In The Shadowy Horses by Susanna Kearsley, archeologist Verity Grey begins an
excavation in Scotland. The Ninth Roman Legion was rumored to have camped there
as they marched north from York to fight the Scots, and the owner of a remote
manor house is convinced his property contains the bones of the lost legion.
From the first night in the manor house, Verity hears the
horses thundering across the fields beneath her window, whinnying and snorting
as their hooves pound the ground. Yet when she begins her first day of work,
she discovers there are no horses within miles around.
The cook’s son has paranormal gifts that Verity vainly
attempts to logically explain away. He sees the ghost of a Roman sentinel
walking through the fields. Verity reminds him of his sister, so the phantom is
determined to remain near her, watching over her and protecting her—which
factors into the climactic scenes. The cook’s son also sees things before they
happen and occasionally is consumed by other unseen presences.
As Verity begins the excavation work, she is joined by
others including a handsome Scot named David so in addition to the ghost and
the work, she finds herself caught up in romance.
I have loved every Susanna Kearsley book I’ve read. Her beautiful style reminds me of books I read
while growing up; a modern-day Daphne du Maurier or Mary Stewart. The
characters are complex, revealing themselves one layer at a time. The setting
is described so exquisitely that I could smell the heather in the fields, the
rain moving in, the fish market in the village. I could hear the shadowy horses
thundering through the fields, I could feel the ghostly presence of one that
can never leave his last encampment. Reading any of Kearsley’s books is truly
an immersive experience.
There is a twist at the end that I didn’t see coming but in
retrospect, all the clues were there, cleverly hidden in plain sight.
I definitely give this book five stars and I’m anxious to
read another of Kearsley’s books as quickly as possible. They are addictive.
Watch the Book Tuber Video below:
