Fyneshade by Kate Griffin

In my opinion, there simply can't be enough books about governesses being placed with their young charges in gothic manor houses. If you add that the said governess, in this case, Marta, is someone who has been discarded by their family due to behaviour that may bring shame to their door and who has a machiavellian nature and a penchant for casting spells, then the story gets even more interesting.

Here's the blurb:

Many would find much to fear in Fyneshade's dark and crumbling corridors, its unseen master and silent servants. But not I. For they have far more to fear from me... On the day of her beloved grandmother's funeral, Marta discovers that she is to become governess to the young daughter of Sir William Pritchard. Separated from her lover and discarded by her family, Marta has no choice but to journey to Pritchard's ancient and crumbling house, Fyneshade, in the wilds of Derbyshire. All is not well at Fyneshade. Marta's pupil, little Grace, can be taught nothing, and Marta takes no comfort from the silent servants who will not meet her eye. More intriguing is that Sir William is mysteriously absent, and his son and heir Vaughan is forbidden to enter the house. Marta finds herself drawn to Vaughan, despite the warnings of the housekeeper that he is a danger to all around him. But Marta is no innocent to be preyed upon. Guided by the dark gift taught to her by her grandmother, she has made her own plans. And it will take more than a family riven by murderous secrets to stop her...

I raced through this book. It's full of things I love, including atmospheric writing, a fabulous gothic setting, some ghostly goings-on, casting spells and many, many secrets, which I'll leave you to discover. 

At the end, I wanted to rush ahead and find out if I thought what was coming was coming! The author certainly did a great job of building tension here and keeping me on tenterhooks about Marta's future. I'd love to be able to hold my readers in that same way, building and building but keeping the reveal just out of reach. Great job.

I'll definitely be recommending this one to my gothic-loving friends and would happily read more by Kate Griffin.