Spirited by Julie Cohen is a historical fiction novel beginning in the 1800's moving between England and India. Viola and Jonah are childhood friends who have just embarked on married life together, after the death of Viola's father who Jonah was also close to, due to the fact he had lost both parents. They are both lost in their grief together. Viola's father was a keen photographer and Viola is the same, no doubt due to her father. Viola comes into contact with Henriette Blackthorn, a celebrated medium. This is due to the fact that Viola has become widely known for her ability to capture spirit images on camera. What Viola doesn' t know yet, is that this meeting will begin to change her life forever.
Spirited is a very well researched novel of prejudice of class and gender. Also of Love and sexuality, and of how acceptance and understanding is always needed.
The reseach into early photograpy and spirit photography is excellent and this alone had me immersed as spiritualism in that time was not like it is now, accepted. Not a fast paced book, but more of a slow burn, I enjoyed the story telling and was very drawn in by the characters, Jonah, Viola and Henriette, each playing a major role in affecting each other's lifes.Thank you to Random Things Tours, Orion Books and Netgalley for the copy of Spirited to take part in the blog tour today.

This is my first delving into any work from this author and I'm thrilled to have found her.
When I signed up for this blog tour, I wasn't sure if this book was for me.
I couldn't have been more wrong...
What a lovely, lovely book and author..
Oh but I did find it quite a haunting read....
I'm not too sure how I feel about spirits and mediums as it is, so maybe that explains the haunting feel to this read throughout...
Do I believe them, I'm not too sure....
I have a huge passion for photography and capturing something though, a moment in time maybe but capturing something from the past gets me thinking.....
We meet lovely Viola in this read.....
She has certainly lived, that's for sure....
But photography brings something out in her that only the eagle eyed photographer will know about.
It is addictive, it's imaginative and certainly gives you food for thought.
We meet Jonah too who is mysterious, his story quite heartbreaking....
Their relationship, I couldn't quite put my finger on....
But can a medium help him?
Henrietta in herself is quite intriguing and somewhat of a mystery to all...
I loved each of author Julie Cohen's characters, her slow, descriptive build up of each of them, drip feeding us almost.....
I found this authors writing so enriching, so completely descriptive that I wanted more. Such a joy to read...
A slow burner I felt but that's where a reader benefits for sure...
So very well worth your time 💕

I found this story a bit slow at the beginning but after a bit I was enthralled and it kept me hooked till the end.
It's a well researched and well written story, enthralling and entertaining.
The characters are well written, the background is vivid.
I recommend it.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

I’ve always very much enjoyed Julie Cohen’s contemporary fiction – and although I was looking forward to this one, a real departure from her previous books, I’ll admit I did wonder how the Victorian setting would work with the book’s themes. And I really needn’t have worried for an instant – this book was an absolute triumph and I enjoyed it very much indeed. And, as always when you love a book, it makes the review far more difficult to write – I so want to do it justice.

I’ve noticed the words “slow burn” in a few of the early reviews, and I can only agree – but that’s very much a positive, as it’s important to establish the characters and to engage the reader in their lives. And what enthralling lives they are. Viola is coming to terms with her father’s death, newly married to Jonah, her childhood friend: the marriage had always been promised, and we follow them as they establish their new life and home on the Isle of Portland. It’s an uneasy marriage – this is a couple who really don’t know each other, drawn together by obligation and expectation rather than any real or deep affection, and their new relationship is complicated by the echoes of Jonah’s time in India and the reverberations from a significant relationship he experienced there. The other primary character is Henriette, who draws the eye every time she appears – a celebrated medium whose gift might well not be all it seems.

The relationship between those three main characters is what primarily drives the story – along with the unexpected repercussions from Viola’s photography and the spirit images she captures. But we also dip into their pasts – seamlessly and smoothly, gaining increasing insight into the experiences that shaped them and influenced their lives.

The writing is quite superb – there’s an exceptional sense of place and time, it’s rich in detail about the art of photography and the Victorian cult of spiritualism, and the characters are quite wonderfully drawn. It’s a book that examines love – the emotion at times is wholly palpable, and I really enjoyed the way the characters slowly unfurled. The writer’s craft is extraordinary too – I was particularly struck by the sensuousness of the descriptions of Delhi, invoking all the senses, the scent of jasmine and the heat rising from the pages.

