My Five Word TL:DR Review: Gothic Mystery with Great Setting

Strange Beasts was an entertaining read with a supernatural mystery at its heart and a couple of characters that will undoubtedly appeal to many readers.

Set in the early Twentieth century the main character is Samantha Harker, daughter of Jonathan and Mina Harker.  Sam is a researcher at the Royal Society for the Study of Abnormal Phenomena.  She loves her job working with books but at the same time is keen to try some field work so when a series of puzzling murder mysteries take place in Paris, she pulls out all the stops to be assigned.  The murders look like the work of a werewolf and yet werewolves have long since been eradicated.  Paris calls upon the Society for help and Sam succeeds in wrangling herself a place.  Perhaps this is because she’s the only one foolish enough to team up with Dr. Helena Moriarty, yep, daughter of the infamous criminal mastermind and arch nemesis of Sherlock Holmes. Helena has had a lot of bad luck when it comes to partners, mainly, they don’t usually survive the experience and there’s a story behind this of course.  As it is, Helena is very private and not keen to trust others.  Sam also comes with her own self doubts and dire warnings from her mother.  Sam can see into the minds of monsters, unfortunately this is more likely to lead to committal in the nearest asylum rather then gaining her acclaim.

So, the two set off for Paris.  I did really enjoy the setting.  Paris really lends itself to this type of gothic mystery.  There are the miles of underground catacombs, steeped in history and crawling with the unknown and then on the opposite side of the coin the sumptuous opera house with it’s fantastic interior and haunted boxes.

I’m not going to delve into the murder mysteries but allow others to discover the story for themselves.  There is a side element to the mystery.  Sam has her own motivations for wanting to get out into the field.  Her grandfather disappeared and she’s been trying to follow a strange trail.  Helena also has her own family issues that are leading her on a merry dance.

I thought the writing was really good, very impressive for a debut and the pacing was pretty consistent with enough going on to keep me interested in turning the pages quickly.

In terms of little issues.  I think that there was perhaps too much going on.  What with the personal issues that both characters had, plus the murder mystery, plus trying to not be usurped on the case by another agent, it felt like the actual detecting was a bit thin.  I really liked the two main characters, they’re a perfect pairing in so many ways, Sam is very feminine and loves fashionable clothing, she’s intelligent and knowledgeable but lacks experience outside the walls of the library.  Helena is razor sharp witted, she has a strength about her and a no nonsense attitude.  I didn’t particularly feel chemistry between the two at this point and I think the romantic aspect would have been better developing a lot more slowly over the course of the next book or books (I’m thinking there are more books planned given the ending).  I just didn’t particularly feel like the romance felt real at this point.  And, yes, I would have liked more from the mystery element.  I also couldn’t really get a feel for the world, there are supernatural creatures – is everyone aware of these beasts living in their midst or are they all muddling along in ignorance?

Anyway, in conclusion, this was an entertaining read, perhaps a little over ambitious in some ways but well written and intriguing.  I had no problem speeding through this and I will definitely read any future instalments.

I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks.  The above is my own opinion.

My rating 3.5 of 5 stars