adult/minor relationship, alcoholism, animal death, blood, body horror, death, death of a loved one, fire/fire injury, grief, injury/injury detail, mental illness, misogyny, murder, pedophilia, physical abuse, sexual assault, sexual harassment, suicide, violence.

Crystal Bell is able to create an environment of growing unease and anxiety throughout the novel. Tempe, a small Connecticut port towns' lamplighter, becomes obsessed with solving the cases of girls going missing in the fog. While I devoured the book in two days, I found a lot of the novel's reveals to be a bit obvious and the tense feeling that was growing on me throughout the book were just waiting for these "surprises" to be realized by the main character. I did appreciate the well-rounded female characters and the originality of the evil within the novel.

The Lamplighter is a seriously and spooky tale that combines the myth, magic, and grit of historical maritime seaside villages and the constant, low-grade horror of being a young woman in a world built by/for and controlled by men. This was a beautifully crafted tale in a world you fully believed in. While reading, I half expected to look up and see a fog had crept in around me. I will never look at a lamp or a lantern the same way again!

Eerie and atmospheric, this book gave me a deep appreciation for a new genre mash-up: historical horror.

In a New England whaling town, something lurks in the nightly fog. Temperance, the town lamplighter, is haunted by the light post where her dad hung himself, but soon she begins to suspect that something worse than her memories is creeping around. It's her job to keep the villagers and visiting whalers safe from disappearing forever into the fog. But when two of her lamps go out the same day a girl goes missing, she finds herself under fire in a town that resents her for being female.

After her father's death, Temperance was allowed to take over his job to provide for her family, but the town still feels unease about the role being filled by a woman. Temperance is constantly butting up against society's expectations with her need to be able to take care of herself. But standing out can attract the wrong kind of attention, in more ways than one.

I loved the relationship between Temperance and her younger sister, Prudence. Though they fought and disapproved of each other's choices - especially Prudence's courtship with the much older Gideon - they had each other's backs in the end.

The ending was both unexpected and absolute perfection.

Thank you to the publisher for the copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you so to tbrandbeyond for including me in their book tour of this novel! My full review will be updated here and posted to Instagram on scheduled book tour date, 5/22!

This book really has me stumped because although some parts were good and well-written, others gave me a bit of an ick and the characters were a bit off for me- I think I backtracked a few times as well. 😅

Moody and foreboding, this historical fiction novel has a supernatural twist. Temperance is a lamplighter to light the way in the foggy darkness of her 19th century fishing town, and grows increasingly wary of the figurehead carver, Gideon, amidst villagers disappearing into the fog. This is as much a family drama as it is a tense supernatural mystery. Readers who get drawn in by an evocative setting and those who like a touch of weirdness in their stories should enjoy this!

1.5 stars!

i was very disappointed by this book. the story was all over the place. the characters were very annoying. and there were only a few moments that shocked me.

prudence was the worst of them all. we were told she was more grown up than her age but still acted like a child. like why wouldn’t she listen to her sister and make her feel worse?!? this story wants to put across a feminist message, but it is lacking a lot. i was hoping for more with this, but i found things predictable and slow and just so disappointing.

thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an early copy in exchange for a honest review.

*Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for giving me and e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.*

2.75/5 stars

I wanted to love this book- I really did. The premise sounded like something I would adore. It has a strong fmc, a small seaside town, supernatural elements, and a touch of eerie horror.

Firstly I’ll start with what I did enjoy: I loved the main villain as a character. Without spoiling anything, I thought they were genuinely scary and threatening. At a couple different points I really feared for our main character and had absolutely no idea how she was going to succeed. The action scenes present in this book were definitely thrilling and well-done. I also liked the number of twists- most of which I didn’t see coming. They kept me interested in the story and motivated me to finish it.

Now for what I didn’t like as much: Basically, I found the first 60% of this book to be incredibly slow. So slow I almost dnfed this book. I found it very hard to connect with any of the characters and be interested in their survival/success/goals. I think this book would have worked much better for me if those scenes were shortened and replaced by more action scenes. Additionally, while the ending was very unexpected, it felt vague and unsatisfying. It almost feels like the author is setting up the plot for a sequel book but without really concluding anything from this one.

Overall, I didn’t think this book was particularly bad, it just struggled to keep my attention and be something I’m interested in. I would still suggest other readers give it a shot if they’re interested- especially if they’re ok with a slower start. I do think there are readers who would love this story, I’m just not one of them.

Not the book for me. Bad things happen to important characters and it doesn't evoke any emotion. Tempe spends a lot of the book being criticized by other characters, and they're all right, but not compelling enough for me to care about them. Vibes were good though.

This is the best possible way I could articulate my thoughts about this book, but it is unfortunately, very terrible. I rarely DNF when I’ve progressed to 41%, but I cannot say anything that makes this book redeemable. I am part of the minority who disliked this and these are just my thoughts.

CWs/TWs: Sexual Assault, Suicide, Depression, Mental Illness, Adult/Minor Relationship, Pedophilia, Misogyny, Sexual Harassment, Sexism
Bell’s writing paints an eerily atmospheric picture. It is poetic and has lots of potential but is very dragging. Almost halfway through and I could see why other readers did not like this at all. With these amount of CWs, you’d think the writer would’ve handled these issues in a manner that compliments the story and its main character’s purpose, but the execution was bad. I am not intentionally being mean, but this story made me so uncomfortable, especially with the Adult/Minor relationship and how Temperance (the fmc) dealt with SA. The FMC’s goal was to provide for and protect her sister, which I have nothing against, and SA survivors do not owe the world their story, but Tempe was clearly protecting her sister and she failed to do so by hiding substantial information from her, defending her abuser by disguising his actions as rejection. This was a constant reminder throughout the book that it just lost how crucial this should’ve been addressed. In the end, her sister ends up with a pedophile who preyed on her emphasizing how he’s “pushing her for another child” despite her not being ready and our main character loses her mind. It strayed away from the purpose of the story as a whole. I am not trying to be harsh here, but if you want to write a book that says “fuck the patriarchy” then don’t write a book where men still win.