And then there’s the complexity of the relationships – the layering of secrets, the deceit, the grief and anguish, those blissful moments of sheer joy and unexpected discovery. The book’s themes too are compelling, as is the way they’re explored – the whole nature of love and sexuality, but also prejudice through both gender and class, and the recurring issue of faith.

You’ll read far better reviews, but I do hope I’ve managed to convey how much I loved this book – definitely one of my books of the year, and recommended most highly.

The blurb caught my eye as I have had an interest in the origins of the Spiritualist movement for a while and not seen many fiction books based around that time.
It took me a while to connect to the characters but once I did I was mesmerised by the story and how it would lead to the arrest of Viola for fraud because od selling a photo of a ghost which is hinted at in the records at the beginning of the chapters. It is a unique book and cleverly written with memorable characters and backstories especially Hetty and Jonah. The tragedy and trauma pulls at the heart strings especially the scenes from India. Well worth a read.

Spirited grabbed me from the first page that cleverly opens with the arrest warrant for Viola for fraud after selling a photo pertaining to show an image of a ghost. With this intriguing opener I just had to find out how she ended up in this frighteneing situation. As a character Viola is the last person you would expect to be arrested. She is a vicar’s daughter recently married to her childhood friend, and her father’s ward Jonah, and a respectable young woman. She is caught up in her grief for her father and also for her marriage to Jonah, who is a changed man since his return from India, and there is a distance between them. It is her friendship with Henriette that brings her out of her shell, giving her the courage to try new experiences and ultimately take up her photography again, the thing that strengthens her ties to Henriette. Neither Viola of Jonah are believers of speaking to the spirits, but it is Jonah the spirit guide talks to, taking him back to the horrors of the siege in Delhi, and ultimately to the loss of someone he loved. It is this lost love that has changed him and makes him feel guilt about Viola, as if he has betrayed her. Jonah’s story is heartbreaking, he is in turmoil and mentally scarred by his experiences and loss, and can’t help but secretly visit Henriette to help his guilt. Henriette herself is the most intriguing character. She started life as a maid who became obsessed with the the French governess at Upcross Hall, listening in to the lessons and teaching herself French. Circumstances take her to London, and after meeting her husband changes her name and more importantly her life. As a medium, she is renound, has been in some of the grandest salons in Europe plying her trade. She always seems to keep her distance from people, incase she has to leave in a hurry, until she meets Viola. Henriette and Viola are both lonely, there is a void in their lives that the other can fill. Julie Cohen’s character development of all three central characters is brilliant, slowly we learn more and more about them, their lives and their fears as they are caught in a web of lies, love and betrayal.

Julie Cohen’s writing is haunting and atmosheric becoming of the story line of this book. I really loved her juxtaposition of the different cultures and place of Delhi and Dorset. Her prose captures the bright colours, the heady scent of Jasmine and sandalwood and the exoticism of India which is the complete opposite to Viola and Jonah’s lives in England, both wearing black for mourning and the cold grey of the landscape. Julie Cohen deals with some serious issues including colonialism and the attitudes to the native residents, rape, murder, class, gender and faith which are all handled with understanding and honesty. The social and cultural attitudes of Victorian England are well researched and give an informative backdrop for the plot. The Victorian’s seemed to have an obsession with death, and contacting the dead with seances becoming a social event, making mediums into celebrities; people took comfort in contacting those they have lost.

Spirited is my favourite book by Julie Cohen so far. The evocative prose captures the atmosphere of the seance, and the belief of those needing to find comfort from those they have lost. The three plot lines weave together seamlessly making this such a rich and compelling read with well developed and rounded characters. Told with warmth and understanding this is an emotive read about the power of love in all its guises that will stay with me for a long time; poignant and powerful.

