Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Historical Romance
Length: 272 pages
Author: Tiffany Odekirk
Publisher: Shadow Mountain
Release Date: October 7th, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A hidden past. A house with secrets. And one chance for two wounded hearts to find love together.

Northern England, Late Fall, 1820

Katherine Lockwood is hiding for her life in the most unlikely of places: the forgotten priest holes in the abandoned Winterset Grange manor house. When Kate learns that Winterset’s long-absent owner, Mr. Oliver Jennings, is about to return, she is desperate to find a way to make him leave, even if it means “haunting” him from behind her protective walls.

After a grand tour of the Continent, Oliver returns home to England determined to make the most of his inheritance. But from the moment he arrives, nothing is as he expected. His manor is in disrepair, the steward hired to care for his estate is a thief, and to top it all off, Winterset is haunted. Undeterred, Oliver resolves to reclaim his life, piece by piece.

When Oliver discovers the hidden rooms, he’s shocked and pleased that his “ghost” is actually a beautiful young woman. Captivated by Kate and her story, he invites her to stay at Winterset under his protection.

Thank you to the author and the publisher for a gifted copy.

A DASH OF DANGER.

I have been waiting for Oliver’s redemption story and I loved seeing his journey. He truly showed up in making the best of the situations before him and how he approached and took his time with Kate to show her what she meant to him. There were many sweet moments between the two and I was so happy to finally have them meet and interact.

I loved the setting. All of the hidden passageways and nooks added a fun element and led to a bit of chaos. For such a small cast I hardly noticed because the side characters were great to be around.

Seeing Oliver get a chance to reconnect with Damon and Hannah were some of my favorite scenes. I have been begging for those moments and that peace was felt between them. I enjoyed Kate a lot too. She and Oliver matched well in their personalities and I loved the soft nature between them.

Overall audience notes:

• Historical Romance
• Language: none
• Romance: kisses
• Violence: mild
• Content warnings: gun violence, loss of loved ones (recounted), kidnapping