Reviewed by annieb123 on
The Spirit Engineer is an atmospheric and creepy historical fictionalization very roughly based on real events in the early 20th century in Ireland. Released 7th Oct 2021 by Duckworth Books, it's 304 pages and is available in hardcover and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.
This is undeniably a competently written book. A.J.West's prose flows well, the characterizations are believable, and there's a creepy aura of threatening dread throughout, nevertheless I struggled to finish it in a timely manner. I found myself actively loathing the main protagnonist; he's a fussy, pedantic, sexist (even considering the time period), mean spirited braggart and I grew tired of him about 12 pages into the read.
By the time Conan Doyle and Harry Houdini showed up, I didn't much care anymore. I do understand that all books are not for everyone, all the time and as such, fans of historical spiritualism/seance investigation will likely find a lot to enjoy here.
Three and a half stars for me; the writing quality brings it up to four. For fans of this niche subgenre, it should be a high four stars. The chapter and section engraved illustrations are also gorgeously rendered.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
Reading updates
- Started reading
- Finished reading
- 2 May, 2022: Reviewed