Blog Tour ‘The Widow of Rose House’ by Diana Biller

Author: Diana Biller

Genre: Historical Romance

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Page Count: 352

ISBN: 1250297850

Goodreads Rating: 4.25

A young widow restores a dilapidated mansion with the assistance of a charming, eccentric genius, only to find the house is full of dangerous secrets in this effervescent Gilded Age debut novel It's 1875, and Alva Webster has perfected her stiff upper lip after three years of being pilloried in the presses of two continents over fleeing her abusive husband. Now his sudden death allows her to return to New York to make a fresh start, restoring Liefdehuis, a dilapidated Hyde Park mansion, and hopefully her reputation at the same time. However, fresh starts aren't as easy as they seem, as Alva discovers when stories of a haunting at Liefdehuis begin to reach her. But Alva doesn't believe in ghosts. So when the eccentric and brilliant professor, Samuel Moore, appears and informs her that he can get to the bottom of the mystery that surrounds Liefdehuis, she turns him down flat. She doesn't need any more complications in her life―especially not a handsome, convention-flouting, scandal-raising one like Sam. Unfortunately, though Alva is loath to admit it, Sam, a pioneer in electric lighting and a member of the nationally-adored Moore family of scientists, is the only one who can help. Together, the two delve into the tragic secrets wreathing Alva's new home while Sam attempts to unlock Alva's history―and her heart. Set during the Gilded Age in New York City, The Widow of Rose House is a gorgeous debut by Diana Biller, with a darkly Victorian Gothic flair and an intrepid and resilient American heroine guaranteed to delight readers.

If you’re a regular visitor here on Maureen’s Books, you’d know that I’ve been on a Romance reading spree for the last couple of months. So when I saw the cover of this book and read the book description I knew I wanted a chance to read this book. And as fast as I could, I started reading.

In ‘The Widow of Rose House’ we meet widow Alva Webster in 1875, who has recently moved back to New York for a fresh start. After being married to an abusive husband Alva just wants to make it on her own. To make her fresh start she takes on the job of restoring an old mansion, which is apparently haunted. When professor Samuel Moore arrives at her doorstep with the suggestion he might be able to help her, she soon finds herself without any other options than to join forces with him.

This book started a little hard for me. I just couldn’t really get into the story to be honest. And honestly I think that has more to do with me, than with the writing itself. And fortunately I slowly began to love this book more and more.

It had been a while since I read a historical romance novel and this one is unlike any other I read. But I definitely enjoyed it, more than I thought I would. The two main characters Alva and Samuel are so different, but still so perfect for each other. I just loved reading there story and everything about them. Sure, there where some things I didn’t think where all that historical accurate, but it didn’t bother me at all.

The whole ghost thing was interesting enough, but not all that important to me. I just loved the romance and getting to know both Alva and Samuel better.

Overall this book was definitely a nice change from the many contemporary romance novels I read.

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Diana Biller lives in Los Angeles with her husband and their very good dog. ‘The Widow of Rose House’ is her debut novel.

For more information about Diana please visit her website. Or visit her on Twitter.

I received this book from St. Martin’s Press in exchange for my honest review.

Maureen Bakker

Maureen is a mom, wife, nurse, and Ravenclaw living in the Netherlands. She spends her days juggling mom-life, reading, blogging, planning date nights with her husband and working as a nurse. Maureen also is a big Anglophile, loves cooking, Gilmore Girls, Bridgerton and Harry Potter.. Always!  Facebook | Instagram