A very gothic and atmospheric tale. More creepy than scary but enough to make you a little spooked in the dark! I loved the setting and the era of the tale which really set the scene well. Very well developed characters - some likeable some not so much. All in all a very good read.

Stella Marcham has lost her fiance in WWI. As the war continues she is lost within her own grief. Her brother-in-law asks her to travel to Greyswick Hall to keep her pregnant sister Madelaine company. Providing her with a new focus outside herself, Stella is pleased to spend time with Madelaine. That is until it becomes obvious that all is not right within Greyswick and there are secrets which threaten the peace of the household.

This is basically a ghost story. All the usual requirements are there – imposing house, frosty atmosphere, noises in the night and so on. This book did fit the general mode of this genre quite well & there is nothing about this book to make it stand out from the crowd. Yes, it is quite well written with reasonable characters but the story itself is nothing new. It is a fairly average book of its genre.

Much of this book is quite predictable. There are some “reveals” and twists but to be honest I saw them coming. There is not a great atmosphere and I did feel the book was lacking in suspense. I wasn’t that keen on the ending. I felt the author had made it too extreme in relation to the rest of the book.

On the whole a reasonable read & a fairly average book of this genre. There is nothing special to make it stand out from the crowd.

I received a free copy of this book via Netgalley.

Every year as the nights turn cooler and longer, I begin looking for a wonderful new ghost story to whet my gothic appetite. This year, Anita Frank’s The Lost Ones fits the bill with perfect stylish flair.

Part ghost story, part murder mystery and part reflections on loss and bereavement, the Lost Ones immerses us in the creepy setting of sprawling English manor House, Haverton Hall, and its inhabitants- against the backdrop of the very real horrors of the World War II timeperiod. The narrator, former army nurse and grieving fiancée, Stella Marcham embarks on a quest to help her pregnant sister uncover the truth about the strange dark history of the house. With the aid of her unusual maidservant Annie, Stella must battle against those who would suppress her voice- in the shape of both the societal norms that women faced at that time and a family that has reason for wanting to keep certain secrets hidden.

The story has some very creepy chills and thrills although this ended up being less prominent than I expected going into it. The murder mystery actually comes to the fore partway through the book- which was also longer than I expected. I did find the pace lagged a little bit at one stage and I confess I was hoping for more ghost action overall. But there are some really excellent, well drawn supporting characters and Stella herself strikes the right balance in terms of being a plucky problem solver but also a vulnerable victim of her own private grief. Frank selves into some of the more subtle aspects of mourning and the grief process in a way that really lends depth and weight to the story

The ending has a nice, if somewhat predictable twist and concludes in a very satisfactory way. On the whole I found this an immensely enjoyable read, highly recommended for an afternoon with the rain lashing against the window, curled up cosy by the fire. 4.5 stars.

Really enjoyable, atmospheric mystery. Spooky but not scarily so.

Still grieving over the death of her fiancé in WW1, Stella Marcham is asked by her brother in law Hector to stay with her heavily pregnant sister at his country estate. She takes Annie, her maid with her.

When both Matilda and Stella witness some strange and unsettling events, it is clear there are something or someone has a score to settle and as Stella and Annie get closer to the truth, they place themselves in further danger.

Hector calls in an investigator, Mr Shears, to see if there could be a rational explanation for the strange goings on, or whether the events are the result of hysterical minds of his pregnant wife and her grieving sister.

Mr Shears is initially a rather stubborn character, but as the story progresses we learn more about him and he becomes more likeable.

The book ends on a note that suggests a follow up may be on the way - I do hope so, Annie, Mr Shears and Stella would make quite an interesting investigative team! I also liked the fact that by the end of the book Stella was coming to terms with her grief.

Thank you to HQ and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my review.

I don’t usually read historical fiction but there was something about the synopsis for The Lost Ones that piqued my interest.

Anita Frank takes you back to 1917 and the story of Stella Marcham. Still reeling from the death of her fiancé, Stella welcomes the opportunity to travel to Greyswick, an opulent mansion and where her pregnant sister Madeleine now resides.

However soon after arriving, it’s clear Madeleine is unable to rest at the house and a series of strange incidents begin to happen during the night. Incidents Stella feels compelled to investigate.

