A Gothic Tale of Secrets and Victorian Spiritualism
I’ve always been a fan of a good ghost story, especially when there’s some interesting history behind it. I don’t tend to dip into a lot of Gothic horror, but my curiosity was captured by the premise of Begotten, which places Victorian spiritualism at its heart. This is the debut novel of Dr Kate Cherrell, writer of Burials and Beyond blog, and there are plenty of nods to the history of spiritualism throughout.
The story follows Alice Crofton, a young woman who returns to her family’s ancestral home in Ireland after the recent death of her father. The house is bleak and isolated and is filled with secrets and strange events. While Alice tries to make sense of things, she finds herself surrounded by a cast of rather odd characters. As the story builds pace, it becomes increasingly more difficult for Alice to tell what might be supernatural and what might have a more ordinary explanation. I won’t say too much about the plot, as I don’t want to spoil it for you, and I think it’s better to discover things yourself as the story unfolds.
One of the things I particularly enjoyed was the atmosphere. Kate does an excellent job of bringing the old ancestral pile and its gloomy surroundings to life. There’s a real underlying sense that something isn’t quite right going on. Her writing is descriptive without being unnecessarily complicated, and I found some parts very creepy indeed.
I also really liked the way she incorporated Victorian spiritualism and paranormal history into the story. Kate clearly has expertise and excellent knowledge of the subject and it shows in the historical detail included. I felt this really added depth to the book. I have an interest in this type of history myself, so I enjoyed seeing how it was woven into the fictional story, rather than simply being dropped in as background information.
Another aspect of the book I enjoyed was Kate’s sense of humour. I appreciate a bit of dark, macabre, dry humour and there are plenty of amusing moments and wry turns of phrase amongst the unsettling storyline. I thought this worked well in providing a contrast to the darker aspects of the story.
Begotten is something of a slow burner. It takes its time building up the atmosphere and suspense, rather than charging forward with constant scares and dramatic events. I was keen to find out what was really happening and there were certainly some moments of unease along the way. It’s also one of those books that left me pondering it for a long time after I’d finished reading.
Overall, I enjoyed Begotten and thought it was a creepily good read. I especially appreciated the mix of paranormal history, supernatural mystery, Gothic atmosphere and Kate’s slightly dark, dry sense of humour. If you enjoy ghost stories, creepy old mansions and Victorian spiritualism, I’d highly recommend giving this a read. I’ll certainly be interested to see what Kate writes next.
Begotten by Kate Cherrell
Published by Roundfire Books (2025)
If you’re interested in reading it yourself, you can find Begotten here.
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