Spirited is another captivating novel from Julie Cohen. Set mainly in Victorian England, Viola and Jonah start their married life while both grieving for lost loved ones. While they are unable to offer emotional support to each other, they find it in Henrietta a spiritual medium, and fake.
Jonah is unable to stay away from her and seeks contact through her with Parvan, a love he lost in tragic circumstances while living in India. Viola develops a very different relationship with Henrietta, and finds an emotional and physical connection with her that her husband is unable to provide.
When Viola rediscovers her love of photography, she unintentionally captures the spirits of loved ones. Unfortunately, not everyone believes that the photographs are genuine.
I am a huge fan of Julie Cohen and find each of her novels original and moving. This is well researched and although the story moves at a slow pace, it keeps you interested and eager to discover how events will unfold.

Viola and her new husband Jonah move to Dorset in the hope that a change of scenery and some sea air will help her to recover from the death of her father. Viola is desperately lonely and has noticed a change in Jonah since his return from India. Despite being hailed as a hero after his actions during an uprising in Delhi, he refuses to open up about what happened. The distance between them is obvious but Viola can’t find a way to get through to him.

Viola decides to start pursuing her photography again as a way to feel closer to her father and she is shocked when ghostly images start appearing in the photos she has taken. Henriette, a well-known spirit medium, takes an interest in these images and the friendship that forms between them triggers the events that will change all three of their lives forever.

Spirited is a haunting historical novel with a twist. The story had supernatural elements reminiscent of Agatha Christie's The Pale Horse and I loved the combination of factual information – shown in the form of newspaper cuttings or old documents - and the comments from sceptics that were dotted throughout the book making me question if there actually was something spiritual going on or if this phenomenon was a fraud.

On top of this, Spirited is also a story of love and loss, friendships, relationships and identity. A truly unique book which would be the perfect addition for any historical fiction fans.

First of all I have to say Spirited has one of the loveliest cover designs of the year! Luckily the book is every bit as good. Spirited follows Viola, a young woman in mourning for her father who appears to be able to capture spirits in her photography, Henriette, a spirit medium with a complicated past and Jonah, Viola’s childhood companion turned husband, recently returned from India where he was caught up in the violent Siege of Delhi. All three of these characters are haunted by their past and their circumstance. What follows is an emotional and subtly beautiful story of love, loss and faith.

I really enjoyed reading this book, I think it is gorgeously written with a kind of sensitivity that makes you feel so much empathy for these characters. There’s an elegance to the prose which suits the touching story beautifully. Viola is a fantastic character who is genuinely kind and honest in a way that makes the reader immediately root for her to find happiness. I loved reading about some of the delicate intricacies of Victorian photography, it is fascinating and once you add in the possible presence of spirits it becomes even more so. The Victorians are generally seen as being rigid, strict and religious which is certainly true but there was also a deep fascination with the supernatural in the Victorian era. This is something Spirited explores – the connection between faith (both religious and spiritual) and science plays an intriguing part of the story.

Whilst being a compelling look at the world of spirit photography and seances, Spirited is also a touching love story. In fact, it is more than one love story and they are all equally engaging. I don’t want to give much away but the relationships in Spirited are full of tenderness and the intense power of finding someone you feel an instant connection with. Spirited is a truly lovely tale of devotion, hope, grief and finding your place in the world whilst at the same time being beautifully evocative of the era. It’s an elegant and touching book which I highly recommend.

If there is one book you must read this year, ‘Spirited’ is it. Viola Worth has a passion for photography, a skill taught by her father. When her photographs begin to show the unexpected and intriguing, she becomes friends with celebrated medium Harriet Blackthorne, and her life changes forever. Viola’s husband Jonah struggles with his own demons and a notoriety he feels he does not deserve. As their lives intertwine, secrets emerge that must, in the end, be faced.

The writing is beautiful and poetic and places the reader in a time and place, where rules were different and society was not ready for the truth. This is a slow-build, with a gentle style, where the casual cruelty of the Victorian era is all the more shocking. It’s about secrets and lies, about love and friendship. But also about believing the impossible and above all the enduring nature of love. My heart was bursting as I turned the final few pages. A masterpiece.

I was given this ARC for review.

