In her enthralling novels of literary suspense, Carol Goodman writes stories that resonate with emotion set in lush landscapes that entice the sens...
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Dec 16, 2009
Brooke
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This time around, Carol Goodman serves up a ghost story with her signature solving-mysteries-from-the-past plot. The chapters alternate between the past and the present, and I really like the way they're linked together. The setting, a mansion with a sprawling garden populated by statues and a maze, comes to life with Goodman's descriptions and the gardens almost become a character themselves.
I think The Lake of Dead Languages remains my favorite Goodman novel, but this one comes in More...
I think The Lake of Dead Languages remains my favorite Goodman novel, but this one comes in More...
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Jan 16, 2009
Wendi
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Ah yes, I love a ghost story. I love a mystery. This book is similar to "The 13th Tale" but not as thick. It's more light reading, but I really enjoyed it. It was a good follow up to the sweetness of "Standing in the Rainbow".
The story centers around a first time author, Ellis, and the book that she is writing at an artists' retreat. The book she's writing is about the events that took place in the late 1800s at the retreat which is a former home and gardens of a More...
The story centers around a first time author, Ellis, and the book that she is writing at an artists' retreat. The book she's writing is about the events that took place in the late 1800s at the retreat which is a former home and gardens of a More...
Dec 27, 2011
Christina (Reading Thru The Night)
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Have you ever read a book and truly loved it....and then held off reading another book by the same author just in case you find out that you really don't love the author as much as you thought you did? So, essentially by not reading anything else by said author, you can still pretend that she is the best ever?
(Yes, I'm that neurotic that this thoughts come into my brains!)
Anyway, that's how I felt about Carol Goodman. I read Arcadia Falls last year and totally absolutel More...
(Yes, I'm that neurotic that this thoughts come into my brains!)
Anyway, that's how I felt about Carol Goodman. I read Arcadia Falls last year and totally absolutel More...
Apr 01, 2011
Alayne
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Carol Goodman always has an unparalleled way of transforming a location in a book into a beautifully haunted atmosphere. Her descriptions jump from the page, and every time she sets her novel in a new location I know it’s going to be lush, decrepit, and wonderful.
Her location in The Ghost Orchid is no different. Set at the upstate New York sprawling aged and crumbling Bosco Estate, Goodman unites an intriguing cast of characters amid the ivy-covered statues and dry fountains. Novelis More...
Her location in The Ghost Orchid is no different. Set at the upstate New York sprawling aged and crumbling Bosco Estate, Goodman unites an intriguing cast of characters amid the ivy-covered statues and dry fountains. Novelis More...
Mar 21, 2010
Felisa
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Jul 30, 2011
Kurt
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I love Carol Goodman's peculiar style of snooty but accessible fiction. I started with the Drowning Tree, where there's a murder at a pretentious women's college and the protagonist's knowledge of Greek mythology and 19th century stained glass techniques are the only way to save the day. In this, Goodman's next book, the characteristics I loved are still there. The setting is a fever dream of a liberal arts major, as chapters alternate between 1893 and the present day at a luxurious mansion with
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Dec 09, 2008
Ameerah
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I read this book on the recommendation of a co-worker. I bought it used for one cent and I'm glad I didn't spend a penny more. This is not to say that the book is horrible- not by any means.It is simply that my expectation far exceeded the actual story itself. I am not a big fan of ghots mysteries which is essentially what this book is. There is not a lot of character development before you are launched into the "boo!" plotline. I didn't find myself caring about any of the characters a
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Aug 22, 2009
Robin
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I wanted to love this book and couldn't wait to read it. When none of my local bookstores had it in stock for me to buy, I went so far as to go to the library - which is kinda rare for me, but ultimately, it was just ok. I didn't hate it, I just didn't love it or think the story was particularly interesting - it sorta reminded me of TV movies that try to be scary or creepy, but aren't really. I wish there had been more focus on a real world mystery without so much supernatural ghost / haunted ga
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Aug 02, 2011
Margo
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It is true that Carol Goodman's are always the same--women alone in some sort of literary career that fall into mysterious circumstances at some secluded house in upstate NY or in Italy--but her prose and settings are evocative and beautiful, and this may be her best work. Set at Bosco, a writer's retreat in upstate NY, Goodman weaves a story between the past and the presant, linking both to mediums (real or fake) and to the gardens surrounding the villa. The story dealves into the mystery surro
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Dec 17, 2009
Meika
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This is a great Gothic style romance. The romance is part of the subplot, really, with the gothic taking center stage. The setting is brilliant... the statues in the statuary practically come to life.
