ARC REVIEW: The Last Heir To Blackwood Library – by Hester Fox

Title: The Last Heir To Blackwood Library
Author: Hester Fox
Genre: Historical Fiction, Paranormal
First published: April 4th 2023
Publisher: Graydon House
Finished reading: March 24th 2023
Pages: 320

“If there’s one thing the war taught me, it’s that we can try to forget and push away memories all we want, but we are still the same, damaged people.”

*** A copy of this book was kindly provided to me by Netgalley and Graydon House in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! ***

REVIEW

I love a good gothic historical story, and add a bookish element and there is no way I’m going to be able to resist reading it. This is probably why it is easy to understand how The Last Heir To Blackwood Library ended up on my shelves, because this newest story by Hester Fox offers both. I’ve enjoyed her work in the past, and there was just something about the blurb, the Blackwood abbey and its secrets that made this story sound irresistible. And while there were things that didn’t work as well as expected for me, as a whole it turned out to be a solid read.

One of the highlights for me was without doubt the Yorkshire setting. I loved the prologue and the 14th century timeline, and I almost wish that we could have had more of this POV throughout the story. I would have loved to learn more about the origins of the abbey! That said, I did love the 1927 timeline as well, with the post WWI references and the descriptions of the Blackwood Abbey as well as life as it was back then. The Yorkshire setting really came through, and the descriptions of the abbey gave the story that perfect gothic vibe.

The Last Heir To Blackwood Library is quite hard to put inside a neat little genre box. While it’s true that it is essentially historical fiction with its 1927 setting, you will also find paranormal horror and fantasy elements in the abbey’s history and what is happening to main character Ivy. There is even romance incorporated as well, and of course you have the mystery around the abbey’s secrets. I mostly liked this mix of genres, although I personally could have done without the romance and especially the love triangle.

As for the characters… I think this is part of the issue I had with this story. I don’t think that they were developed to a satisfactory level, and some of their traits felt quite cliche. I don’t think that their behavior was consistent either. Take Ivy for example: she is supposed to be stubborn and smart, but she lets Arthur do what he does without truly fighting back? Basically giving up without really trying? This just wasn’t credible to me and kind of put a damper on things. I also feel that there was just too much miscommunication and the situation could have easily solved a lot sooner if the rest just explained the truth to Ivy (even though she would probably forget it again).

The pace was also a lot slower than expected, and certain parts of the plot dragged considerably (especially in the first half). Things did improve later on, but the balance kind of tipped to the other side and I felt like the solution of the whole problem was rushed and a bit too easy. It felt like the author was trying to give us a nice clean ending all wrapped up in a nice bow, and it didn’t fit with the rest of the story.

That said, I still love the premise of The Last Heir To Blackwood Library, and Hester Fox is fantastic at creating that perfect gothic atmosphere. The Blackwood Abbey with its library and secrets is without doubt the star of the show!