This book totally had me hooked and I found it to be a complete page turner. It’s well written and the story moves along at a good pace.

Thank you to NetGalley, HQ and the author for the chance to review.

The Lost Ones was a fun ghost story/mystery that might appeal to whodunnit fans as much as aficionados of spooky tales.

I have to say I didn't find it particularly scary, but I was dragged along by the many mysteries of what dark acts had taken place at Greyswick, the haunted house at the centre of the story.

Regular readers of mysteries may guess where things are going pretty early on I suspect. And for those who haven't, there's a pretty clumsy Poirot-esque section near the end, where characters inexplicably start blurting out all of the answers to Greyswick's mysteries!

Good fun, but lacked a little subtlety for me.

What a great debut novel for this author, this isn't something I would normally go for but I enjoyed it. It was a book that I could keep coming back to when life got in the way. I didn't feel like I had to keep reading to find out what happened next, so it has taken me a while to get through.

The writing style was very good, although sometimes a little too descriptive. I could visualise where it was and the time it was set in (1917) and all the ghostly happenings. The characters were great, well most of them, I love Stella and her sister Annie, but you have to have at least one character you don't like and I didn't like the doctor and the way he was with Stella.

I think if this was my favoured genre, I would have probably got into it a little more, I didn't get the goosebumps or the angst that I would expect or wanted from a story like this. That being said it was a good read and for a debut, I have to say well done to Anita Frank.

It’s got all the ingredients of a Gothic ghost story: the gloomy mansion, two loving sisters, weird servants, a strict matriarch, haunting memories, a forbidden part of the house, spooky occurrences. So you may be forgiven to state “yawn, another “things-that-go-bump-in-the-night” story. But....biiig but...the author has a real knack for timing to create a graspable atmosphere: a falling ember in the grate or the rhythmic tick of an ormolu clock. Superbly fleshed-out characters in doom-laden surroundings with the reader left dangling and guessing for just the right amount of time and a truly spectacular firework of revelations at the end make this story a cracking read!
A stunning debut, waiting with bated breath for more from Anita Frank.

Loved this book it was creepy which is what you want in a ghost story but it also kept you guessing after each chapter.

I was gripped by this haunting tale perfect for fans of The Silent Companions by Laura Purcell. It's a haunting, spooky story set in a rambling old mansion in the aftermath of world war one.

Stella a grieving young woman, having returned from nursing wounded soldiers and the loss of her fiance takes her maid Annie to join her married sister Madelaine in her new marital home where the pregnant young woman is struggling to fit in, balancing a difficult mother in law, with eerie goings-on in the house, no wonder her nerves are jagged.

But Stella has to take on more than she expected and its clear Annie is hiding something as strange inexplicable occurrences lead to the conclusion the house must be haunted.

With a creepy gothic feel, it's a haunting, emotional story with lots of unsettling events, threaded with horrific memories, grief and an underlying theme of women struggling for emancipation in an era when a husbands word was law and women were expected to be obedient and biddable.
Can't fault it - a great debut.

Superb story that draws you in from the start and keeps you gripped until the end, I will definitely be reading more from this author

I’m not inclined to hyperbole and don’t often give out fives stars, but I strongly felt this book deserved it. I was utterly mesmerised by it. This book is so much more than just a ghost story. It deals sensitively with grief and raises some really interesting feminist issues. The atmosphere of the text was delicious, it reminded me of J L Carr’s ‘A Month in the Country’. I was so entirely compelled by this story that I read half of it in one afternoon.

I have no hesitation in strongly recommending this book. I’ll actively seek this author out in the future.

A true ghost story from the very beginning. The story did not hold many surprises but nevertheless the author conveyed a feeling of creepiness and unease. A well written book.

The Lost Ones is an incredible debut by the very talented Anita Frank. The precisely chosen words are accompanied by a tense plot that makes this novel a real page-turner. With tridimensional characters and accurate settings, I believe this novel will appeal to a wide audience and not just ghost stories aficionados.
Without giving away to many spoilers I'll say that it's impossible not to be rooting for Stella and her maid Annie that with the help of the initially unlikeable Mr Sheers take on more than a haunted mansion to get justice.
A fantastic 5 stars book that deserves to be on your TBR pile.

