The Secret Casebook of Simon Feximal – K.J. Charles
A story too secret, too terrifying—and too shockingly intimate—for Victorian eyes.
A note to the Editor
Dear Henry,
I have been Simon Feximal’s companion, assistant and chronicler for twenty years now, and during that time my Casebooks of Feximal the Ghost-Hunter have spread the reputation of this most accomplished of ghost-hunters far and wide.
You have asked me often for the tale of our first meeting, and how my association with Feximal came about. I have always declined, because it is a story too private to be truthfully recounted, and a memory too precious to be falsified. But none knows better than I that stories must be told.
So here is it, Henry, a full and accurate account of how I met Simon Feximal, which I shall leave with my solicitor to pass to you after my death.
I dare say it may not be quite what you expect.
Robert Caldwell
September 1914
I said before I didn’t really care for Caldwell and Feximal’s romance when I read Remnant. I spoke too soon apparently. Going into this book, at first, I really didn’t but I gradually grew to like them both as characters and I’m happy that they are happy together. However, the beauty of this book is that it kept me hooked despite my initial apathy to the romance part. The stories are brilliant spins on British folklore interwoven with actual historical details. This is one of the delights of reading a K.J. Charles book. I always learn unfamiliar and sometimes obscure tidbits of British folklore and history that they never show on tv.
The Casebook is written as a collection of different stories each featuring a case Feximal and Caldwell worked on as well as updates on how their relationship developed and thrived. The last few stories were especially evocative. I have read Spectred Isle before this and recalling and connecting these two books stirred strong emotions.The ending was heartbreaking as well with war and all its consequences. I would choose to believe the editor’s note on Mediterranean cottages and ghostless quiet for my peace of mind. Simon and Robert deserved it.
Rating:
4.5 – perfection is only half a step away
Soundtrack: Weighty Ghost
Artist: WIntersleep
Album: Welcome to the Night Sky
(source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34680762-the-secret-casebook-of-simon-feximal)
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