Hold My Place – Cassondra Windwalker
When librarian Sigrun falls head-over-heels for the sophisticated and very married Edgar Leyward, she never expects to find herself in his bed—or his heart. Nevertheless, when his enigmatic wife Octavia dies from a sudden illness, Sigrun finds herself caught up in a whirlwind romance worthy of the most lurid novels on her bookshelves.
Sigrun soon discovers Octavia wasn’t Edgar’s first lost love, or even his second. Three women Edgar has loved met early deaths. As she delves into her beloved’s past through a trove of discovered letters, the edges of Sigrun identity begin to disappear, fading into the women of the past. Sigrun tells herself it’s impossible for any dark magic to be at play—that the dead can’t possibly inhabit the bodies of the living—but something shadowy stalks the halls of the Leyward house and the lines between the love of the present and the obsessions of the past become increasingly blurred—and bloody.
I received a review copy from the publishers through Netgalley
Hold My Place was recommended to me by Jamie at Black Crow PR. It’s been in my TBR for a while but I rembember reading the blurb when it first released and thinking it definately sounded like a story I could get behind. It hardly needs said but Jamie knows her stuff as this punchy wee story was a great read and I really liked the lead character Sigrun.
Nailing the opening of a story is a sure-fire way to grab my attention early and keep me reading. Cassondra Windwalker did just that with a powerful opening to Hold My Place which immediately brought a smile ot my face and ensured I was sticking with this story to see how Sigrun got herself to the place where we first meet her.
It turns out she got to this shocking place by going to a cooking class. Sigrun is a goth, she enjoys not looking like the other women in the cookery class and doesn’t feel like she belongs there either. But all eyes in the class are taking in the chef (and tutor) Edgar. He is extremely easy on the eyes and sets hearts a fluttering round his kitchen all the students want Edgar to linger. Unfortunately Edgar also has a gorgeous and deeply loved wife – his students aren’t getting a look in. Or are they? Sigrun seems to have caught his eye and when invited to join him for a drink after class she isn’t going to say no.
Thus begins a complex and secretive series of meetings and flirtations. Sigrun becomes obsessed and can’t get the thought of Edgar out of her head. Cassondra Windwalker really does a marvellous job layering their blooming relationship and the frustrations Sigrun is experiencing. I was waiting for the darkness to descend and I was getting a love story – but I kept reading as this is compelling reading.
Suddenly the world changes. COVID arrives and any secret meetings are very much not going to happen. What will happen when the world can leave their homes again? What will a house-bound librarian do? What does a restaurant owner do if he can’t open his restaurant? Will love (or lust) find a way and what on earth takes Sigrun to that shocking place which began the story?
The love story does yield to a dark tale with that creepy twist I had been craving. It’s a quick read which delivers on emotional chills and brings some terrifying moments for Sigrun.
Kindle Unlimited readers can pick up Hold My Place as part of their Unlimited membership – otherwise you can grab a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B092BG6WW5/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i1