Through a Darkening Glass
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- Create Date：2022-12-03 08:23:14
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：R.S. Maxwell
- ISBN：B09NNHN5LY
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
A mesmerizing World War II mystery about a Londoner who flees the city to write a novel and finds a truth stranger than fiction。
England， 1940。 Literature student Ruth Gladstone evacuates Cambridge University for Martynsborough， a tiny English village with a shadowy history。 For Ruth， retreating to a forgotten corner of the country is more than a safety maneuver; it’s an opportunity to end an undesirable engagement and begin writing her first novel。
But upon her arrival， Ruth learns of a ghostly wraith haunting the villagers after decades of silence。 Although Ruth is enthralled by the legend， the locals are less charmed by the wraith’s return。 They blame the evacuees—and among them， Ruth—for stirring up restless spirits。
Undeterred， Ruth joins forces with Malcolm， an injured soldier， to unravel the mystery of the wraith。 As Ruth and Malcolm draw closer to the truth， they’ll unearth long-buried secrets that could threaten them both…even as they craft a forbidden love story of their own。
England， 1940。 Literature student Ruth Gladstone evacuates Cambridge University for Martynsborough， a tiny English village with a shadowy history。 For Ruth， retreating to a forgotten corner of the country is more than a safety maneuver; it’s an opportunity to end an undesirable engagement and begin writing her first novel。
But upon her arrival， Ruth learns of a ghostly wraith haunting the villagers after decades of silence。 Although Ruth is enthralled by the legend， the locals are less charmed by the wraith’s return。 They blame the evacuees—and among them， Ruth—for stirring up restless spirits。
Undeterred， Ruth joins forces with Malcolm， an injured soldier， to unravel the mystery of the wraith。 As Ruth and Malcolm draw closer to the truth， they’ll unearth long-buried secrets that could threaten them both…even as they craft a forbidden love story of their own。
Reviews
Alayne Emmett
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A very unexceptional book。 I was hoping for better but it wasn’t that creepy or interesting。
Katie
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If you are looking for something cosy with elements of mystery， romance and history then this is your book。 A 3。5 stars for me。 Thank you for allowing me to read this
Tina
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I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for a fair review。A slow-burn mystery that reads like a novel of the time， Through a Darkening Glass is an absolute delight for those of us who enjoy authentic-feeling period pieces with little to no drama but which is compelling nonetheless。 There are two things to note about this novel: 1） it takes a bit to get going （I was just coasting through it until about 50% and then I got hooked on it） and 2） it is a period piece instead of a historical fic I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for a fair review。A slow-burn mystery that reads like a novel of the time， Through a Darkening Glass is an absolute delight for those of us who enjoy authentic-feeling period pieces with little to no drama but which is compelling nonetheless。 There are two things to note about this novel: 1） it takes a bit to get going （I was just coasting through it until about 50% and then I got hooked on it） and 2） it is a period piece instead of a historical fiction。 As such， it reads not like the narrator is describing a time in the past， but feels like it was written back then。 This is my preferred kind of historical fiction， so I was right on board。 I liked the characters。 The main character-Ruth-is likeable and also feels like a woman of the time。 She’s modest but not a prude， smart， stands up for herself and takes action。 She questioned some things about her society but it didn’t feel anachronistic。 And the things she questioned she related to the past - like how back in the late 1800s male and female friends would walk arm-in-arm versus how that was seen as scandalous in the 40s。 She felt a product of the time rather than feeling a modern sentiment hiding in 1940s clothes。 Malcolm isn’t the most exciting of brooding male leads I will say， as he’s no Mr。 Rochester， but we have Maude， the tall， lesbian-coded， pants-wearing geology professor who is full of snark and life， to balance him out。 When it comes to the romance angle， it’s very much not as thrilling as the blurb makes it sound。 In fact， while it’s not subtle， it’s not exactly passionate。 The characters react to their feelings in logical， pragmatic ways that， while that might be realistic， it doesn’t make for much of a bodice ripper or give you a huge payoff at the end emotionally。 I wouldn’t call it a Romance， though there is a romantic angle that is prevalent。 As much as I like an “I-will-die-without-you” or an “I loved you most ardently” scene， I liked their relationship - they seemed well-suited and what was keeping them apart made sense。 The book is a mystery at the forefront， though， with their relationship tying in but not taking over。 Honestly， I think this book would make a fantastic movie。 