I saw The Book Keeper come up on my recommendations on Audible but it was book 2 of the Unholy Island series so I checked out the first book, The Ward Witch and decided to read that first.
The Blurb
Mysterious, magical, and a little bit deadly. Welcome to Unholy Island.
Esme Gray runs the guest house and tends to the ethereal wards that protect the island. She’s sheltering from a terrible past and will do anything to stay safely hidden.
Luke Taylor has been searching for his missing twin for months, but has begun to believe that his brother might be dead. With his hope in tatters, a tip off leads him to a remote tidal island in the North Sea. It’s further out than the famous Holy Island, and far stranger.
Visitors shouldn’t be able to stay for more than two nights, so when Luke breaks this rule, the close-knit community is sent into turmoil. The residents of Unholy Island have secrets and they intend to keep them.
When Luke stumbles across one of the islanders dead on the shore, he finds himself under suspicion, made worse by his own troubles washing up on the tide.
Esme is drawn to Luke, but she doesn’t trust her own instincts. That’s not ideal for a witch—especially when there is a killer on the loose and a storm is rolling in….
The Ward Witch is the first book in a brand new contemporary fantasy series from the best-selling author of magical fiction, Sarah Painter.
My Review of The Ward Witch.
I’ve not actually heard of Sarah Painter before but she writes a fantasy series Crow Investigations and this is a kind of spin off. But you don’t have to have read any of her previous books. (Although, I’m tempted now)
The story itself was quite slow at first and I found it difficult to get into. I do like fantasy stories though and Unholy Island sounds like a fascinating place. There were some interesting twists and once I actually got into the story I finished it pretty quickly. It was definitely a good set up story for a series. I will most likely get the second book.
Unholy Island is a magical place where people are allowed to visit but only the chosen are allowed to stay. This makes for a small tight knit community, so it’s quite a stir when someone is murdered. The plot takes on many twists and turns and becomes quite tense at times. It may be a slow start but it is a great book for fantasy lovers and those who love to solve a crime.
I did have a little trouble with the narrator, I can’t say anything bad apart from the fact that she didn’t seem to put enough emotion into the story telling. I listened on Audio book. I guess if you read the book yourself you will be able to add your own voice.
If you are interested in trying Audible they have extended their offer to two months free. That’s two free books to listen to. Then if you find it’s not for you, you can cancel.
This sounds like an interesting read. I like the crime element, but as someone who doesn’t like fantasy, I think I should give it a miss.
This sounds like a really fun book, I’m intrigued by the premise and Unholy Island seems like the perfect place for a mystery
I quite like the sound of this one. I imagine Unholy Island is a great base for the story to unfold. x