Gothic fantasy/horror with a splash of retelling and romance. What? A time jump, a dual POV, a plot that covers several decades (and an additional century). Could you go ahead an check off the boxes for all the things I like in books please? Solid plot tropes that are twisted on their heads and a great flow to the plot. Did I want more? Absolutely. At nearly 500 pages, this story was still not long enough. How often can you say that? The writing was excellent with a great feel for the characters, including the slight alterations in writing style between the two main POVs. So clever an well constructed. This is one of those books I wish I was capable of writing.

Is it perfection? No. There are still things that I wish were fleshed out slightly more. But was it entralling? Absofreakinglutely. I was glued to this book. Something about it has a bit of a Daisy Jones and the Six feel, but it's also very Beauty and the Beast Provencal France an something that felt like a side of Eyes Wide Shut in it's creepy factor. I fell right into the the mystery of it all and could not get enough.

Go ahead and shelf this one right next to The Library at Mount Char. A little dark, a little weird, and definitely one that will be getting an over and over again reread.