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The Lost Locket of Windbrace Hall
Fleeing across the barren, windswept moors when she is falsely accused of theft, Juliet Fletcher is offered a position at Windbrace Hall by Lord Victor Manchester, but she is in even greater danger there when he recognizes the locket she wears
288 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 1991
About the author
Beverly C. Warren
15 books9 followersBeverly C. Warren was born and raised in New York City and is a graduate of New York University. She now lives in Newington, Connecticut with her husband and four children. She is the author of four Doubleday Starlight Romances, and has written several Gothic romances for Zebra.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
June 5, 2015
If this book was a road, you'd kill yourself walking around all the plotholes.
From making no sense whatsoever for not getting angrier and telling people she was kidnapped and sold as a worker, to then staying in that hostile house where it was obviously dangerous so she could earn a little more money, the heroine had little common sense. When she was threatened, her feeble excuses for not telling others at the right times were silly. She also spent much of the book almost dying, passing out, and waking up in bed with the worried hero and doctor bent over her. It grew tedious for sure.
The villains in this book were bad to the bone, seriously. How could there be so many nasty characters in one land? They were astonishingly rude, and almost every man was portrayed as a potential rapist. At least the book redeemed itself sometimes with a few enjoyable characters like the widow Waters and Penny, the sister. They couldn't save the book a star but they could make it more enjoyable.
I also have to be confused that the heroine doesn't take care to fill in the widow over what happened to her - the poor woman was probably worried. She went after her runaway but why couldn't she send word before? And what about the end of the book where she promised the grandfather she'd live with him, but once that changed, how did she explain it? Confusing and strange indeed. The author dropped that without explaining it.
The hero was likeable enough but I felt little chemistry. There was treachery but little magic. Ah well, not all gothics can be winners, and even if I didn't like this one much, I dig Warren's writing style with words and it was hard to put down, paced quickly enough, and had good dialogue that fit the genre.
From making no sense whatsoever for not getting angrier and telling people she was kidnapped and sold as a worker, to then staying in that hostile house where it was obviously dangerous so she could earn a little more money, the heroine had little common sense. When she was threatened, her feeble excuses for not telling others at the right times were silly. She also spent much of the book almost dying, passing out, and waking up in bed with the worried hero and doctor bent over her. It grew tedious for sure.
The villains in this book were bad to the bone, seriously. How could there be so many nasty characters in one land? They were astonishingly rude, and almost every man was portrayed as a potential rapist. At least the book redeemed itself sometimes with a few enjoyable characters like the widow Waters and Penny, the sister. They couldn't save the book a star but they could make it more enjoyable.
I also have to be confused that the heroine doesn't take care to fill in the widow over what happened to her - the poor woman was probably worried. She went after her runaway but why couldn't she send word before? And what about the end of the book where she promised the grandfather she'd live with him, but once that changed, how did she explain it? Confusing and strange indeed. The author dropped that without explaining it.
The hero was likeable enough but I felt little chemistry. There was treachery but little magic. Ah well, not all gothics can be winners, and even if I didn't like this one much, I dig Warren's writing style with words and it was hard to put down, paced quickly enough, and had good dialogue that fit the genre.
January 27, 2019
I loved the first half of this book - it was truly enjoyable following the adventures of the spunky heroine, whose character Warren flushed out very well. If the book had finished as strongly as it started, it would've earned 4 stars from me for sure. Unfortunately, about halfway through it started careening downhill. The heroine became more docile and began making unusual decisions, just laying weakly in bed waiting for another character to figure it all out. The ending felt rushed and anti-climactic. I am still giving it three stars because overall, I liked it and could read the first half again and again.
March 28, 2026
"An oldie but goodie"
I've read this book about ten times and yet I never tire of it! It's filled with beautiful romance and dark mysteries. This book is definitely one of my favorites. I would recommend it to any Gothic historical romance lover!
I will be reading this book again soon!
I've read this book about ten times and yet I never tire of it! It's filled with beautiful romance and dark mysteries. This book is definitely one of my favorites. I would recommend it to any Gothic historical romance lover!
I will be reading this book again soon!
October 13, 2025
Too much craziness and not enough romance. I'm not sure why this book has the highest rating on here over her other gothics, it was my least favourite of hers. Firstly about the craziness, well the first part of the book has everyone who meets Julie wanting to kidnap, assault, rape or murder her, it was almost comical, the amount of attempts on her life throughout this book is insane, every 20 pages she goes unconscious either due to almost dying or being poisoned or attacked in some way lol. Julie also becomes insufferably stupid in the second half, she will never tell victor anything. Despite the fact that he has a right to know not only because he cares about her but it's happening under his roof, his servants being murdered, and his guests that attack her, try to rape her, murder her etc. but she won't tell him anything and she tells others not to let him know.........I found this infuriating and it made her deserve whatever was coming to her.
To further add to her stupidity, there had already been several attempts on her life including poison and yet she doesn't even question when a box of chocolates shows up on her bed with no name attached to it......I can't. To add more fuel to the fire, after poisonings, pushed down stairs, stabbed with a needle, deadly fumes in her room etc. she then gets shot after wondering off alone and then says "I never expected someone would try to shoot me"??????? how can someone be this stupid? She also overhears a very incriminating conversation between two characters that could expose them as being responsible for all the murder and once again she refuses to tell Victor, so while I liked Julie at the start, I was kind of hating her by the end.