Speaking of the mystery， it’s a fun novel with several little twists that tie into one another。 There is one twist I saw coming a mile away （which， if you know anything about LGBTQ+ relationships in the eras before gay rights， you’ll likely also pick up on it too）， but it was still satisfactory， and the other turns were fun。 Nothing made me sit up and say “oh my god， what！” but there were some red herrings to keep from guessing the story’s outcome。 I also liked how the novel skipped the melodrama。 I was fully expecting a certain character to lose it and cause huge issues for the characters， but this didn't happen - it was settled off the page in a way that was actually refreshing。 The setting is fun too， in that it’s a WWII-era novel where the war doesn’t really come into it after the initial pages。 It shows what life was like for people in the countryside， not the cities。 The town seemed quaint and I liked the two roaming， escaped sheep that pop up here and there。 I also really enjoyed the brief， tantalizing look we get at the reason for the butterfly or moth on the cover of the novel。 That scene felt like it fell right out of a Gothic mystery and I loved it。 It was like a creepy butterfly conservatory。 At the end of the book， the author included some explanations for some very minor inaccuracies which I thought was quite interesting。 The book starts off a bit slow， and then by the end I really really enjoyed it。 I highly recommend it if you like slow-burn， slightly creepy mysteries， moths， and the English countryside。 。。。more
Sierra
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3。5 stars。 Historical romance isn't normally my favorite genre， but I couldn't resist this cover。 I ended up really enjoying this story！ I was afraid of it going in an infidelity direction， but I really liked how it ended up。 I loved Ruth and Maud and Edith and Vera （and probably would've preferred the story to just be about Edith and Vera）。 The mystery all came together nicely but was predictable。 The perspective shifts were sudden， especially in the second half of the book， but I actually didn 3。5 stars。 Historical romance isn't normally my favorite genre， but I couldn't resist this cover。 I ended up really enjoying this story！ I was afraid of it going in an infidelity direction， but I really liked how it ended up。 I loved Ruth and Maud and Edith and Vera （and probably would've preferred the story to just be about Edith and Vera）。 The mystery all came together nicely but was predictable。 The perspective shifts were sudden， especially in the second half of the book， but I actually didn't mind them。 TL;DR: （view spoiler）[ Come for the moths， stay for the lesbians。 There could've been more lesbians though。 （hide spoiler）]ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for the honest review。 。。。more
Dea
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It's like R。S。 Maxwell knows me and tried to get all of my favourite things into one story: mystery， history， ghost story， World War II， London， a writer， a small English village， restless spirits。。。 be still my heart。This was a realistic portrayal of life in a small village during the war， including rationing， blackouts， and the arrival of evacuees from the cities， as well as the closed nature of such a community and its distrust of outsiders。 I do wish the mystery and ghost story components we It's like R。S。 Maxwell knows me and tried to get all of my favourite things into one story: mystery， history， ghost story， World War II， London， a writer， a small English village， restless spirits。。。 be still my heart。This was a realistic portrayal of life in a small village during the war， including rationing， blackouts， and the arrival of evacuees from the cities， as well as the closed nature of such a community and its distrust of outsiders。 I do wish the mystery and ghost story components were stronger - I didn't feel the eeriness， tension， or suspense I'd like to from a mystery or ghost story。 I also kept waiting for something riveting， but it never came - the stakes were never very high， and the minor things that popped up were resolved quickly with little fuss and no real repercussions。 As such， I would categorize this more as a safe， quiet cozy mystery， with elements of historical fiction， mystery， and ghost story。Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for this ARC。 。。。more
Intriga WH
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Ruth leaves her studies at Cambridge University to more to a small English village。 Ruth， like many others are escaping the war。 Ruth thinks she finds a perfect place to find security。 World War Two is just one the events that is threatening her safety。 The village has a mysterious past， years prior a wraith haunted the village and had been dormant for years。 Until， the the arrival of new people， the wraith starts haunting the village again and the locals blame the new people。 Ruth teams up with Ruth leaves her studies at Cambridge University to more to a small English village。 Ruth， like many others are escaping the war。 Ruth thinks she finds a perfect place to find security。 World War Two is just one the events that is threatening her safety。 The village has a mysterious past， years prior a wraith haunted the village and had been dormant for years。 Until， the the arrival of new people， the wraith starts haunting the village again and the locals blame the new people。 Ruth teams up with a soldier to discover the truth about this sinister entity。 A mysterious thriller with a riveting plot and interesting characters。 Disclaimer: Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for this ARC， I received an advance review copy for free， and I am leaving this review voluntarily。 。。。more
