Andrew Taylor

5*****

Dark Doings

This mystery by Andrew Taylor, involves late 18th century students at Cambridge, and the dark doings of ‘The Holy Ghost Club.’ John Holdsworth, a bankrupt bookseller, is enlisted to prove the non-existence of ghosts to a disturbed young gent sent mad by his conviction that he had seen and touched the spirit of a dead young woman.

Holdsworth, haunted by his own ghosts, is a man of integrity surrounded by several colourful and self-serving individuals – his fancy for the head-of-college’s lonely wife adds a compelling strand to the mystery. I loved the way the author created this 18th century world so convincingly, with manners, dialogue, appearance and – of course – the rituals of university life, while leading us on through what turns out to be Holdsworth’s investigation into two mysterious deaths. I was so absorbed I read late into the night 3 nights running – eager to discover the truth, yet not wanting the book to end. The characters have stayed with me – and I can’t say better than that!