I enjoyed this slightly...ok very...ghostly story of family, magic, loss and greed. The characters were darkly interesting and the storyline was a good idea. It felt dragged out and repetitive at points towards the end though, and left me unsatisfied. Also the clipped British narration didn't match the American language. On the whole a fun read, would be perfect for Autumn.
Thank you for the opportunity to read, enjoy and review this book!

At the Bottom of the Garden is a deliciously dark and whimsical tale that blends gothic mystery with a touch of the supernatural. After their parents die in a tragic mountaineering accident, sisters Violet and Lily are sent to live with their Aunt Clara—an unpleasant woman more interested in inheritance than in the girls themselves. But when the sisters begin to uncover Clara’s disturbing secret, things quickly spiral into something much darker.

Violet’s ability to see the dead and talk to animals, paired with Lily’s gift for reading people’s emotions as glowing auras, add a magical layer to this hauntingly funny story. Think Lemony Snicket with ghosts and sharper teeth.

The audiobook narration is excellent, with standout performances—especially Clara’s narrator, who nails the dark comedy with perfect timing. A wonderfully eerie and original listen. I’ll definitely be seeking out more from Camilla Bruce.

A really fun concept looking at nature/nurture, jealousy and revenge. The characters were really interesting and overall it was a clever plot!

A mixed bag, more YA than adult. I enjoyed it but the characters were a bit too juvenile
liked the narrator
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

This is an odd one; it reads as a screwball mashup of 'Blythe Spirit', 'I Capture the Castle', and ‘The Canterville Ghost’.

The decision to market ‘At the Bottom of the Garden’ as adult horror is mystifying to me. I read a lot of young adult fiction alongside adult fiction, and this is clearly YA. The plot concerns a nine-year-old and a fourteen-year-old suddenly (and surreally) orphaned (thanks to K2?!) and ill-used by their pugnacious aunt in whose custody they’re placed, who is – you guessed it – only after their inheritance money (sound familiar? Picture Jim Carrey rubbing his hands together with an evil cackle). Although the chapters alternate in their point of view, it is Lily, the fourteen-year-old, whose perspective dominates, and whose voice is the most compelling. It’s almost by-the-by that Aunt Clara’s point of view is sprinkled here and there throughout. She mostly functions as a farcical villain.

Further to this, I found it sincerely distracting the fact that the audiobook is voiced in British accents by all the narrators, yet the book is explicitly set in America. Place names, turns-of-phrase, even landscape and flora all betray a setting in the USA, with the attendant American-English vocabulary (we find the words 'styrofoam’ and ‘convenience store’, as well as foodstuffs like ‘green salad’ and ‘chicken wings’ on menus; ‘fall' replaces 'autumn'; 'sheriff' replaces 'police'; and 'pants' replaces 'trousers').

With their top-class performances, Helen Keeley, Heather Long, and Sarah Cullum did a fantastic job narrating, despite these considerable inconsistencies, but I’m afraid I remained both diverted and irked whilst I was listening. Bruce’s latest book just didn’t offer anything of value enough to compensate. It’s one of those reads that I won’t remember the week after listening to it.

In short, this is an American YA thriller trying to masquerade as British adult horror, and it was altogether too Lemony Snicket for my liking.

Thanks to Bolinda Audio for the audio ARC.

When Lily and Violet lose their parents, their only option is to move in with Aunt Clara, who has only ever been a distant name—until now. Struggling with her finances, Clara sees taking care of her nieces as a good deal. But what she didn’t expect was for them to dig up the buried secrets at the bottom of her garden. After all, the dead must remain dead... but these untrained witches have changed the game altogether. With Clara left to juggle all her ghostly affairs, the haunting has begun!

The atrocious affairs at the bottom of the garden had a fun side to them. I couldn’t help but laugh every time a ghost did something to Clara. The characters were wholeheartedly developed, especially Clara’s nasty side and her history. The familiars, the séances, and even the feeding rituals somehow made sense with all the ruckus going on. The witty dialogues and the cunning responses had a way of stamping themselves on your heart, and even after finishing the story, I wonder: was what they did right or wrong? But I’m sure it was necessary! ☠️

As I was listening to the audiobook version of the story, I couldn’t help but admire the narrator’s voices for the girls, especially Lily’s; it was so cute. No wonder I always found myself gravitating back toward this story, even when I took several breaks. I recommend it to readers of all age groups looking for the vibes of sisterhood, bad blood, coming of age, and the dead vs. the living.

