Book Synopsis:
The Postmaster looked over my shoulder. As I turned to look I saw a flicker of movement from across the street. I felt unseen eyes peer at me.
He walked away without another word. I watched as he climbed onto his bicycle and sped away down the street. I turned back and looked over my shoulder.
Someone had been watching us.
1904. Thomas Bexley, one of the first forensic photographers, is called to the sleepy and remote Welsh village of Dinas Powys, several miles down the coast from the thriving port of Cardiff. A young girl by the name of Betsan Tilny has been found murdered in the woodland – her body bound and horribly burnt. But the crime scene appears to have been staged, and worse still: the locals are reluctant to help.
As the strange case unfolds, Thomas senses a growing presence watching him, and try as he may, the villagers seem intent on keeping their secret. Then one night, in the grip of a fever, he develops the photographic plates from the crime scene in a makeshift darkroom in the cellar of his lodgings. There, he finds a face dimly visible in the photographs; a face hovering around the body of the dead girl – the face of Betsan Tilny.
A Shadow On The Lens is available in ebook and paperback now. You can purchase your copy using the link below.
My Review:
A Shadow On The Lens is a creepy, atmospheric and supernatural thriller that I really enjoyed. It’s the type of book that would be great to curl up with on a cold winters night, though might make you jump at every noise you hear!
The author does a great job describing the village in this book so it was easy to imagine what it was like living there. The small village mentality with its fear of strangers and anything new helped add to the unease I felt whilst reading. Every character there seems to have a motive for the murder and this, along with the creepy village description, adds to the tension in the book. It also ensured that I had no idea who the murder was so I enjoyed trying to work it out alongside Thomas.
This book starts off fairly slow but soon picks up pace so do stay with it. I enjoyed learning more about forensic photography and the equipment involved as well as finding out more about what life would have been like in 1904. It is a supernatural read so is quite scary in places, though I felt the historical elements of the book balanced it up nicely.
This unbelievably is the author’s debut novel and I’m excited to read more from him in the future.
Huge thanks to Tracy Fenton for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Orion for my copy of this book via Netgalley.
About The Author:
Sam Hurcom was born in Dinas Powys, South Wales in 1991. He studied Philosophy at Cardiff University, attaining both an undergraduate and master’s degree. He has since had several short stories published, and has written and illustrated a number of children’s books. Sam currently lives in the village he was raised in, close to the woodlands that have always inspired his writing.
A SHADOW ON THE LENS is Sam’s debut novel.
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