I absolutely loved this book. I think I have read everything by Julie Cohen, and I am pretty sure this is her first historical novel. It won't be her last. She has a talent for taking the reader to a different time. I was there with the characters, in Victorian Dorset and in India at the time of the Raj. Her research must have been extensive, as it was all so believable and credible. While Julie Cohen usually writes more contemporary fiction, she has written a credible and excellent historic novel that has her trademark warmth, intriguing characters and incredible plot.
The book is about love and loss, but it also provides a fascinating insight into medium-ship and spirit photography, and the role and position of women at the time.
I highly recommend this book. I have read a lot during the COVID lockdown and this is definitely one of my favorites. It gets a big fat five stars from me.
Thank you to the author, the publishers and to #NetGalley for the opportunity and privilege of reading this lovely book. I will be buying a copy of the hardback as soon as it is published as I am intrigued to see the printed versions of the newspaper articles that are part of the story.

History is brought to life in this wonderful story. Glimpses of life in England and Dehli in the 1800's evoke emotional storylines and characters.
This story is about love and acceptance, and I found the development of the main characters wonderful. I especially loved Viola and felt her simplicity and honesty really refreshing. The description of her photography work and linking to her father were an interesting add to the overall plot.
Love, grief, secrets and life after death are all covered in this wonderful, emotional read.

I had never read Julie Cohen’s work before so I didn’t know what to expect from her writing. Only a few weeks ago on Twitter I was discussing when a new Sarah Waters novel would be appearing and Spirited by Julie Cohen has definitely filled that gap. It’s also made an impact on me that’s all it’s own. Viola Worth has grown up cared for by her clergyman Father, as well as his ward, a little boy called Jonah. Viola and Jonah are the best of friends, spending their childhoods largely inseparable. As we meet them in adulthood, they are getting married, but in mourning. A lot has happened during the period of their engagement. Jonah had been out to India, staying at his family’s haveli and checking on his financial interests. For Viola, it’s been a tough time nursing, then losing, her father. He encouraged her in his own profession as a photographer and she has become accomplished in her own right. Viola’s father wanted her to marry Jonah, and they are still the best of friends, but the time apart has changed them and neither knows the full extent of the other’s transformation. As they try to settle into married life on the Isle of Wight, Jonah spends his time sketching fossil and bone finds with his scientific a friend. Viola feels cut adrift and without purpose, as we find out later she doesn’t even feel she is fulfilling her role as Jonah’s wife. Through new friends the couple meet a visiting spirit medium, although as daughter of a clergyman, Viola would never normally enjoy this type of entertainment. Little do they know, this woman will change their lives.

The author slips back and forth in time to tell us about Henriette, who worked her way in life from being a servant to a respected spirit medium. She is a woman who started with no advantage in life, and as a young servant models herself on the governess in the house, a French woman known as Madame to the family. Henriette diligently listens to the children’s French lesson and nurses a hope of a future where she doesn’t clean up after other people or have to wish for a roommate so she isn’t sexually assaulted in the night. Her attacker labels her a whore and one early morning, after there’s been a house party, she stumbles on a group of men in the stables betting. They are playing cards for money, but once they see Henriette they become intent on a different sport. It is Madame who interrupts the attackers and she gives Henriette advice from one woman surviving alone in the world to another. The author also takes us back to Jonah’s time in India. We discover that in social circles Jonah is a hero, because during a massacre he rescued a young girl who lived in his haveli after all her family are killed. Viola wonders if it is this experience that has changed Jonah. They live as if they are brother and sister, Jonah spends less time with her than before and at bedtime they still go to their separate bedrooms and sleep apart. Viola knows there is more between husband and wife but doesn’t really know what and has no idea who to talk to. Through Henriette, Viola is asked to take a photograph of a child who has died so the parents have an image to keep. No one is more stunned than Viola when she develops the image and sees a blurred figure standing next to the bed, the likeness to their child shocks and comforts the parents; they feel reassured that their child lives on in spirit. This experience, and her experience of her first proper female friendship, is like a floodgate opening for Viola. She starts to question the limits of her faith, whether there is more in life she would like to try and as time goes on, whether the burgeoning feelings she has for Henriette are friendship or something else.

