The Spirit Engineer
A. J. West
Category: Historical Fiction,
βA fiendishly clever tale of ambition, deception, and powerβ DERREN BROWN
Belfast, 1914. Two years after the sinking of the Titanic, high society has become obsessed with spiritualism, attending sΓ©ances in the hope they might reach their departed loved ones.
William Jackson Crawford is a man of science and a sceptic, but one night with everyone sitting around the circle, voices come to him β seemingly from beyond the veil β placing doubt in his heart and a seed of obsession in his mind. Could the spirits truly be communicating with him or is this one of Kathleenβs parlour tricks gone too far?
Based on the true story of Professor William Jackson Crawford and famed medium Kathleen Goligher, and with a cast of characters including Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Harry Houdini, The Spirit Engineer conjures a haunted, twisted tale of power, paranoia and one ultimate, inescapable truth…
Reviews
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'A fiendishly clever tale of ambition, deception, and power' Derren Brown
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'Is Goligher a fraud? Is Crawford himself a reliable narrator?... West answers these questions with ingenuity and invention' The Sunday Times
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βI adored this book. Haunting, witty and deeply moving,Β The Spirit EngineerΒ is surely set to become a gothic classic. I was instantly drawn into the mystery andΒ swept along by the shocking twists and turns. A beautifully written novelβΒ Jodie Whittaker
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βA.J. West has history at his fingertips andΒ writes brilliantly - so clever it makes your head spin!Β The Spirit EngineerΒ is a work of true invention and drama thatΒ moves at a crackingΒ pace from the very first page and keeps you guessing. A compelling and daring bookβ Jeremy Vine
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'Such a deliciously creepy, unsettling read⦠a melancholic gothic triumph. Gave me all the same feelings as one of my most favourite books ever, Frankenstein' Jennifer Saint, bestselling author of Ariadne
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'Based on an absolutely astonishing true story, it kept me guessing right till the end' Frances Quinn, author ofΒ The Smallest Man
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βSet in a historical moment where science and spiritualism meet,Β The Spirit EngineerΒ isΒ an ingeniously plotted debut novelβ Sarah Burton, author of The Strange Adventures of H
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βWith a skilful misdirection that any Edwardian spirit medium would be proud to demonstrate, A.J. West soon turns the screw in this fascinating novelβ¦Β Obsession builds until theΒ stunning climaxΒ of the final shocking sΓ©ance and its awful repercussions. Was William rights to be convinced? Did he prove ghosts exist?β Essie Fox,Β bestselling author of The Fascination
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'Itβs clever, itβs quirky, highly entertaining, but carries a chill as cold as the grave'Β Annie Garthwaite, author ofΒ Cecily
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βA marvellous and menacing gothic chiller,Β filled with secrets and soaked in atmosphere, in which the ghouls and fiends are not of the other world, but this one...β Neil Blackmore, author of The Intoxicating Mr Lavelle
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'Dark, powerful and twisting βΒ The Spirit EngineerΒ will leave you wondering what is real and what is illusion'Β W. C. Ryan, author ofΒ A House of Ghosts
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'AΒ delight of a debut, an atmospheric and entirely gripping chiller that calls to mind the best of M.R. James and E.F. Benson, without in any way paling in comparison'Β Billy O'Callaghan, author ofΒ Life Sentences
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'Gripping from the outset β A.J West immerses readers in the spiritualism of 1914 Belfast with great skill. A wonderful debut' Sam Hurcom,Β author ofΒ Letters from the Dead
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βA spooky tale of frustrated ambition, hidden loyalties, and desperation, told with wit, charm and devastating twists.Β A gothic novel that also manages to make you laugh, even if you shouldn'tβ Jonathan Harvey, playwright
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βA gripping, gothic storyΒ anchored in the political and spiritual chaos of Edwardian Belfast. Part horror, part history,Β The Spirit EngineerΒ isΒ a chilling and thought-provoking tale of exploitation, faith, deception, fraud, sΓ©ances, hubris, and prejudiceβ¦ accomplished andΒ page-turning. Fans ofΒ Penny DreadfulΒ andΒ The NeversΒ will love itβΒ Gareth Russell, historian and author of The Ship of Dreams
