Heat Factor: Steamy
Character Chemistry: Opposites attract in the best way
Plot: Scandalous Widow wants to renovate haunted house, hires ghost hunter to de-hauntify
Overall: This Gothic Romantic Comedy was wonderful. I was utterly captivated.

I would not blame loyal readers of The Smut Report if they found themselves double-checking the byline for this review right about now. Did Holly really just write that she was “utterly captivated”? Yes. Yes, I did. That is how awesome this book was.

Readers, you also read correctly that I am calling this a Gothic Romantic Comedy. Because it is both a Gothic Romance with a scary haunted house and a melancholy mystery and a tragic backstory for our heroine and also an excellent Romantic Comedy where the heroine and heroine build their connection through banter and gentle ribbing. Avid fans of Gothic romances should note, however, that while the ghost story provides the central impetus to the plot, it ultimately plays a pretty small role in the story as a whole. If I had to pick just one category, I would lean more towards comedy.

Let’s start with the Gothic side of the equation. Spoiler alert: the ghost is real. And is both legitimately frightening and also really sad. Alva, our practical widow who needs work to start on this house like, yesterday, is not amused. Especially since her dead ex-husband was really terrible, and if ghosts are real, well… that means that maybe she won’t ever be free of him.

Enter Sam. Sam is a genius who can’t tie his own shoes. Well, he can, and then he gets distracted by calculating how long it takes to lace up his boots, and maybe he should invent a boot-lacing machine. Here’s a description of Sam getting dressed, so you can get a sense of him:
Socks were under the bed, undershirt on the bottom-left bedpost, and, most confusingly, shirts were in a nearly folded pile in the armoire.
But lest you think Sam is incompetent on all practical levels, let me set you straight. He is also extremely good at people when he wants to be. He’s the kind of guy that people take care of, which is quite convenient since he can’t be bothered to do things like feed himself. He is wonderful to read about because he is kind and thoughtful and pays attention when it’s important and is not emotionally stupid. I love him on the page, but he would drive me absolutely insane if he were my real life partner. Note: I know this guy in real life. He literally once had a guy give him the shirt off his back because he complimented it. And not like a friend; a random guy working in the sandwich shop where we were eating lunch. True story, I saw it happen. He then left said shirt, his sleeping bag, his cell phone, and his passport at my apartment.

Alva and Sam have sparkling chemistry. They tease each other, but not in a biting way. Rather, their light-hearted banter shows the ways in which they complement each other. And - bonus! - it’s frequently quite witty. For example:
He smiled wider. “Are you worried Zeus will descend Mount Olympus and smite us for our effrontery?”
“Something like that.”
“Wouldn’t that be a red-letter day for science,” he said.
Alva rolled her eyes, the tightness in her stomach easing. “You have a unique and frequently disturbing outlook on life.”
“Oh, come now. The discovery Zeus is not a mythical figure but does in fact exist? Think of the questions that could be answered. For example, what does it feel like to have your daughter born from your own skull?”
“Is Hera as horrible as the stories make her out to be, or is it classic scandalmongering?”
Notice also that the banter puts Alva at ease. Sam quickly realizes that being extra ridiculous brings out the best in them both, that sometimes Alva needs help battling her demons, and that a well-timed distraction can work wonders. This scandalous widow is carrying a LOT of baggage, which is the primary obstacle between her and a happily ever after with Sam. (Well, that and the ghost.) Her path to finding love and trust and self-worth shapes the novel, and her growth is truly satisfying to read.

I could go on and on, because I really cannot say enough about how much I enjoyed this book, but I’ll leave with this: Diana Biller, please tell me you have a sequel in the works about Sam’s sister. I mean, her two favorite things are French fashions and causing explosions. I cannot wait to read more about her.


I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. We disclose this in accordance with 16 CFR §255.

This review is also available at The Smut Report. (As of Oct 9, 2019)

I don’t think I could overstate how much I adored this book. I almost wish I could go back in time and read it for the first time again but barring that, I will definitely be purchasing a physical copy to reread and love on. I fell in love with both the main characters and found myself completely charmed by many of the secondary characters as well! Alva was an interesting, complicated heroine that perfectly complemented our goofy giant of a hero. The conversations between Alva and Sam highlighted her intelligence and sense of humor perfectly.

Sam Moore was a delightful hero. For a genius inventor, he was surprisingly thoughtful and sensitive. I found myself looking forward to his POV and scenes with Alva and his family because his sense of humor made me so happy. The author truly crafted a couple that I wanted to root for and I have a new favorite book boyfriend.

As much as I loved the story, I do wish the paranormal aspects had been woven into the story a bit more. The ghostly inclusions happened in bursts and in the interim, I sort of forgot about it. While I don’t think it necessarily detracts from the story, I do wish that aspect had flowed a bit more.

Overall, this is a delightful romance between two loveable characters. I sincerely hope there is a follow-up book because I really want to spend more time with the Moore family. Maggie, Henry, and Benedict were all delightful secondary characters that deserve their own stories. Diana Biller weaves a beautiful, heart-warming romance and I am looking forward to seeing what she comes up with next!


**Review and Excerpt will be posted during blog tour stop on 9 OCT 2019
**Shortened review posted to goodreads/instagram/bookbub
**review will be posted to retailers on/after release day

Diana Biller’s The Widow of Rose House is a wonderful gothic romance with a sense of humor that pits a skeptic against a scientist with a love for the paranormal.

