Spellbound : The haunting of Castle Keyvnor is the fourth in a series of 4 collections of novellas – all taking place at Castle Keyvnor and its neighboring area when a collection of relatives come to the Castle for the reading of the will of the deceased Earl of Banfield. Spellbound contains stories by Claire Delacroix, Jane Charles, and Claudia Dain.
In the first story, Clair Delacroix tells the tale of Lucien deRoye, a man who has sold his sold to a demon for the chance to win back the fortune of the woman he loved. Lucien met Sophia when he was working for her father, Mr Brisbane. Her father was rich but in trade. He was about to be knighted and his son, Charles, was ready to move up in society – he was already practicing the drinking and gambling. Thinking he was doing something good, Sophia’s father betrothed her to the Marquess of Lyndenhurst who wanted her for her fortune. Almost as soon as he was knighted, her father died leaving her brother Charles in charge. Charles quickly loses everything to the Marquess and then he dies. The last thing Lucien does before leaving is vow that he will restore her fortunes. Sophia disappears by switching identities with her governess who also had died. Seven years later, Lucien is about to win back the last piece of Sophia’s fortune. He won everything back not by luck but by selling his soul and on midnight of All Hallows Eve, the demon will be there to collect. Miss Findlay (aka Sophia) travels to Castle Keyvnor with her 2 charges and their grandmother for the reading of the will and Lucien recognizes her at once. Their feeling have never changed but can she stop the disaster that is about to take place? Can she break the curse? Can they find the happiness that they truly deserve? This story is heartwarming and at times heart breaking. This is a story that shows how far someone will go to save someone they love.
In the second story of this book, Jane Charles tells the story of Charlotte Beck. We met and heard part of Charlotte’s story in the Ava Stone selection in Vexed. That was told from Charlotte’s cousin Cassy’s point of view. Cassy is the obedient cousin, but Charlotte is the adverterous one. Her stry starts when she goes the Gypsy camp to get her fortune told. When she arrives she notices an attractive man chopping wood. It turns out that Adam Vail’s grandmother is the one who can tell her fortune. Adam is not only part gypsy, he is now also his grandfather’s heir – he will eventually become Viscount Lynwood. Charlotte’s fortune is not exactly what she expects. Instead of talk about finding her true love, Adam’s grandmother begins to put together a charm to ward off evil spirits. It seems that Charlotte looks like Lady Helena a woman who was strangled 200 years before by Lord Tyrell. Now he haunts the castle and has strangled multiple women who look like Helena – now it’s Charlotte’s turn. Only the gypsy charm will protect her but she must wear it at all times. When she takes it off, she is strangled by an invisible force. No one would have believed it except her brothers saw her lifted into the air and the bruise marks on her throat. Not even moving to Adam’s home is enough to keep her safe. There’s one thing that will save her – she must marry and consummate her marriage. Luckily, Adam and Charlotte both fell in love at first sight and he was already planning on asking for her hand. Even a special license could take a week to arrive and they have no time to waste. The happily ever after was hard won but well worth the struggle. The characters are well written and the ghost is truly frightening. Tis was a great addition to the collection.
The final story in this trilogy is written by Claudia Dain. This is perhaps one of the most interesting of the stories in this collection. Nell and Roland are two ghosts haunting the castle. Nell decides to play matchmaker with two of the guests. Harold (Hal) Mort, Lord Blackwater wasn’t invited to the reading – he came with friends. Lady Morgan is the daughter of the new Earl of Banfield. At first, Roland tries to thwart Nell’s plan but as the two humans grow closer, Nell and Roland also begin to rekindle their past love. In a castle where the ghosts seem to be trying to scare or hurt people these two ghosts are working for good. Both couples are interesting and delightful characters and their stories were a joy to read.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review
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