the ghost of crutchfield hall by mary downing hahn

We have a haunting, but we don't get anything more than one-dimensional characters, other than Florence herself. It wasn't enough to prop up the lack of story here. Jumeau was the family name and company responsible for the some of the finest dolls made in the period. Perhaps the period setting tripped her up? There were many, many titles and authors mentioned - nothing obscure - and a nice reference to a a beautiful doll being bought in Paris from Madame Jumeau. There are a few spooky moments, but other than Florence you don't get a sense of who any of the characters are. Florence is grateful to be at Crutchfield Hall, but soon starts hearing a voice calling out to her and others unwilling to talk about it or Sophia. There are few servants, but there is a maid-of-all-work named Nelly who is about her age. She finds her Uncle warm and her aunt frigid and over-the-top mean.

Florence is a voracious reader and references 'Wuthering Heights' and many other Victorian staples throughout the book. She learns little from her uncle's solicitor, except that she has a sickly cousin James and the family recently lost her other cousin, Sophia, in an accident.Ĭrutchfield Hall is a gloomy old house and it is winter when Florence arrives so the lawns are brown and the garden bare. Florence is a 12-year-old orphan who has been living in a bleak home in London for seven years when she discovers she has relatives and she will be going to stay with them.

The ghost of crutchfield hall by mary downing hahn