The Curious Affair of the Witch at Wayside Cross
Author: Lisa Tuttle
The best words I can come up with to describe this book are: charming and entertaining.
Jasper Jesperson and Miss Lane make up Jesperson & Lane, Private Investigators. A possible client, Charles Manning, arrives at their London home in the wee hours of the morning. He screams at Miss Lane, calling her a witch and then promptly drops dead. Jesperson suspects foul play, but after an autopsy Mr. Manning's cause of death is listed as heart failure. It turns out Manning was obsessed with the occult and witchcraft. The detective duo are hired by the deceased's brother to investigate what caused his death. Their investigation takes them to an area of Norfolk known for its haunted hollows called shrieking pits and a strange, weeping, female specter. The area has had three suspicious deaths in the past year. The case keeps expanding and increasing in scope -- unexplained deaths, a missing woman, a missing baby, and three strange women living at Wayside Cross. Are the three women witches? Where is the missing baby? And, what happened to Charles Manning?
I loved this book! The mystery is engaging and fun. I like the characters as well. Jesperson is more than a little eccentric. Diane is level-headed and keeps Jesperson grounded so that he doesn't just go off on tangents. The two of them together make an awesome detective agency. The supernatural aspects of the plot were not over-done, but just made the story interesting, engaging and creepy. Just a fun read!
This book is the second in The Curious Affair Of.... series. I have not read the first book, but that didn't matter. It isn't necessary to read the first book to enjoy this tale of witches and murder. I'm definitely going to read the first book though! I hope it is as enjoyable as the second one!
**I voluntarily read an advanced readers copy of this book from Random House - Hydra via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**
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