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Harriet Smart
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The Ghosts of Ardenthwaite (The Northminster Mysteries Book 5) Kindle Edition

by Harriet Smart (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.5 out of 5 stars 845 ratings

Something is amiss at Ardenthwaite. Ghostly apparitions have been seen, so terrifying that the mistress of the house and the servants have deserted the place. Colonel Parham, the tenant, asks his landlord Felix Carswell and Major Giles Vernon to determine what is going on. But their investigations soon takes an unexpected turn, leaving them in confusion and doubting their own sanity.

Shortly afterwards, a man dies in Northminster Infirmary, the victim of a brutal and systematic attack which seems to point to dangerous criminal forces hitherto unknown in the city. Vernon has his suspicions as to who is behind it, and with Carswell’s assistance he begins to unpick a complex network of alliances and enemies. Yet, as their best witnesses meet brutal fates, they are forced to face the grim possibility of failure.

Having been forced into unpleasant compromises to gain access to the truth, Giles is further unsettled by the return of Emma Maitland to Northminster, now engaged to another man. As she assists him with the case, he begins to realise all that he has lost. For Felix Carswell, a bizarre and other-worldly encounter with a beautiful, spirited young woman throws up the possibility of an extremely advantageous marriage. Eleanor Blanchfort is an heiress and Lord Rothborough’s ward. Has destiny brought them together as she suggests, and can Felix find the will to resist such a dazzling temptation?

The Ghosts of Ardenthwaite is the fifth novel in Harriet Smart’s Northminster Mysteries, featuring intrepid early Victorian detectives, Major Giles Vernon and Felix Carswell.

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  1. Book 5 of 11
    The Northminster Mysteries
  2. Print length
    410 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Accessibility
    Learn more
  5. Publication date
    December 25, 2016
  6. File size
    1.9 MB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
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There are 11 books in this series.

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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B01N4HU5B8
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Anthemion
  • Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ December 25, 2016
  • Edition ‏ : ‎ 4th
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 1.9 MB
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 410 pages
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1907873461
  • Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Book 5 of 11 ‏ : ‎ The Northminster Mysteries
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 out of 5 stars 845 ratings

About the author

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Harriet Smart

Harriet Smart

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Harriet Smart is a novelist living in Northumberland

Educated at the University of St Andrews, Harriet’s debut novel, A GARLAND OF VOWS, was inspired by her research into a firm nineteenth century church furnishers and turned into an epic family saga, spanning fifty years. Her second novel, GREEN GROW THE RUSHES, set in Edwardian Scotland was short-listed for the Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award. She is currently writing a series of crime novels set in early Victorian England.

Along with her husband Julian Smart she has designed Writer’s Café, a software toolkit for fiction writers. For more information see www.writerscafe.co.uk and www.jutoh.com

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
845 global ratings

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Top reviews from the United States

