There are two types of people in the world. Those who like silly string, and those that don’t. Similarly, there are two types of readers out there. Those who like quirky paranormal murder mysteries, and those that don’t. Murder at Spindle Manor would not be one of those books that I would feel compelled to read. It would not be my go-to, that’s all. So, don’t get me wrong, because the cover is eye-catching, the blurb is positively intriguing, and who doesn’t like a steampunk vibe, right?! I can’t say I fully enjoyed it. Again, don’t get me wrong. The story is there. And it’s an entertaining story.

The characters are cool – the closed circle investigations were snappy, concise and made sense. Loved the revelations AND I full on laughed out loud multiple times. But this is where it also gets odd for me. On the one hand, I loved the occasional wit, on the other, it got a bit too much, somehow? And then, the delivery of the story was intentionally chaotic. What I mean is… How to explain… Benny Hill! You know, when he runs around on a beach with a group of people after him, from one end of the screen to the other? There are people that LOVE the show, and they laugh so hard, they get stomach cramps. Then there are people who find it amusing but oh, so silly. The running around in a gang, up the stairs, down the stairs, the dramatics – for some, it adds to the entertainment factor, for others, it grinds against the grain.

This will be hard for me to rate because whilst on a personal preference I would not rate this book above the midway point of the scale, I feel like it’s not fair to base the rating purely on personal preference at the time, because I was equally as impressed as I was exasperated with the story. Yes, I felt it dragged on for me for too long in the end, even considering the already small page count of 249, but I can’t fault how the story got tied up, it felt rewarding. And bonus points for the era atmosphere and ghost vibes!