• the darkest waltz • 

A Southern Gothic tale about a lady bootleggers in the 1920s, a mysterious railroad heir, and the things that haunt them, The Darkest Waltz is a fun debut from Ashley R. King that’s a great addition to any spooky season reading list. 

The story follows Evangeline Ward, a young woman whose bootlegging empire in Georgia is being threatened, and Weston Abernathy, the heir to a massive railroad fortune that was left to him after the tragic and mysterious demise of his family – but he needs a wife to officially inherit the money. 

So we get a marriage of convenience, a very haunted house, and the mystery of the Abernathy deaths, all set against the backdrop of the Georgia marshes. The writing is atmospheric and immersive, the mystery is rich, the romance is complicated, and the ghosts have their own agendas. 

Though this never veers into true horror, the ghost story is compelling and Ashley does a great job infusing suspision and paranoia and suspension into the pages as the story unfolds. Plus, there’s all the great details of 1920s fashion and enough romance to get you by. 

🐊A huge thank you to Ashley R. King and Pen Pal PR for the opportunity to read and review an advanced copy!🖤