theliterateleprechaun
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A perfect read for a dark， dreary Fall evening leading up to All Hallows’ Eve！ I’m glad I took a chance on this WW2 historical fiction book because it was a unique blend of history， mystery and ghost hunting！ It opens with an evacuation at Cambridge University due to unexploded ordnance and continues with Ruth’s retreat to the countryside in order to finish writing her book and provide a clean break。 As more evacuees settle in fictitious Martynsborough， locals fear they have angered the ‘restles A perfect read for a dark， dreary Fall evening leading up to All Hallows’ Eve！ I’m glad I took a chance on this WW2 historical fiction book because it was a unique blend of history， mystery and ghost hunting！ It opens with an evacuation at Cambridge University due to unexploded ordnance and continues with Ruth’s retreat to the countryside in order to finish writing her book and provide a clean break。 As more evacuees settle in fictitious Martynsborough， locals fear they have angered the ‘restless spirits’ but， for Ruth， it offers a distraction and she enlists the help of her neighbour to help investigate。 She gets more than she bargained for！ So often with wartime historical fiction， the focus is on the battlefield or forces fighting against occupation。 It was nice to have a homefront focus for a change。 That being said， I didn’t feel the tension or suspense that I was expecting with a mystery。 I would have eagerly traded the forbidden romance subplot for a nail-biting ghost appearance。 Regardless， it was a well-paced， well-written cozy mystery highlighting buried secrets and offering a unique wartime fiction premise。Congratulations on a terrific cover！ This beautiful Atlas moth captured my attention and I had to know how it related to the title and the story… if you look closely， the peacock makes an appearance！ I was gifted this advance copy by Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review。 。。。more
Ann Dudzinski
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I’ve been avoiding WWII novels for a bit， mainly because they all seem to focus on female spy networks and I can only read that sort of plot a few times before I need something different。 This one offered a different spin on this era， so I gave it a shot。In 1940， a dud bomb lands near Ruth Gladstone’s Cambridge dormitory， forcing her evacuation。 London is no longer a safer option so， with her grandmother， she decamps for her aunt’s cottage in the small village of Martynsborough。 She expects her I’ve been avoiding WWII novels for a bit， mainly because they all seem to focus on female spy networks and I can only read that sort of plot a few times before I need something different。 This one offered a different spin on this era， so I gave it a shot。In 1940， a dud bomb lands near Ruth Gladstone’s Cambridge dormitory， forcing her evacuation。 London is no longer a safer option so， with her grandmother， she decamps for her aunt’s cottage in the small village of Martynsborough。 She expects her days to be spent idle， working on her novel， but instead finds herself shuffling papers for the war effort。 There she meets Malcolm， a wounded soldier who lives in the next cottage over。 It seems that with the arrival of evacuees， a decades-old wraith has once again appeared in the village。 It’s said to be the ghost of a girl found dead near the old manor house just after the turn of the century。 Always curious， and seeing a potential plot for her novel， Ruth convinces Malcolm to help her investigate。 As they get close to uncovering the truth behind the wraith， they discover that there are a myriad of secrets in the village that may unravel once a light is shown on them。 I wasn’t disappointed in the focus of the book， which was on the evacuees （not only Ruth， but several children and workers in the village as well，） and how they attempted to fit into a relatively closed society。 Aside from privations and one scare， the actual war was fairly far removed from this locale。 And the ghost story was nicely creepy and provided a plausible mystery for Ruth to untangle。Unfortunately， there were so many small mysteries and issues woven into this book， they all sort of blended into each other。 One problem would pop up， only to be handily resolved， and the characters moved on to the next。 It was like jumping several small hurdles， none of which were too difficult to cross， and so the stakes felt low。 Possibly it was because key scenes weren’t shown but were instead told in hindsight， and the reader misses out on a lot of potential emotion。 Perhaps it’s just a British stiff upper lip attitude but it seemed like very little fazed the main characters; they took everything in stride so nothing seemed terribly exciting。 I almost wish the subplots could have been thinned out a bit and what remained had been expanded on。 Something to get me tensed up or excited。 As it was， this was a very， very quiet story where nothing momentous happened。Please don’t get me wrong， I didn’t dislike it。 The historical details are fantastic and it portrayed life in a small village as something I’d love to experience。 But the novel as a whole felt a tad anticlimactic。3。5 out of 5 stars ⭐⭐⭐+Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for providing the ARC。 I’ve left my review honestly and voluntarily。 。。。more
