The Quickening is a darkly gothic novel, set between the late 19th century and the early 20th century. It explores many themes, such as spiritualism, women's suffrage movement, grief, love and the secrets that haunt us.
It begins in England, in 1925. Louisa's husband was killed in the First World War and her six-year-old twin sons in the Spanish Flu epidemic of 1918. Newly re-married to a war-traumatised husband and seven months pregnant, Louisa travels to Clewer Hall in Sussex where she is to photograph the contents of the house for auction. The story deepens, and we are taken back thirty years, to a dark mystery that Louisa must unravel. Long held secrets, ghosts and fate all intertwine to create a novel that is beautifully, hauntingly, and heartbreakingly written. If you like The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters, or the The Familiars by Stacey Halls, you will love this novel,

Thank you to Netgalley and Orion Publishing for this e-copy in return for my honest review. Wonderfully creepy and atmospheric. A beautifully haunting tale

This book is twisty and atmospheric, seriously creepy, and has an inspiring central character I was rooting for. Mystery, ghosts and a hint of romance - what’s not to love?

** spoiler alert ** A very enjoyable read,with a lead character that's not afraid to stand up for herself,in times were women were still best seen and not heard too much.
There's tons of atmosphere,making the Hall ,the gardens and the icehouse just on the right side of creepy.
I think there was just the right amount of doubt surrounding ALL the strange goings On,that they could be explained away.

All round,it's an absorbing read,with great characters.

The English country house ghost story is one of my most favourite genres. A reading of "The Turn of the Screw" is an annual undertaking.

Here, Rhiannon Ward has provided a novel in this long tradition that will, I believe, satisfy most lovers of such supernatural tales.

Set in 1925, the story starts in London with Louisa Drew receiving a telegram requiring her attendance at a photography studio.

Here a "rather unusual commission" is offered, asking her to go to a house in Sussex to photograph both the house and its contents for a forthcoming auction. The family were selling up and moving to India.
Although heavily pregnant, Louisa who feels trapped in an unhappy marriage and needing the money, immediately accepts the offer and leaves for Clewer Hall.

Before she leaves, she is told, that the family lost all three sons in the war and the house has a certain reputation.

Once arriving at Clewer Hall, she detects and undefinable sense of sadness and learns that it was the scene of a notorious sceance held in 1896, attended amongst others, by that great spiritualist champion, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

What happened at this sceance nearly 30 years previously would be the key to unlocking the deep secrets that has haunted the Clewer family.

The author has written a wonderfully atmospheric tale, evoking the dark and decaying house with all its menance.
We have such treats as the sound of a piano when it is no longer in use and strange images appearing on developed photographs. A feeling of unease and foreboding is ever present.

If you like a good haunting tale then this is highly recommended.