When a medium who isn’t really one, starts to see ghosts for real…

Synopsis

Flora Flowerdew has a secret. The former Florrie Gubbins, music hall dancer, is now Madame Flowerdew, one of London’s most renowned spirit mediums. But it’s actually herbeloved Pomeranian dog, Chou-Chou, who can see the ghosts.

One of her most lucrative seances, for the wealthy Petrie family whose daughter is about to marry a handsome young duke, goes chaotically awry. The duke’s late, and very irate, grandfather demands Flora and his grandson Benedict find the long-missing family diamonds—even the search becomes littered with mayhem and murder! Can Flora discover the jewels before she loses her career, her sanity—and her heart?

Sparks fly as Flora, Benedict, and Chou-Chou pursue the truth of the diamonds’ disappearance in this lighthearted, cozyhistorical mystery set in foggy, gas-lit London

My review

Flora Flowerdew, medium extraordinaire, has a few secrets. First of all, her real name is Florrie Gubbins, she used to be a musical hall dancer, and isn’t a real medium.
Even if her business is a successful one, it’s her Pomeranian dog Chou – Chou who can see really ghosts.
But during one of seances, for the wealthy Petrie family, Flora is shocked when she sees a ghost herself. And it doesn’t help that the ghost, a duke nonetheless, demands to find the long – missing family diamonds. Together with the ghost’s grandson, Benedict, Flora start the search for not only the diamonds, but also for the truth.
And meanwhile, she starts to feel more and more attracted to Benedict, who is however supposed to get engaged with the daughter of the Petrie family.
Will the diamonds be found, between more murder, mysteries and attraction? 

I have read several books of this author, and I enjoyed them all very much. So when I started to read this was, I was all in for the positivism.
But writing reviews means also being honest about the books that you read. And I felt that this books was somehow not as good as the other books I have read from her. 

Now, don’t understand me wrong, it isn’t that this book wasn’t a good one, but I think that the fact that I don’t believe in ghosts, and have a negative view over mediums didn’t make it possible for me to truly enjoy this book to the fullest. 

And Flora’s way of conducting her business didn’t help me change my mind completely. She isn’t a real medium, and knows things about her clients by just using common sense and just asking subtly around.
So when she sees a ghost, a terrifying one nonetheless, for real, I was actually having a little bit a feeling of revenge.
Of course, Flora isn’t a bad person, and we get to know that she didn’t have an easy time and has now found a way to have stability and independence in her life. 

And while she could have just stepped away, instead, she wants to discover the truth about those diamonds. She is a bit surprised that Benedict is ready to help her out, but after all, don’t all detectives have a side – kick by their side?
And two people can discover more than one… 

But while reading, we get to know also the main characters better. And just like in real life, what we see, isn’t always the truth. The characters of people go much deeper than what they show us, and I enjoyed discover every character more and more while getting further along in this book. 

I liked to see how clichés are being thrown out of the window, as we have a medium who truly cares about her latest clients, a Duke who isn’t feeling superior but enjoys the company of ‘normal’ people, a woman who prefers to marry someone else than a Duke, and a lovely dog who sees ghosts. 

This was, despite my reticence, an enjoyable story to read, with many questions that needed to be answered, main characters that dug deep to have those answers, and meanwhile started to grow closer.
As this is the first book of a series, I am sure that not only more mysteries will surface, but also we will see more of Flora and Benedict and their blooming romance.