Occultober Day 19 Miss Knight and the Ghosts of Tsavo by Vered Ehsani

Occultober Day 19 Miss Knight and the Ghosts of Tsavo by Vered Ehsani

Here is a lovely urban fantasy set in the English Empire during the reign of Queen Victoria. It begins with one of the best opening lines I have ever read: “It’s an uncommonly known fact that a strong pot of tea will obscure a werewolf’s stench.” What follows is just as good as those first words. Miss Knight (or Mrs. Knight as she insists as she considers herself to be still married to her husband who has become a ghost) is a rather atypical adventuress. In many ways she struggles to maintain a façade as a proper Victorian lady, but in practice she is an agent of a society that investigates and regulates the paranormal—something she is well suited to do because of her peculiar gift to recognize the paranormal and speak with ghosts.

 

The plot of this book involves her and her adopted family having to travel to Africa after the father of the family’s poor investment strategy leaves them bankrupt. So much of this book reads like a colonial novel—the reactions of Miss Knight and her family to living in a part of the world very different than London society. The other part is an investigation into two ghost lions that are still killing people. It’s frankly a delightful story, sedately paced but never feeling overly slow. There are some nice surprises along the way and a great setup for the next book.

 

I’d like to say thank you to Amazon Top 500 Reviewer Charles Van Buren who brought this excellent novel to my attention on the Written Gems Discussion Group on Goodreads.

 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...