Author: Kristen Perrin
Series: Castle Knoll Files (Book 2)
Publication: Dutton (April 29, 2025)
Description: Kristen Perrin is back with the second novel in her Castle Knoll series. Annie Adams is caught in a new web of murder that spans decades, returning us to the idyllic English village that holds layers of secrets.
Present day: Annie Adams is just settling into life in Castle Knoll when local fortune teller Peony Lane crosses her path and shares a cryptic message. When Peony Lane is found dead only hours later inside the locked Gravesdown Estate, Annie quickly realizes that someone is out to make her look guilty while silencing Peony at the same time. Annie has no choice but to delve into the dark secrets of Castle Knoll in order to find out just what Peony Lane was trying to warn her about, before the new life she’s just begun to build comes crashing down around her.
1967: A year has passed since her friend Emily disappeared, and teenage Frances Adams finds herself caught between two men. Ford Gravesdown is one of the only remaining members of a family known for its wealth and dubious uses of power. Archie Foyle is a local who can’t hold down a job and lives above the village pub. But when Frances teams up with Archie to investigate the car crash that claimed the lives of Ford's family, it quickly becomes clear that this was no accident—hints of cover-ups, lies, and betrayals abound. The question is, just how far does the blackness creep through the heart of Castle Knoll? When Frances uncovers secrets kept by both Ford and Archie, she starts to wonder: What exactly has she gotten herself into?
My Thoughts: This is the second book in the Castle Knoll Files mystery series. It would be of benefit to read this series in order since there are many references to the first book. This is also a dual timeline story which added a bit to the confusion for me.
Annie Adams has inherited the Gravesdown Estate after solving a murder. But there are still many secrets both at the estate and in Castle Knoll. The fortune teller who precipitated the events of the first book has a message for Annie too. However, shortly after delivering the message Peony Lane is found dead inside Annie's solarium.
Annie finds herself a suspect in Peony Lane's death since someone is clearly trying to frame her. Annie finds herself investigating a car wreck the killed three of the Gravesdown family in 1967 because it wasn't as it appeared.
The dual timeline takes us to 1967 where Frances Adams is also looking into the car crash and dating the only Gravesdown survivor along with Archie Foyle who has some connections to the Gravesdown family.
This was a nicely twisty mystery with interesting characters many of whom appear in both the 1967 and present-day timelines.
I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.
I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.
You had me at castle.
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