I loved the feminist threads running through this novel. The central women in the novel are each in liminal spaces, different from the conventional Victorian women we see like Mrs Newham. Henriette is a self-made woman, unmarried and travelling from space to space offering her spiritualist services for enough to survive on. She has moved from bar girl, to servant, to nursing and losing her elderly husband, and now into a semi-respected occupation. She gets to visit the homes of those she might have once waited upon, but isn’t tied by their social rules and conventions. In India we meet Pavan, who has made the exceptional choice within her societal rules to become educated and has made huge sacrifices in order to achieve that. Love was not on her agenda, and when it comes she experiences a painful separation between her intellectual choice and her emotions. Viola may seem the most conventional of these women, but her relationship with her father has set her apart from others of her class. He believed in educating Viola the same way as Jonah, then teaches her the art of photography too, usually considered a male pastime. Viola is respectful of many conventions, but finds herself emboldened by Henriette and the new experiences she brings to her life. She tries bathing in the sea and is bold enough to start accepting her ‘gift’ of capturing spirits. Behind them all is the french governess Madame. The role of Victorian governess is the very definition of a liminal space: she works in the home but is not a servant, educated and unmarried, respectable, but not on the same level as the family she works for. She has power in that she works for herself, has and controls her own money and can choose to leave her position and join another family, in a different place. Her acknowledgment of Henriette’s fate, as a pretty face in the power of men, inspires Henriette to be more. It gives her aspiration, although she may never be a gentlewoman, with careful decision making she could be more like Madame.

It is within the physical liminal spaces where there are beautiful passages of writing from the author. The scene where Henriette and Viola go bathing is absolutely exquisite because I could feel everything. The strangeness of undressing in a darkened box on wheels, the feel of the swimming dress, the rough and tumble of being pulled into the sea by a horse, then opening the door to see nothing but the ocean in front of you. This is a play on conventional baptism for Viola. She fully immerses herself in the water, supported by Henriette, and feels a rebirth. The heaviness in the uncoiling of her hair and letting it float free signifies a freeing from the constraints of Victorian fashion, as is the unlacing of the corsets. As they trundle back up to the sand after their swim, Viola wishes they could stay in this space in the dark for the intimacy with Henriette, and the knowledge of the freedom she will feel as she opens the door and sees nothing but ocean. When the women share Viola’s room the writing is so tender. Viola worries what the servants might think, but Henriette frees her thinking again. Love between women does not exist, she tells her, there are laws and conventions regarding love between a man and a woman, and even the love between men. What they are to each other is beyond the thoughts of most people, the servants will see two friends staying together and nothing more. Pavan and Jonah, don’t meet in the main haveli but in an ancient old temple in its grounds, a space no longer used for its purpose and outside the family structure inside the house. They meet as two people of different cultures and beliefs, but find a connection so powerful that each would put their lives on the line for the other. Jonah wonders whether he could live a different life to the one laid out for him back in England. He’s seen other English men here who have married Indian women and had children. They’re neither totally respectable, but are not shunned either. This is a novel of people, particularly women, learning to live in the spaces between; the places that promise more freedom.

This was an original, emotional and beautifully written novel that weaves a powerful story from a combination of painstaking historical research and imagination. Each character is fully fleshed out and has a rich inner life. Where real events such as the 1857 Siege of Delhi are used in the novel, they are deeply powerful and the author treats them with respect. The elements of spiritualism and spirit photography are well researched and based on a real fascination for the paranormal in Victorian society. Cohen acknowledges that this is a novel about faith: religious faith, faith in the paranormal and that the ties to those we love don’t end in death; faith in romantic love and the promises we make to each other; even the faith she has in herself. In the acknowledgements to this novel Julie Cohen says ‘I wrote the first draft of this book when I thought my writing career was over’. Judging by this book, it’s far from over. However, by allowing herself to think of that possibility, she gave herself the space to write something truly extraordinary.

A well written, intriguing read. An unusual topic, obviously well researched on each level, touching on so many sensitive historical facts. Kept me reading, despite a couple of slow sections that lacked real detail and substance, where the storyline almost lost my interest. A satisfying ending, if somewhat rushed for my liking. Should be well received when it's on the shelves.

Fabulous, I am reviewing for the blog tour in July and will reveal my full thoughts then but I can safely say I loved this book.

