Haunted, schmaunted. Bastian, infamous playboy and the current Earl of Weymouth doesn’t believe his English castle is haunted. So what if a few windows and lightbulbs shatter? That happens. OK, bleeding portraits are hard to explain… But he is not going to be deterred. Not even by Jane, a seductive-as-sin grad student who has assigned herself the task of ghost hunting at Stormclyffe Hall. All … Stormclyffe Hall. All Bastian wants is to restore his ancestral home, not be distracted by her curvy hips, bedroom eyes and gorgeous smile—
Fine, maybe he does want to get naked with Ms. GhostBuster, but that’s only because she practically follows him around, nosing into his daily life. And yes, because she looks so damnably sexy, however, he refuses to give into lust. No matter how much she tempts him.
But when the ghosts up the ante and try to kill them, Bastian realizes he will have to keep Jane close. Very, very close. Purely to protect her, of course.
At least that’s what he tells himself. All bets—and some clothes—are off, as he shows her what a real earl is made of.
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What a fabulous gothic romance!!! Gothic romances are some of my fave romances and I love them so much!!! Lauren Smith’s The Shadows of Stormclyffe Hall is a sensual oddesy with awesome characters and just the right amount of mystery and ghostly lovers kept apart by a witchs curse that has brought nothing but tragedy to all the males of stormclyffe,but when Jane seyton comes to stormclyffe to finish her dissertation and meets Bastian the earl of Weymouth it sets off a chain of events and a hunger for each other that is building into a glorious and passionate,soul burning love that even time and a curse could not destory!!! I love a good paranormal romance and Lauren Smith delivered! I have not read a book by this author that wasn’t amazing!!! She’s a awesome storyteller and I hope theirs more gothic romances to come!!
Ever since she first saw a photograph of Stormclyffe Hall, Jane’s been obsessed with it. The history, the hauntings, the strange deaths, the nightmares all pull her to the Hall. She’s gone so far as to make it her grad school project. She needs first-hand evidence and so hops a plane to visit the Hall and the Earl of Weymouth. What she doesn’t expect is to find a drop-dead gorgeous man who ignites her body with just one look.
All Bastian wants is to fulfill his father’s dream and restore Stormclyffe Hall to its glory. He doesn’t believe in ghosts and refuses to believe his ancestral home is haunted. Sure, strange things happen he can’t explain but that doesn’t mean it’s haunted.
But all that changes the more he’s around Jane. Desire courses through his veins whenever she’s around him. He can’t explain his feelings of possession, attraction and protection, considering they’ve only just met. All he knows is that he has to be around her. But when something (or someone) puts Jane in danger, he realizes his grave mistake. Can he save her in time or are they repeating history?
I love gothic romance and this one is one of the best I’ve read. Historically accurate with a supernatural family curse, eerie hauntings and an all-encompassing romance, this book is a must-read. I was captivated from the very first page. Parts of it scared me but that could just be me reading it at 3:00 am. The ending was heart-stopping brilliance and showed me once again why I love Lauren Smith books. Highly recommend!
Sebastian Carlisle, infamous playboy and the current Earl of Weymouth doesn’t believe his English castle is haunted. So what if a few windows and lightbulbs shatter? That happens. Not even by Jane, a seductive-as-sin grad student who has assigned herself the task of ghost hunting at Stormclyffe Hall. All Bastian wants is to restore his ancestral home, not be distracted by her curvy hips, bedroom eyes and gorgeous smile. But when the ghosts up the ante and try to kill them, Bastian realizes he will have to keep Jane close. Very, very close. Purely to protect her, of course.
Now ghost stories are not my favourite read but I’ve learned if Lauren Smith writes it I’ll love it. Her strength is her characters they come alive & nothing two dimensional. The pace of the story is really good & I was drawn in from the beginning a Phd student who had felt drawn to Stomclyffe & the young Earl who had to restore it. Their attraction was immediate but they also liked each other. Another engrossing captivating read which I loved
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read
Star-crossed Lovers — Then and Now
200 years ago, evil triumphed, destroying Isabelle and Richard, the Earl of Weymouth. Today, evil is still reigning terror over Stormclyffe Hall. However, this time it’s target is Jane Seyton, an American researcher working on her doctorate, and Sebastian Carlisle , the ninth Earl of Weymouth.
“What was once broken, must be mended”
The Shadows of Stormclyffe Hall by Lauren Smith is a perfect blend of dark and moody Gothic with hip and rational contemporary. This poignant love story spans two hundred years and two continents. All of the characters are rich and vibrant, and the story is tightly woven and believable, even with its paranormal slant. As the century old evil tries to destroy them, the passion between Jane and Bastian is explosive and urgent. I was engrossed and entertained up to the last word of the sigh-worthy happy ending.
Content alert: There are some very descriptive sexual parts and some mild swearing, with some religious expletives.
FYI: I also posted my review on Amazon (as Rural Reader), with GoodReads, and the book cover on my Pinterest page (https://www.pinterest.com/marthajane65/rural-reader-my-favorite-5-star-reads/).
The Shadows of Stormclyffe Hall is a paranormal gothic romance set in England. The 1811 prologue provides insight into the tragic past of Stormclyffe Hall. The Earl married a local without any pedigree and shortly after the birth of their son, Edward, she plummets to her death on the cliffs. In present day, Jane Seyton is doing her dissertation on tragedies that occurred in some Britain’s oldest castles. Her current destination is Stormclyffe Hall. Jane is certain something else happened at Stormclyffe Hall all those years ago that goes beyond a new mother tossing herself off of the cliffs. She needs to get into Stormclyffe Hall but the current Earl, Bastian, intends to make things difficult.
As Jane continues to research the castle and investigate the former occupants, both she and Bastian soon realize there is something otherworldly in play. There is evil threaded through the castle and has its sights set on Jane and Bastian. Now, the annoying American and arrogant Earl must come together to battle supernatural entities before more people die.
The story is dark, romantic, and mysterious. Throughout the book, the chemistry between Jane and Bastian intensifies, realistically and believable. The author did a great job with the development of each character. The unfolding of the story is perfectly paced and well-developed. The world-building is done is done so well that the reader will feel like they are actually in the story. Descriptive and exciting, The Shadows of Stormclyffe Hall is engaging, rich in detail, and highly recommended.
I was given a copy of this book to review (both the original publication in 2014 and the re-release in 2018).
I loved this story! Jane is such an open person which helped Bastian get beyond his limited mind. I enjoyed the paranormal aspect of the book very much. Past helping the present and vice versa. Several times, I had tears in my eyes; others had me smiling or holding my breath. This is a compelling read, and I recommend it.
This is my unsolicited review.