Mikaela
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Through A Darkening Glass is a mystery romance set in a remote English village during World War II。 The story follows aspiring novelist， Ruth Gladstone， as she tries to uncover the secrets behind the Martynsborough wraith alongside injured war veteran， Malcolm， whom she develops feelings for。 They soon discover there are more secrets that haunt the village than those of a ghost。I enjoyed the setting R。S。 Maxwell created and I think it worked well for the story。 The village is very much tucked aw Through A Darkening Glass is a mystery romance set in a remote English village during World War II。 The story follows aspiring novelist， Ruth Gladstone， as she tries to uncover the secrets behind the Martynsborough wraith alongside injured war veteran， Malcolm， whom she develops feelings for。 They soon discover there are more secrets that haunt the village than those of a ghost。I enjoyed the setting R。S。 Maxwell created and I think it worked well for the story。 The village is very much tucked away from the full impact of war but country life is still disrupted by rationing， blackouts and the influx of evacuees。 The intrusion of strangers is what many villagers believe has made the wraith return and their distrust of outsiders makes it harder for Ruth and Malcolm to get to the truth。Although I liked the setting， unfortunately I never really felt it had a haunting atmosphere， which meant when the ghost sightings occurred they were lacking in impact。 In addition， I found that the story overall didn’t have a real sense of tension or suspense。 Part of the issue I believe is that the romance component took over and the mystery side of things became pushed aside rather than the two working together。 I found that the story meandered at times and my enthusiasm waned， meaning I had to push myself to keep reading – this might be also because I am more keen on mystery than romance。I must admit I found it hard to like Ruth as to me she came off as nosy， self-righteous and a bit of a know-it-all， even though in fact she was frequently wrong in her assumptions。 Malcolm was more endearing and I felt for him as he battled with his feelings for Ruth and those for his wife， who was no longer the woman she was after suffering injury and trauma during an air raid。 I also liked Maud， who was unapologetic in her mischievousness and brought an element of humour。Ruth’s unwanted fiancé， Warren， to me felt entirely unnecessary。 His actual presence in the story was fleeting and his impact minimal， in fact I believe if he was completely removed from the story it would make very little difference。 If he had taken up residence in the village he could have been an added complication to both Ruth’s mystery solving and her growing romance with Malcolm。 However， he was gone as soon as he arrived and I do not feel he served any purpose except as filler。The story of the ‘sisters’， Vera and Edith （Ruth’s grandmother） also felt underdeveloped and to me， tacked on。 There are some hints at a secret between them but we only discover the truth by accident and then discussion through the two characters。 I might add here a jarring aspect of the novel in that for nearly half the book we see the story through only Ruth’s third person point of view then suddenly other characters’ views are brought in， mostly to reveal secrets。 Then we get to the revelation of Martynsborough’s mysteries， which in my opinion was disappointing overall。 Firstly， Ruth and Malcolm don’t exactly uncover the truth but are told it by other members of the village。 After all their work， researching and traipsing about， it feels underwhelming。 I very much felt in the end that I was told rather than shown the truth。 The romance element of the novel felt much more satisfying in how it was wrapped up and I think again this highlights how the romance pushed aside the mystery aspect。Overall， I feel the title and the cover are misleading in that it emphasises the mystery when in fact it is the romance which plays a greater part in this story and is given more focus。 Unfortunately， in the end I was left feeling that the mystery had been waylaid in order for the romance to develop。 Those looking for a romance in a wartime setting would be more likely to enjoy this story。 However， anyone looking for a mystery with a haunting atmosphere might be disappointed。 。。。more
Trina Dixon
