The Third Wife of Faraday House by B.R. Myers

The Third Wife of Faraday House is a gripping, suspenseful, and entertaining Gothic mystery set in 1816 on the South Shore of Nova Scotia.

All the wives die young in Faraday House…

Raised by her Guardians, the Shackletons, in foggy Halifax, Emeline Fitzpatrick is caught in an improper scene with a Lieutenant of the British Royal Navy. To escape scandal, she is given two choices, join the coven or become the third wife to the wealthy Captain Graves who lives in a manor located on an Island on the South Shore called Faraday House. She chooses to go to the island with the hope that her Lieutenant, with his ship, will come and rescue her. On her way to Faraday House, her carriage breaks down and her driver goes on ahead leaving, her all alone. The Reverend Pellerine and his overly large dog find Emmeline and accidentally scare her.

“Does your beast turn during the full moon?”
“Moses? He’s only a dog.”
I scoffed at that. “He’s huge. What does he eat, smaller dogs?”

Upon her arrival at the dark and dramatic Faraday House she meets Mrs. Clayton and Hattie, the cook and the maid. Emmeline soon discovers that the second wife of Captain Graves, Georgina, is still alive but suffering from an unknown illness, and is slowly fading away. Raised by Mrs. Shackleton to rely on her looks over her brains, the naive Emeline is slow to realize that she can’t trust anyone who lives in Faraday House. She slowly comprehends that something dark and sinister lurks in the halls and rooms of the house relating to the previous Faraday wives and why the wives of Faraday House all seem to die young. Emeline has to figure out why and uncover the truth before she becomes the next wife to befall the same fate.

I just loved the ‘Gothic feel’ of The Third Wife of Faraday House, the paintings, secret rooms, unexplained drafts, and the noises of Faraday House. B.R Myers paints a vivid picture of the mysterious manor and the people who live there. Despite the nativity of Emeline, I found her quips to be very amusing and I enjoyed watching Emeline’s growth and self-discovery in the story. One thing I really enjoy about B.R. Myers’ writing, and I found this to be the same in her previous novel A Dreadful Splendour, is once you think you have figured out who the culprits or guilty parties are, Myers reveals new facts that will have you changing your theories over and over yet again, keeping the reader on their toes. It is no surprise to learn that she won the Mary Higgins Clark Award. The Third Wife of Faraday House is the perfect spooky story to be reading this fall!

B.R. Myers is the Edgar Award-winning author of A Dreadful Splendour, winner of the Mary Higgins Clark Award as well as numerous YA books. Always in the mood for a good scare, she spent most of her teen years behind the covers of Lois Duncan, Ray Bradbury, and Stephen King. A member of the Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia, she works as a registered nurse and she lives in Halifax with her family.

Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks/ HarperCollins (August 20, 2024)
Paperback 9″ x 6″ | 352 pages
ISBN: 9780063209879

Sue Slade

Sue Slade has a Bachelor of Child Study from Mount St. Vincent University in Halifax. After working with children and adults with special needs, she now has her midlife dream job of working with books. Sue manages an independent, locally owned bookstore, Dartmouth Book Exchange. Through her charismatic sharing centred around books and community, Sue has created an engaging cornerstone for authors, customers, and book lovers of all ages. Sue is an avid reader and her reviews cross over many genres.