Shadows of Swanford Abbey by Julie Klassen: Book Review

Details

• Genre: Historical fiction with mystery elements
• Series: No
• Length: 414 pages (Ebook edition)
• Publication Date: December 7, 2021

Tropes

• Forced proximity
• Childhood friends to lovers

My Rating

Book Description

“Agatha Christie meets Jane Austen in this atmospheric Regency tale brimming with mystery, intrigue, and romance. 

When Miss Rebecca Lane returns to her home village after a few years away, her brother begs for a favor: go to nearby Swanford Abbey and deliver his manuscript to an author staying there who could help him get published. Feeling responsible for her brother’s desperate state, she reluctantly agrees.

The medieval monastery turned grand hotel is rumored to be haunted. Once there, Rebecca begins noticing strange things, including a figure in a hooded black gown gliding silently through the abbey’s cloisters. For all its renovations and veneer of luxury, the ancient foundations seem to echo with whispers of the past–including her own. For there she encounters Sir Frederick — magistrate, widower, and former neighbor — who long ago broke her heart.

When the famous author is found murdered in the abbey, Sir Frederick begins questioning staff and guests and quickly discovers that several people held grudges against the man, including Miss Lane and her brother. Haunted by a painful betrayal in his past, Sir Frederick searches for answers but is torn between his growing feelings for Rebecca and his pursuit of the truth. For Miss Lane is clearly hiding something. . . .”

— from Goodreads

My Review

All Rebecca Lane wanted to do was help her desperate brother. But what starts as a relatively simple favor, soon spirals into a serious predicament. Reuniting with widowed magistrate Frederick Wilford, her first love, further complicates matters.

Whodunnits are my favorite style of mystery, and this one also featured a victim found in a locked room.

Frederick and Rebecca were both sympathetic characters. Their respective backstories and present struggles really made me feel for them.

Although, I do wish their romance had been developed a bit more. Toward the latter half of the story, it felt like their relationship took a back seat and then got quickly resolved by the end.

Julie Klassen’s descriptions and settings do an amazing job of establishing a slightly eerie tone, even when nothing obviously scary is happening.

Mystery lovers and Regency fans alike will find plenty to enjoy in Shadows of Swanford Abbey.

Favorite Moments

📜 Frederick chasing away Mr. Oliver
📜 finding Rebecca in the staircase
📜 returning the family portrait

Favorite Quotes

“Lady Fitzhoward shrugged. ‘Family disapproval didn’t stop my Donald, thankfully.’

Rebecca teased, ‘Were you an actress too?’

The older woman arched a sly brow. ‘Who among us is not?’“

Julie Klassen

“‘We encourage them to battle paralyzing fears with prayer and right thinking and a reliance on Go’d strength. A wise prescription for all of us in this troubled age, I’d say.’“

Julie Klassen

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