Spirited by Julie Cohen

Spirited is a slow burn of a book, one that gives you small glimpses into the greater picture of the story. Set in 1800 England. It follows the lives of Viola, a grieving young woman who has just lost her father. Newly married to Jonah, her lifelong friend and companion, however, he hasn’t been the same since his return from India and she doesn’t know why he won’t talk to her. All she knows he has been hailed a hero, but he doesn’t act like one.

Lonely, she picks up her old hobby, photography and soon finds herself being requested by the local community to take photos of their deceased family members. After the first instance, a strange phenomenon occurs. Ghostly apparitions appear in the pictures, people believe they’re loved ones. This shocks Viola, she doesn’t believe this is possible. She meets a spirit medium called Henriette who convinces Viola that ghosts of the deceased are turning up in her pictures. Being so lonely, saddened by Jonah’s neglect, she sparks a new friendship with Henriette, which turns into something a lot more powerful than either was expecting. Henriette’s story is uncovered whilst the story unfolds, which include some awful and joyous times.

Alongside learning about Viola and her life, we learn about Jonah and what happened in India. The things that occurred to change him forever. Why he feels he cannot speak to Viola and the haunting loss he feels to his core.

A wonderful story that will make you feel all of the emotions. It is hauntingly beautiful and captures many of the issue’s women faced historically, the social norms that women were expected to conform to.

A beautiful, memorable novel. Cohen has created a thought-provoking and powerful story, that I will remember for time to come. If you enjoy historical fiction, I would recommend this to you.

Set in Victorian England (and on occasion India), this is a slow burner that took me a while to get into. Spirited is driven by faith, grief, and by association society’s attitude to the dead. The Victorian-era is on the cusp is all those scientific and technological discoveries, which seems at odds with spirit mediums. But grief can lead you to strange doors. Another strong theme is bucking societal expectations (particularly around gender norms) - by pretty much all the characters sharing their story. Once the story did get going, it becomes a mystery as you’re shown snippets of documents cataloging these events and it leads you desperate to learn the fate of Viola, Jonah and Henriette. This is the second of Cohen’s novels that I’ve read where gender plays in important part of the narrative, and she handles this with ease. Love is love!

**Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review**
I'm on a historical fiction kick at the moment and I have to admit that there are some brilliant titles and some awful ones in this genre. I'm happy to say that Spirited was one of the better ones.
I really enjoyed the split plot lines between England and India and slowly learning more about why Jonah couldn't bring himself to open up or even truly love his wife.
A few twists along the way kept me gripped and I enjoyed it right to the end.

Viola has an impossible talent. Searching for meaning in her grief, she uses her photography to feel closer to her late father, taking solace from the skills he taught her - and to keep her distance from her husband. But her pictures seem to capture things invisible to the eye. Henriette is a celebrated spirit medium, carrying nothing but her secrets with her as she travels the country. When she meets Viola, a powerful connection is sparked between them - but Victorian society is no place for reckless women. Meanwhile, on the other side of the world, invisible threads join Viola and Henriette to another woman who lives in secrecy, hiding her dangerous act of rebellion in plain sight.

I was not sure what to expect from this read but I very quickly found myself completely drawn into this sweeping tale. I will start with the characters of Viola and Jonah; what a great pair of characters they are! Friends since childhood and newly married they realise they might not know each other as well as they thought. They find themselves changed but why? Cohen does a beautiful job of creating two very likeable, special characters and ensures the reader is invested in their story before the secrets start unravelling.

The plot is extremely emotional and I felt like I went on a real rollercoaster of emotions whilst reading this. There is love, loss, pain and hope, amongst many other emotions, put together it is just effortlessly beautiful and I could not help but fall in love with the story and the characters Cohen portrays.

The story of Viola and Jonah is simply stunning and I adored getting to know them and learning about the tribulations life has thrown at them. Events may not always be entirely believable but they are beautiful and perfect for this read.

'Spirited' is a very special read and one that will remain with me for a long time. I adored the characters, the plot is gripping and when everything comes together you are left with this exquisite read that is full of hope.

Thank you to NetGalley and Orion for an advance copy.

Julie Cohen's first historical novel swept me away. Evolving around spirit photography, be prepared to get caught up in loves lost and found in this realm and the next. A 5-star read!