Which brings me to the end, another reason I'm very disappointed with this book, barely any romance in it, Julie and Victor are barely even alone throughout the book. This author often does leave us lacking in the romance scenes but she usually might redeem herself with a nice ending or at least have the hero and heroine alone a lot with likable conversations throughout but this she didn't. Like I said there was always someone with them in most scenes, never really any intimate conversations between them which is a must for me to care about a couple. The ending was also so abrupt and lacking in romance, they just get together in the last page. I waited 288 pages for 1 page of them just getting together. This author also always makes her heroines completely hide all feelings for the hero and have her act like she feels nothing at all for him, it's honestly annoying and I wish she didn't, she was crazy about Victor since the very second she saw him yet he has to beat the feelings out of her in the last page? ugh. Victor and Penny are what saved this book for me. I much preferred "The Dark Opals of Harrow Island" "The Lost Wives of Dunwick" and "The Midnight Heather of Bridee Castle" by this author.
To further add to her stupidity, there had already been several attempts on her life including poison and yet she doesn't even question when a box of chocolates shows up on her bed with no name attached to it......I can't. To add more fuel to the fire, after poisonings, pushed down stairs, stabbed with a needle, deadly fumes in her room etc. she then gets shot after wondering off alone and then says "I never expected someone would try to shoot me"??????? how can someone be this stupid? She also overhears a very incriminating conversation between two characters that could expose them as being responsible for all the murder and once again she refuses to tell Victor, so while I liked Julie at the start, I was kind of hating her by the end.
Which brings me to the end, another reason I'm very disappointed with this book, barely any romance in it, Julie and Victor are barely even alone throughout the book. This author often does leave us lacking in the romance scenes but she usually might redeem herself with a nice ending or at least have the hero and heroine alone a lot with likable conversations throughout but this she didn't. Like I said there was always someone with them in most scenes, never really any intimate conversations between them which is a must for me to care about a couple. The ending was also so abrupt and lacking in romance, they just get together in the last page. I waited 288 pages for 1 page of them just getting together. This author also always makes her heroines completely hide all feelings for the hero and have her act like she feels nothing at all for him, it's honestly annoying and I wish she didn't, she was crazy about Victor since the very second she saw him yet he has to beat the feelings out of her in the last page? ugh. Victor and Penny are what saved this book for me. I much preferred "The Dark Opals of Harrow Island" "The Lost Wives of Dunwick" and "The Midnight Heather of Bridee Castle" by this author.
March 8, 2017
A unique story and another winner by Beverly C. Warren! I loved it! I even was willing to wait until the last page for the inevitable marriage proposal! Bravo! Gothic Romance fans rejoice!
September 6, 2013
I'll confess I almost gave up after the first two chapters. I thought the characters stereotyped and shallow. (example: the old woman looked like a witch, down to the beak- like nose, wart, haggard face and rheumy eyes!! Or the hero: His black suit made his black hair blacker, his eyes greener, his shoulders broader and his waist slimmer" ~ Yup, I groaned out loud, too~ )
But! Once I accepted the book for what it was: a mass produced paperback gothic mystery/ romance (in other words, when I lowered my expectations) I actually enjoyed the story.
Think Nancy Drew for adults.
The mystery itself was fairly good though the title is a misnomer. Yes, there is a locket but no, the locket was never lost. And in fact, the reader kind of forgets all about the locket until the last chapter. Oh yes! The LOCKET! Hmmmm, how can we fit this in...
I thought the story was needlessly coarse in places, in fact I "sharpied" out a few lines that I found vulgar and there are a few cuss words as well. I don't know why authors feel they need to do this, this is an old book so I was hoping it would be less crass.(And I'm sure it is "less crass" than others but still the crass bits were not needed).
Will I give this to my 15 year old daughter to read?
Yes. (My edited version that is. :)
But I think I'll scratch this author off my list of "safe reads" because frankly I just don't know what I'll come across and I didn't think it was riveting enough to bother.
But! Once I accepted the book for what it was: a mass produced paperback gothic mystery/ romance (in other words, when I lowered my expectations) I actually enjoyed the story.
Think Nancy Drew for adults.
The mystery itself was fairly good though the title is a misnomer. Yes, there is a locket but no, the locket was never lost. And in fact, the reader kind of forgets all about the locket until the last chapter. Oh yes! The LOCKET! Hmmmm, how can we fit this in...
I thought the story was needlessly coarse in places, in fact I "sharpied" out a few lines that I found vulgar and there are a few cuss words as well. I don't know why authors feel they need to do this, this is an old book so I was hoping it would be less crass.(And I'm sure it is "less crass" than others but still the crass bits were not needed).
Will I give this to my 15 year old daughter to read?
Yes. (My edited version that is. :)
But I think I'll scratch this author off my list of "safe reads" because frankly I just don't know what I'll come across and I didn't think it was riveting enough to bother.
November 11, 2008
Enjoyable light reading, a kind of Gothic romantic mystery. On the plus side, I remember that the identity of the bad guy (so-to-speak) wasn't glaringly obvious, and there weren't many clichés. An ideal book for the times you don't want something too intense to read.
July 27, 2015
I absolutely love gothic romances with all of the mystery and the strong female characters. Beverly C. Warren is an amazing author incorporating an unforgettable story with amazing characters.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews