Review: Murder at Spindle Manor by Morgan Stang

Blurb:

Mysteries abound in Spindle Manor.

For Huntress Isabeau Agarwal, the countryside inn is the last stop in a deadly hunt. Armed with gaslamp and guns, she tracks an insidious beast that wears the skin of its victims, mimicking them perfectly. Ten guests reside within Spindle Manor tonight, and the creature could be any one of them. Confined by a torrential thunderstorm and running out of time, Isabeau has until morning to discover the liar, or none of them—including her—will make it out alive.

But her inhuman quarry isn't the only threat residing in Spindle Manor.

Gunshots.

A slammed door.

A dead body.

Someone has been killed, and a hunt turns into a murder investigation. Now with two mysteries at her feet and more piling up, Isabeau must navigate a night filled with lies and deception. In a world of seances and specters, mesmers and monsters, the unexpected is hiding around every corner, and every move may be her last.

Review:

Poirot-does-Fantasy. Set in a steampunk, fantastical yet also ye-olde times this high octane double mystery, magical thriller will stick you down with ectoplasm until you finish the book in 1 sitting!

The winner of SPFBO 9 (Self Published Fantasy Blog Off) in 2023!

Our Huntress, Isabeau, has been tasked to solve a mystery. A beast who kills and takes the skin of its victim; mimicking their personalities perfectly, has been killing and following along with a group of travellers heading towards the big city. Now they arrive at the last hotel before it would be let loose on the citizens, likely never to be found whilst leaving a trail of death behind it. So it must be caught. Tonight.

However, as she starts to determine who might be the monster, by carefully interviewing each suspect at a time and learning the intricacies that surround this group (you’ll know the type of interviews if you’ve ever read a Poirot novel!) the situation worsens and one of the guests are murdered in their room.

Now I try to avoid spoilers so that is as far as I will go with the plot. But in a world with magic, monsters, and a steampunk, grimdark style you are in for a treat as you watch our Huntress and the hired help/sidekick attempt to solve 2 mysteries which may be more intertwined than first appears.

If you have ever read the Warlock Holmes books (Sherlock Holmes but as a warlock) you will equally notice the comparisons and references here are similar. Sherlock/Warlock and Poirot/Isabeau.

Our characters are delightful in a stereotypical Victorian-era way. They are believable and fun to interact with. Our main character is sharp, humorous and yet realistic; she explains her logic as she goes so I never felt out of the loop or that any deus-ex machina type incidents happened. Her sidekick was a little disappointing; a fairly useless Watson/Hastings type who should have been able to assist Isabeau far more given her situation. But still, the entire cast were fun, engaging and believable.

A horror/thriller/murder mystery in a fantasy setting? Yes please! And the pacing is perfectly laid out by Stang. While the basics of this book; Who did it? Is fairly common, there are more complex elements to the mystery which will keep readers guessing throughout. It is truly a page turner; a short sharp and to the point book giving you just enough to stay interested.

A deserved winner of the self published fantasy book award for 2023 and I’m sure the next books in this series will not disappoint either!