This isn't a pseudo-ghost story, where the ghosts are psychological. The ghosts are tangible...the main character is a medium.
This isn't a pseudo-ghost story, where the ghosts are psychological. The ghosts are tangible...the main character is a medium.
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Jun 30, 2010
Trine
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Apr 11, 2011
Midnyte Reader
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Dec 21, 2009
Connie
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Carol Goodman is a brilliant, literary writer of romantic suspense. "Ghost Orchid" takes places at Bosco, an estate that has been converted to a site where the carefully selected artists-in residence can write in seclusion. The estate was built with elaborate water gardens which play a major role in this mystery.
The novel includes references to mythology, pagan rituals and American Indian legends. She also develops parallel plots which were not obvious to me until I was at More...
The novel includes references to mythology, pagan rituals and American Indian legends. She also develops parallel plots which were not obvious to me until I was at More...
Mar 04, 2011
Sandy
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A review I read described Goodman as writing elegant mysteries, and the word has stuck in my mind. It's not just the intricate plots, but also her writing that's elegant. This story is set at an artist's retreat during the Victorian craze for the supernatural, and the modern writer is haunted, literally, by events that occurred 100 years before. The setting features an amazing garden that is described so vividly it takes on personality. The story flips back and forth between the two time per
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Aug 21, 2010
Sophie
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This book drew me in from the very first page and I am so impressed with the world Ms. Goodman has created in this story. The story unfolds and reveals layer upon layer--much like Bosco itself, which seems like just another house and garden when we first read about it. But then we find out about the maze, the grotto, the tunnels, the cemetery, the secret peepholes, etc, and we realize that nothing is as straightforward and simple as we thought. Even time--past and present--is not static. The two
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Apr 20, 2009
Lynn
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I truly enjoyed this book.It's one of those that the longer you read it, the better it gets. A mystery, ghost story, and historical book all rolled into one, I would describe it as a "thinking person's mystery." There's not really any gore or scenes thrown in for shock value, yet it's a very absorbing and engrossing tale. The setting is at a New York artist retreat and the characters you will meet are quite an eclectic lot. It alternates between the present and the past which has the r
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Sep 22, 2008
Kristi
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This book is in no way a masterpiece, but its a fun summer read. It is a mix between a mystery, and some history in upstate NY. Its quick to finish and pretty entertaining.
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Apr 28, 2011
Jennifer M. (Books, Personally)
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In The Ghost Orchid, contemporary writers seeking inspiration and incubation at a writer's colony in upstate New York are drawn by discontented spirits into the mystery of an unresolved, century-old crime. As they unveil its secrets, they discover their own connections to the original participants and find personal resolution of their own. The setting itself is enchanting: an Adirondack area mansion with elaborate gardens, secret passageways, and a supernatural presence. The Ghost Orchid is a we
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Nov 20, 2010
Jennifer W
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I really enjoy Goodman's books. They're fairly formulaic, but if it's good, why change it? This one is the very entwined story of Ellis Brooks and her stay at Bosco writers' retreat. While there, it is discovered that she and the other guests all have a history at the retreat that centers around the tragic events of 1893. 2 seances were held back then by a medium named Corinth, who has her own past. The seances were held to contact the dead children of Aurora Latham, who owns Bosco, but the chil
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Jul 29, 2009
Cheryl
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I love Carol Goodman's stories - they're always fun to read and they have such a strong sense of place that the location is always as much of a main character as the people in them. I love ghost stories and I'm always looking for good ones. While this one isn't my favorite Carol Goodman, it is a wonderful summer book, heaps of fun with an appropriate amount of romance and predictability thrown in. Ellis goes to Bosco (thinly disguised Yaddo in Saratoga), an artist's retreat in the Adirondacks t
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Aug 19, 2011
Rebecca
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A decent beach read from Carol Goodman. I've noticed she tends to repeat the same theme over and over again in her books. There's a mystery and the key always involves some kid being switched with another one at birth.
