BOOK REVIEW: Falling Creatures (Cornish Mysteries) by Katherine Stansfield ★★★☆☆

SORRY, BUT MINOR SPOILERS.

Cornwall, 1844. On a lonely moorland farm not far from Jamaica Inn, farmhand Shilly finds love in the arms of Charlotte Dymond. But Charlotte has many secrets, possessing powers that cause both good and ill. When she's found on the moor with her throat cut, Shilly is determined to find out who is responsible, and so is the stranger calling himself Mr Williams who asks for Shilly's help. Mr Williams has secrets too, and Shilly is thrown into the bewildering new world of modern detection.

Based on real events, and the first of Stansfield’s Cornwall Mystery series, we follow Shilly, who meets an enigmatic Charlotte at the local Inn. From there they find work as maids on a farm owned by a prudish, stern but oddly kind woman Mrs Peter. Everyone seems to be attracted to the mysterious Charlotte. She causes a lot of friction between the local men vying for hand and she teaches Shilly about plants and spells. They eventually become secret lovers. But then Charlotte goes missing and her body is found on the moor with her throat slashed. An innocent farmhand is arrested for her murder. Mr Willaims, a detective journalist insists Shilly’s help as a guide and finding the real murderer.

Charlotte Dymond gifted me blood-heat on the day we met.

This had so much potential to be more, but it came out to be a decent one-off read, yet I would be willing to read the series. I’ll be honest, this only caught my eye because of the beautiful cover and blurb. It’s bleak, eerie with gothic vibes. Stansfield crafts horrid characters against a miserable backdrop of backward Victorian attitudes about women and their stations in life. The chapters are very short, about two to three pages or so.

She and I were just as the rest of the world – creatures falling, creatures failing.

I might have been in the wrong sort of mood when I initially started to read Falling Creatures. Maybe I perceived it to be a slow start, but I couldn’t engage with any of the characters, and it wasn’t due to its subtle same-sex relationships (I usually don’t read them but it’s never bothered me). Charlotte was manipulative, aloof and probably messed with Shilly’s emotions. The men, like John Peter, Matthew and Vosper weren’t at all charming. If I talk about Mr Willaims I fear I might reveal too many spoilers. Shilly’s point of view was almost childlike due to its very simple writing style, giving the story authenticity. It only became interesting around 150 pages in with a big reveal about Mr Willams. What got me through was the need to know who killed Charlotte and why. After the reveal, I don’t know, I felt a bit deflated, as though I wasn’t entirely moved by it.

We were close as moor stone and the ground that held it. Until someone uprooted us.

In conclusion, Falling Creatures was a bit of a mix that only became interesting for me about 40% into the book with a good twist I wasn’t expecting. If you know the real-life story, then spoilers, you know that an innocent man was hanged for his crimes. It’s not a bad book, because if it was, I wouldn’t be recommending it or read the next book in the series. A certain type of reader will adore Falling Creatures. Because it’s the first book it might be lacking in certain areas, but I hope the next in the series will reveal more about Shilly and Mr Williams.

Rating: 3/5
Publishers: Allison & Busby
Publication Date: March 23rd 2017
Genre: Mystery/ Historical/ Crime