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An interesting story set in a village during WW2， mysterious tales of ghosts or wraiths wandering the village at night-time， give Ruth plenty of ideas for a novel she wishes to write。 With the help of a colleague she attempts to discover the truth。 As much as I enjoyed the novel I did feel that it was slightly long winded and could have been condensed slightly， and the last chapter seemed almost rushed， with no indication of how or why Ruth ended up in France。 But overall an interesting take on An interesting story set in a village during WW2， mysterious tales of ghosts or wraiths wandering the village at night-time， give Ruth plenty of ideas for a novel she wishes to write。 With the help of a colleague she attempts to discover the truth。 As much as I enjoyed the novel I did feel that it was slightly long winded and could have been condensed slightly， and the last chapter seemed almost rushed， with no indication of how or why Ruth ended up in France。 But overall an interesting take on historical fiction。3。5 stars rounded to 4 。。。more
Star
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It was a well-written book filled with mystery。 The stories about the wraiths and romance were interesting。 I liked many characters， but my favourite was Maude。 She was such a good friend and a funny woman。 Definitely recommend it to everyone who loves historical fictions with some romance and mystery。
Iphigenia
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Really enjoyed this， it was an interesting cozy mystery/historical fiction mix with gothic overtones。 Ruth is a Cambridge literature student during WWII who flees to the countryside to get away from an engagement and focus on writing her first novel。 Once she relocates， she teams up with Malcolm， an injured soldier and eventual love interest， to investigate a wraith allegedly haunting the villagers。 I appreciated a story set in WWII that wasn’t really about the horrors of the war or the deprivat Really enjoyed this， it was an interesting cozy mystery/historical fiction mix with gothic overtones。 Ruth is a Cambridge literature student during WWII who flees to the countryside to get away from an engagement and focus on writing her first novel。 Once she relocates， she teams up with Malcolm， an injured soldier and eventual love interest， to investigate a wraith allegedly haunting the villagers。 I appreciated a story set in WWII that wasn’t really about the horrors of the war or the deprivations suffered by the populace etc。 And when I think about evacuees during WII， I think about young children， not university students， so this was also a different viewpoint for me。 Overall， an intriguing mystery and enjoyable read。 。。。more
Aria Harlow
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Historical fiction mixed with cosy murder mystery。 I loved it， it was engaging and unpredictable and I loved that it was set during World War Two but was more about the murder mystery。
Julia Smagz | SmagzIsReading
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"Literature student Ruth Gladstone evacuates Cambridge University for Martynsborough， a tiny English village with a shadowy history。 For Ruth， retreating to a forgotten corner of the country is more than a safety maneuver; it’s an opportunity to end an undesirable engagement and begin writing her first novel。 But upon her arrival， Ruth learns of a ghostly wraith haunting the villagers after decades of silence。 Although Ruth is enthralled by the legend， the locals are less charmed by the wraith’s "Literature student Ruth Gladstone evacuates Cambridge University for Martynsborough， a tiny English village with a shadowy history。 For Ruth， retreating to a forgotten corner of the country is more than a safety maneuver; it’s an opportunity to end an undesirable engagement and begin writing her first novel。 But upon her arrival， Ruth learns of a ghostly wraith haunting the villagers after decades of silence。 Although Ruth is enthralled by the legend， the locals are less charmed by the wraith’s return。 They blame the evacuees—and among them， Ruth—for stirring up restless spirits。"This was different from any other WWII novel that I've read （and I've read a few）！ I enjoyed the setting and the backdrop - it made me realize that hey， yeah， for a LOT of people in Europe during the war， life went on。 I liked the storytelling perspective and learning a little about the evacuee situations in England。 I also think that this drove home the point that the war really affected everyone in different ways。Moving on to the characters。 Maude was probably my favorite - she quite literally did not give a hoot what others thought about her and was quite content searching for her rock samples， thank you very much。 And the PEACOCK。。。。。HA。 I think we're supposed to dislike Warren， and dislike him I did。 What a baby。 I enjoyed the hints of romance throughout the novel， and I also liked that romance was not THEEE driving plot point。 The mystery elements - and the unraveling of said mysteries in the town - was entertaining to me （although at one point I asked myself， "wait， how many wraiths are there？！？！？！"）。 The love triangle （I guess that's what I'd refer to it as？） between Elise and Malcolm and Ruth was slightly tragic。。。I don't know how to feel about it。。。but I did enjoy the ending and Ruth's role in Malcolm and Elise's life。 SO。 Wrapping up。 Yes， I enjoyed it。 I'd recommend it to my historical fiction friends and those who like cozy little small town mysteries。 I'm glad I took the time to request and review it。 。。。more
Julia Smagz | SmagzIsReading
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