Book Review: The Shadowy Horses by Susanna Kearsley

Publisher: Reissue by Sourcebooks
Genre: Fiction, mystery/suspense/supernatural
Paperback, 432 pages
Book Source: Sourcebooks
My Rating: 93/100

From Sourcebooks:

Verity Grey decides she needs some excitement in her life and leaves her stable job at the British Museum to join her former fling on an archaeological dig in Scotland. When Verity arrives, she finds out the dig is being led by Peter Quinnell, a widely discredited man who has dedicated his life to finding the final resting place of the mysterious lost Roman legion. To add to the madness, he’s chosen this new dig site based solely on the fact that a local boy named Robbie believes he saw a ghostly Roman soldier on the grounds. Verity is ready to pack her bags, but stays when she meets David Fortune, a friendly and attractive, but emotionally distant,Scottish archaeologist.

But mysterious things keep happening at the site…Could the boy be telling the truth? As she becomes entangled in a subtle web of treachery and danger, Verity begins to believe in the Roman sentinel haunting the site, and he’s there to do more than guard the bodies of his fallen comrades. He is trying to protect the people of the present day, and deliver them a warning…

First thoughts? 

An archaeological dig, a bit of mystery and a handsome Scotsman...What else could you ask for in a book?  This book has a little bit of everything which makes for a good read.  We have the mystery of how the dig came about and whether anything will be found; a supernatural element, which I thought was a nice touch to the story, and a wee bit of romance for the lassies out there.

All of the characters are interesting and likable  even the ones that made me a bit disappointed by their behavior.  It was explained int he end.  Our heroine Verity Grey, is very likable   She is just your average smart woman who is good people.  You could not help but like Verity.  She was not whiny  or silly; she acted like a normal person, which apparently I haven't come across too often lately. On the dig she meets David Fortune, the Scotsman.  Quiet, unassuming, gentle, the perfect gentleman a lass could fall in love with.  Family man too.

I could talk about all the characters, because I have something good to say about each and every one.  Kearsley described them all so perfectly so they were easy to picture while I was reading.  This book drew me from he start and I enjoyed it immensely.  Last thing, the supernatural element.  To me it was  totally believable, and not corny or ill placed at all.  The setting is Scotland, where there is already a belief in the supernatural.  The way this piece comes about in the story was well done.  Not what you typically see in today's more popular supernatural books.

Recommend? 

Absolutely! this was a fun enjoyable read, that sucked me on the first few pages.  Easy to lose yourself in, and nicely paced. Several of Kearsley's books have been published lately, and I will be sure to read them soon.

Would I change anything?

Nope!  Not one thing.  But I would enjoy reading about Verity and David again.

Thanks to Sourcebooks for my review copy.

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