  • Kindle Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars The Bishop did it?
    Reviewed in the United States on April 2, 2017
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    No, but I wish he had. A most selfrighteous and unpleasant character. The actual villains--there were 3--did get theirs in the end. I have appreciated all of the Northminster Mysteris. This one did take a few "side trips" along the way, put in such a way that, if Smart writes a 6th, it should make that book even more interesting. My only complaint is that Smart didn't give more of an explanation for some things that happened previously. Enough time has elapsed since reading the first 5 that I didn't recall all the particulars. For example, I don't remember how Laura, Major Vernon's first wife, died, and why he still feels responsible. That doesn't really affect my enjoyment of this book, but I would have appreciated the reminder. If this is your first introduction to this series; I would recommend that you start with the very first one in order to really enjoy this one. I think background knowledge of the characters is helpful and important.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Kindle Customer
    4.0 out of 5 stars I loved the entire Northminster series
    Reviewed in the United States on October 1, 2017
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    I loved the entire Northminster series. Smart really knows how to do an ending. You can stop at any of the five and feel satisfied...but you just can't resist taking a peek at the next. As they should in a good series, the characters develop over time and Smart gives you a decent shot at guessing who dunnit. Superb period research. The reason I cannot give Smart five stars is her mystifying refusal to give her books a thorough copyedit.Some exmaples. Here you are, gliding along, fully engaged in the story, and then you hit: "...with her habit skirt flung over high over her arm..." or "The extent of the injuries displayed by dead man was shocking." Aside from these annoying oversights, if period mysteries are your thing, you will love this series.
    6 people found this helpful
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  • Kindle Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Just gets better
    Reviewed in the United States on September 2, 2019
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    The criminals are smarter, edgier, and more brazen. Warning - more adult content. Still with a delicate touch, but there. The characters are even deeper. Enjoy!!
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Rusty
    5.0 out of 5 stars Another fine read.
    Reviewed in the United States on January 12, 2021
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    I really enjoy the characters and the in depth way they are presented. I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the Northminster series.
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  • J. Dupree
    4.0 out of 5 stars Good addition to the series
    Reviewed in the United States on June 29, 2019
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    That is the fourth in the series that I've read, and enjoyed them all. However, that was quite enough of merry old England for me.
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  • Kindle Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Must read
    Reviewed in the United States on April 18, 2018
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    Well written. I had to purchase all in the series because the first book hooked me.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Doreen T. Hartz
    3.0 out of 5 stars Formatting issues kept me from reading it nicely
    Reviewed in the United States on January 8, 2017
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    I have read this entire series and enjoyed it. I tried twice to read this book on my iPad and was unable to read past chapter 7 (where Amazon thinks it ends). For a while the table of contents was available with links to each chapter so I could read chapter by chapter but I had to download the book again each time in order to read from the chapter links. I liked the story and resolutions but it was a chore to read like this.
    4 people found this helpful
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  • Mrs Claus
    5.0 out of 5 stars I love this series by Harriet Smart
    Reviewed in the United States on August 28, 2017
    Format: Kindle
    I love this series by Harriet Smart. I have read some of her other books and each is great. While historical facts are woven into the story and I love historical facts, they do not overwhelm the narrative. Each character is strong and each interacts well with the others. The mysteries are well written and I would recommend them to any reader. Do yourself a favor and start with book one of this series to follow better the growth of each character. Look too for her other books, I think you will not be disappointed in any of them. Book one in this series is the Butchered Man.
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Top reviews from other countries

  • Dorothy
    5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
    Reviewed in Australia on May 21, 2017
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    Have read all this series and loved them all.
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  • Melissa Sawchuk
    5.0 out of 5 stars Very enjoyable!
    Reviewed in Canada on May 14, 2025
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    That fifth star is for the attempted transfusion. Always love to see some good transfusion history as a TM tech.
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  • Kimmsie
    5.0 out of 5 stars Really good
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 1, 2023
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    These books are really beginning to come into their own. Th characters are like old friends and it's good to spend time with them. I was slightly disappointed that there were no ghost to investigate, that could have been fun, but the story didn't suffer for it. In fact, this is the best one so far.
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  • Lancashire Lad
    4.0 out of 5 stars Another great book in the Northminster series
    Reviewed in Australia on June 5, 2019
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    Enjoyed hoe characters are maturing in a well thought out plot. The places become real and easy to imagine myself in the East Midlands
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  • Dr Mervyn Eastman
    4.0 out of 5 stars Books 3,4,5 completed & becoming addictive
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 6, 2023
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    I'd not say these are slow burners, but takes a few chapters to get hooked. The developing relationships between Giles, Felix & Lord R is very encouraging. The story lines are, in their own way, gritty handling subjects on the darker side of the Victorian era.
    Sexuality, social class & mid 19th C values & attitudes underpin the various plots.

    Harriet Smart is very smart indeed, & appreciated the little Dickens name check!

    Am I hooked? Not quite yet....but will probably move on to Book 6 in the very near future - well, now!
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