Clara Wood doesn't care much about anything other than diamonds. And her money in general. However, when her nieces are orphaned and she is named to be their guardian, that all changes. Now all she cares about is diamonds and their money. Because Lily and Violet are seriously rich. And caring for them brings her a hefty allowance. Which she intends to spend mainly on diamonds. But Clara has a problem. Both girls are gifted in very unexpected ways. Lily can see feelings. And she knows when someone is lying. And Violet, well, she sees dead people. And there seems to be a lot of dead people around Clara. Angry dead people. And Violet can call them back.

This novel is pitched as an adult dark fairytale, but to be honest, it felt more like YA. Which isn't a bad thing, YA is great, but my expectations are different for these genres. Once I got my head into YA mode, I started to enjoy it more. I listened to this as an audiobook it's a really good example of how narrators can lift a story. Helen Keeley, Heather Long, and Sarah Cullum bring the story to life and keep the story interesting during a few lulls.

It's not a great book, maybe a bit long for the content, but the narration makes it very enjoyable.

I really enjoyed listening to this audiobook. The narrators did a great job. The story itself is kinda Gothic. A few wronged ghost. And fun. The aunt in my head reminded me of Cruella Da Vil. I would definitely recommend. I look forward to more by this new to me author.

I enjoyed this listen, the narrator was excellent and this makes or breaks an audio book. I would say it has more of a whimsical flavour, with just a hint of a gothic touch. A bit mild mannered for my taste but I would recommend for those that do like a tamer spooky read.

This book gave me everything I want in a horror story: just enough gore to make me squirm, creepy moments that raised the hairs on my arms, and dry, sarcastic humor that cut through the darkness in all the best garden gothic ways.

We follow Clara, a woman who has no problem getting rid of people who get in her way. She’s sharp, selfish, and strangely likable despite it all. When her orphaned nieces, Lily and Violet, show up, she agrees to take them in—not out of love, but for the money. The plan? Use their inheritance to fund her dream jewelry line. The problem? One of the girls can see ghosts—and not just see them, but bring them back.

What surprised me most was how this wasn’t just Clara’s story. The girls, especially Violet, add so much heart and tension. The creep factor builds beautifully, and the twisty power struggle between Clara and the girls kept me hooked. I thought I had it figured out, but it kept going deeper.

What I loved most was how morally gray Clara is. The book doesn’t excuse her choices, but it does give a nod to where “bad” people originate from—and how much blame belongs to the adults who raised them.

The audiobook narrator was phenomenal. Every character had a totally distinct voice, which is rare. She pulled off both gruff, older Clara and the two young girls perfectly. I was honestly in awe. If you like your horror thoughtful, eerie, and just a little funny in a wicked way, this is one to add to your list.

A beautifully odd story focussing on two young orphans, their nasty aunt (who just happens to also be a scheming, money grabbing murderer, and a handful of wronged ghosts. Nice dark humour surrounding the innocence of the children but also a nice shot at ideas surrounding death and the departed.

Clara takes in her nieces Lily an Violet purely for the financial gain she will receive from having them. What Clara doesn't know is that Violet can see dead things and she can see all of Clara's ghosts and is able to call them back to existence. Clara is soon haunted by her past and her secrets are uncovered.

This is now my 3rd Camila Bruce book and probably my favourite so far. I loved the characters and the atmosphere and how the ghosts and magic worked. This book had me pulled me in from the start and I'm really enjoying these types of gothic stories at the minute.

I listened to this on audio and I think that made me love this story even more ! Brilliant audio 😄

Thank you to Netgalley, Belinda Audio and Camilla Bruce for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was a quirky story about two sisters and their murderous aunt. The girls are orphaned and sent to live with said aunt which leads them to discover that they have unusual abilities. The youngest manifests ghosts of people who died in the aunt’s house – her victims. Hilarity ensues. This really felt like A Series of Unfortunate Events. It was vaguely whimsical but not spooky, and certainly not a gothic, horror style story – which was what it was sold as. I liked it enough to finish but my overall impression was that it was okay.

Arc review ✨

Well this one just reminded me how much love I had for a Series of Unfortunate Events! It had all the gothic vibes which were fun. The fact that the girls have their own special talents made it quite interesting throughout. I really liked their POVs. I was so over Aunt Clara though. She gave a Cruella De Vill / Count Olaf mix. I pictured her as Cruella though lol! Like I felt bad for her and what she had gone through but come on, bit excessive much? I think her being insufferable was the point though! Evil guardian and all who only cares about her money. It got a bit repetitive towards the last third of the book though. I finished it but it just seemed to drag on!

Review specifically for the audiobook - it was really well done! I liked our narrators, they were great and made the book interesting. I struggled reading the book so switching to audio helped a ton. I really recommend the audio version.

Thank you to NetGalley and publisher for an early copy of an audiobook in exchange for a review!