My thoughts:
Evans is a versatile author. To me, this new book seemed different from her earlier, The Physicist’s Daughter though both have WWII backgrounds. Here is a more Gothic feeling story but one that is also absorbing.
The setting of the novel includes a home called Rockfall House. To me that was not a name to inspire confidence but rather one that seems rather dark. And, what about that library? Readers will want to know, just as they will want to know about Estella’s family; exactly what has happened to her mother? That is just one issue impacting Estella. Read the book to find out more.
Those who enjoy a story with a bit of an unsettling, darker vibe may want to give this one a look.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for this title. All thoughts are my own.
Pub date: 24 June 2025
From the publisher:
Can a family’s dark history repeat itself?
Estella Ecker has returned to Rockfall House, the last place on earth she wants to be. Years after she ran away from her overbearing father, she has been forced back home to walk in his footsteps, teaching at the college he dominated and living in the fabulous home where he entertained artists and scholars for decades—and perhaps she owns it now, because her mercurial mother has disappeared. At the center of everything—the whispers, the rumors, the secrets—is her father’s library of rare books, which she had been forbidden to touch while he was alive to stop her.
Everyone in town is watching Estella, with her dead father’s name on their lips, and no one seems to care about her missing mother. Who were her parents, really, and is the answer hidden somewhere in the depths of Rockfall House? And who will Estella be, if she gathers enough courage to find that answer? What she will discover is that no one can escape the secrets hidden in this dark library.
Suspenseful and unsettling but ultimately triumphant, The Dark Library by acclaimed author Mary Anna Evans is a compelling tale of mystery, family secrets, and the quest for truth.
About the author:
From Amazon
About the Author
Mary Anna Evans is the author of the Faye Longchamp archaeological mysteries, which have received recognition including the Benjamin Franklin Award, the Mississippi Author Award, and three Florida Book Awards bronze medals. She is an assistant professor at the University of Oklahoma, where she teaches fiction and nonfiction writing. Winner of the 2018 Sisters in Crime (SinC) Academic Research Grant
Comments:
“Evans uses suspense, gothic themes, and well-timed twists and turns to deftly push E forward in her search for answers.”―Booklist
“Murder, espionage, romance, and a surprising denouement.”―Kirkus Reviews
Also by the author:
What was the role of: The Physicists’ Daughter
Joyce's mystery and fiction book reviews with some non-fiction too! 