An enjoyable First World War ghost story, with somewhat Victorian overtones (a touch of Dickens, but owing more of a debt to Wilkie Collins). It’s relatively insubstantial, but an effective atmosphere is built up, and the short chapters give a sense of pace and growing dread in the characters - if not in this reader. As a huge ghost story fan there was little that was original or surprising here, but the pieces all slot together effectively. One for dark afternoons and evenings by a roaring fire with tea and cake.

Loved it. From the beginning I was pulled in by the characters. It was sometimes eerie & very atmospheric while also being suspenseful. A real page turner.

Genre: Fiction, mystery
Publisher: HQ
Pub date: 31 October 2019
Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟

Stella Marcham's life is thrown upside down when her fiance dies during the war. A nurse in France she returns home to England in grief.

Utterly depressed she jumps at the chance to visit her sister Madeline who is expecting a baby.

Little do they know their lives are about to get  whole lot stranger. This encompasses mystery with a bit of a ghost story that I thought may put me off but I was wrong.

This book has fantastic characters, I absolutely loved Cook and Annie. The storyline is great with a mighty twist or two at the end. I couldn't put this down and finished it within a day!

It wasn't my usual genre as I don't usually read anything with supernatural elements but I really enjoyed it. There was just the right amount of detail about surroundings and people to bring them to your minds eye.

Excellent book I look forward to reading more!

This ARC was courtesy of netgalley - all thoughts and opinions are mine and unbiased
I also post of Amazon, Goodreads, Barnes&Noble, Kobo

This is a debut novel and what a debut!!

A sweeping epic, set in World War 1

Tense, full of suspense - I absolutely loved the way this was written - the language is evocative and keeps the air of dread throughout - this is not my usual fare but was hooked quickly

Can't wait to see what this author does in the future

Highly recommended

I received this pre-publication e-book from Harlequin UK via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. (Also posted on Amazon and Goodreads.)
This is the first novel by Anita Frank, and it’s an accomplished debut. Set during the First World War, the story deals with themes of love, loss, grief and (finally) hope, all mired in a narrative dripping with fear and supernatural tension.
Stella Marcham was a VAD in France, but witnessed the bloody death of her adored fiancé Gerald in a field hospital and was invalided home to her family estate after a nervous collapse. Her home is an outward haven of peace, but her family is overshadowed by a history of tragedy and death, and the local village is reeling from the loss of a number of its sons in the trenches. In this atmosphere Stella struggles to recover, and gladly takes up an invitation to visit her pregnant sister Madeleine at her husband’s family seat, Greyswick.
All is not well here, either, however. The house is oppressive, and the Brightwell household – the widowed matriarch Lady Brightwell, her companion Miss Scott, Madeleine herself and a depleted staff led by the sinister Mrs Henge– have their own secrets. Stella struggles to understand the relationships between them, and to make matters worse, her maidservant Annie, brought from home, begins to behave in an increasingly odd manner.
A succession of strange and unsettling events, the sinister abandoned top floor (containing a school room and nursery complete with empty crib – staples in creating suspense), Madeleine’s increasing unease and the erratic behaviour of the denizens of the house all combine to create a real atmosphere of menace. The arrival of the rationalist Mr Sheers with his ghost-hunting equipment sets the scene for the final unravelling of the mystery.
I enjoyed this book enormously. The First World War overhangs the narrative and infects everything with a feeling of dread, apprehension, the futility of death – and, in fact, of madness and uncertainty. Stella questions her own sanity throughout, as does everyone around her (although for different reasons) and the inexplicable and supernatural events that soon surround her only threated her stability even further. As an exploration of mental health and recovery from trauma and loss, this was an affecting book in itself.
I feel there may be a sequel – this is hinted at in the final few pages, and I hope it happens. I’d like to get to know Stella better. I will also watch out for more books by Anita Frank – this is quite the debut.

This is a chilling read, excellent storyline that kept me hooked throughout. I loved it! Not my usual genre but a welcome change, I will look out for more fro Mathis author.