While I liked the idea of the artists colony and all the personality clashes, it seemed to drag on for a long time. Usually these gigs last weeks or at most a few months. This one appeared to go for a year. Plus there were 2 stories happening at different times and Goodm More...
While I liked the idea of the artists colony and all the personality clashes, it seemed to drag on for a long time. Usually these gigs last weeks or at most a few months. This one appeared to go for a year. Plus there were 2 stories happening at different times and Goodm More...
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Sep 25, 2011
Clare
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Teetering back and forth between the present day and 1893, this is the tale of events that happened, and are happening at the Bosco estate. Though now the estate is a haven for artists seeking peace and tranquility in order to do their work, what previously occurred here is suddenly and supernaturally seeping into this idyllic spot. Those currently at Bosco try to figure out how a crime committed about a century ago is somehow responsible for the inexplicable things happening at the retreat. W
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Jan 16, 2011
Kristin
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I liked this book, but I didn't love it. I loved The Lake of Dead Languages, The Drowning Tree, and The Seduction of Water, but this one just didn't quite rise to that level. One of the other reviewers said it wasn't as intelligent as the others and I think that is an apt description. It was also just on the edge of being to romancey/love story-ish for my tastes--especially the ending which was a little cheesey.
That said, I wouldn't steer anyone away from reading it. It was an entert More...
That said, I wouldn't steer anyone away from reading it. It was an entert More...
Aug 29, 2011
Sarah
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Ellis Brooks is excited to be invited to the Bosco - A beautiful estate transformed into an artist colony. You see, she's working on her first book and it happens to be about the medium Corinth Black and the controversy that now surrounds her and the previous owners of Bosco - Miles and Aurora Latham. While fighting through writers block Ellis must learn to navigate a fragile ecosystem of artists and their habits but when her fellow residents start to emulate the infamous characters from the Lat
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Sep 01, 2010
Blair
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The third Carol Goodman book I've read, this wasn't as good as The Lake of Dead Languages but redeemed the author in my eyes significantly after the uninspired Arcadia Falls, and it was actually more original than both. The alternate chapters moving between past and present worked well as they kept me interested in both strands of the story. I was also both surprised and pleased at the inclusion of a genuine supernatural element. I think it all dragged on a bit too much towards the end though -
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Jan 02, 2012
Michelle
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Carol Goodman revisits her underlying theme of water in this novel about an artist's retreat at a former mansion in upstate New York. The main character, Ellis has come to write a novel surrounding the history of the mansion and a seance that ends in a mysterious abduction. The story goes between the historical and the present day. Ellis has some interesting interactions with the other artisans, including one who is trying to restore the former glory of the intricate fountains that no longer fun
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Oct 11, 2011
Nicole
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This book had potential, but it was dragged down by cliched plots, mediocre writing, and not enough editing. For starters, the author is in love with metaphors and similes. I don't know when I last read a book so overflowing with them. Even the author-character in the book loves them, and gives them what I guess to be Goodman's defense, that (loosely paraphrased) metaphors are where the magic happens because they transform language. There's nothing wrong with a well-crafted metaphor, but t
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Feb 15, 2008
K
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For more than one hundred years, creative souls have traveled to upstate New York to work under the captivating spell of the Bosco estate. Cradled in silence, inspired by the rough beauty of overgrown gardens and crumbling statuary, these chosen few fashion masterworks - and have cemented Bosco's reputation as a premier artists' colony. This season, five talented artists-in-residence find themselves drawn to the history of Bosco, from the extensive network of fountains that were once its centerp
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Feb 12, 2008
Nancy
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Up until now I have absolutely LOVED Carol Goodman's books -- The Lake of Dead Languages and The Seduction of Water were absolutely fine mysteries. She takes a different turn here and I'm not so sure I liked it -- the ending had a somewhat contrived feel to it, as if she wasn't sure where to go with it or how to finish the story. Not only that, but I figured out 2 parts of the storyline early on because it was somewhat transparent if you read carefully. However, to be fair, on the flip side, I d
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Aug 05, 2011
Anne
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A light summer read shouldn't be this hard
I picked this book up in the bookstore because I was drawn to the cover design.I had never read any of Carol Goodman's books before. I wanted a quick enjoyable summer read! If I put this book down for a few days, I had to think too much to figure out where I was at in the story when I picked it back up. I found her writing technique a tad cumbersome. The book was OK, but it will not go on my great books list. More...
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