Alva Penrose Rensselaer Webster is still battling a society that prefers to penalize her for leaving her husband Alain while ignoring the fact that he was abusing her physically.  Three years of scorn and gossip have passed by, and now Alain has been murdered, allowing Alva the possibility of a new life.  Thus, she’s trying to clean up her image by planting herself in New York.  Alva’s plans include publishing a guide to etiquette as Mrs. Webster, which will help fund her plan to refurbish Liefdehuis in Hyde Park, a dilapidated mansion with a negative history that she buys because she pities it.

While lunching at Delmonicos, Alva is approached by the awkward inventor, Professor Samuel Moore, creator of the Moore Lantern (and conduit, and rail system), an expert in engineering who comes from a gregarious family of accomplished scientists.  Sam also has a penchant for the paranormal, and he approaches Alva with a proposition; he wants to find out if the hauntings reported at Liefdehuis are genuine and examine the house’s metaphysical energies.   Alva considers those rumors simple gossip, the result of people trying to scare her off thanks to her reputation, but Sam will not give up and starts interviewing the house’s former employees in order to obtain evidence.  Alva gets her own when multiple builders she’s hired to restore Liefdehuis flee the place and refuse to return, claiming they’ve seen a ghost.  Eventually Alva lets Sam try to examine the place – against her better instincts, but desperate to have a livable home.  Together, Sam and Alva research the history of the house to get a bead on their ghost and clear its energies for once and all –and they also begin to fall in love.  But will the ghosts of the pasts – Alva’s, in the form of her dead husband’s just-as-abusive twin, Alfred, and the house’s  - part these two for good?

The Widow of Rose House is a great little romance.  It’s heartbreaking, feminist, filled with romantic life and touched with a sense of the utterly creepy and spooky.  Its sense of humor is a surprise which colors all of the words between its pages.

Alva is smart and indomitable, and has developed an outer shell that’s hard to crack, although she does have have her weaknesses, of course. And creative, loving Sam makes a good foil for her with his happiness, his intense affection and his expansive sense of wonder – something that needs to be awakened in Alva.

The romance between them works because of the delicious banter and the fact that they make each other better but don’t disappear into one another.  They’re both dedicated to the mystery and to helping one another grow, and the reader’s reward is their success.

The solution to the ghost plot is fairly unexpected and interesting (and plants some unique red herrings in the reader’s path), although I have to say that I liked the book’s ghostly antagonist much better than I did its human ones.

The book’s only real flaw is its pacing.  The conclusion runs a little too quickly and is rather too pat, speeding things to a comfortable conclusion that doesn’t take the time to smell the roses its richly earned.  But the epilogue’s content is perfectly sweet and romantic, which makes the rushed conclusion worthwhile in the long run.

The Widow of Rose House is a wonderful romance with a warm heart – and chilly extremities – that will win it many fans.

Buy it at: Amazon/Apple Books/Barnes & Noble/Kobo
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Mysterious and moody this gothic ghost story has a kiss of steamy romance. I was immediately hooked because the characters were so delightful and the banter was fantastic right from the start. I could not have loved Sam and his entire family more. I would read an entire series about them. This is way more of a romance than a ghost story which worked for me since I am a chicken who enjoys the occasional gothic novel. Still the haunted house was suitably atmospheric and creepy.
This was so close to a five star read for me but I had some issues with the pacing in spots. I thought certain things were overly rushed like the development of feelings and the unraveling of mysteries regarding the ghost. All the same this is a book I will be recommending to romance readers far and wide.

I received an ARC of this captivating mystery story. It is well written with memorable characters. The story takes place in the Golden Age and follows a woman trying to build a life after scandal. It is a page turning mystery with good romance woven in.

This romance had a touch of the paranormal, with a ghost and a haunted and run down old mansion. I would have preferred more of the paranormal and ghost story, but other readers will find this hits the spot for them.

The leading man, Sam, was the star of this book, and what really makes it stand out. He is a hunky and brilliant scientist, Sam looks like a Viking and is funny and supportive and wonderful. His family is another highlight of this book. His parents are also prominent scientists, and his family is loving and eccentric, and delightful.

This is a romance with steam. Readers may want to know that there is a storyline that deals with physical abuse. I found my attention wandering as the book progressed, and for some reason I never became emotionally invested. The ghost storyline and the storyline about Alva’s deceased husband and her blackmailer never worked together for me. I recommend this for readers that want more romance than paranormal.

The Widow of Rose House has one major thing going for it: the male lead, Sam. He's so completely refreshingly weird and charming that you wind up letting a lot of quibbles with the plot go.

The Widow of Rose House starts out mostly with Alva Webster, recently returned to New York from Paris, a widow of an abusive, almost comically evil husband. Rumors about her abound, all very 19th Century scandalous. When she purchases a ghost-ridden hellhole house, Sam is eager to test his random, nebulous theories concerning ghosts (you never do quite know what those theories are, exactly), but it takes some begging and some ghostly assistance to get her to accept his tinkering. Meanwhile, Sam's family is blowing up hotel rooms accidentally, and Alva is being blackmailed by her also exceedingly comically evil brother-in-law, who wants to spend a truly hilarious amount of her money per month in exchange for not spreading one more rumor about her. But despite everything, there is indeed a ghost in Alva's house. Sam wants to help her, so attraction sparks and trust issues run rampant, eventually there's a possession or two, we touch lightly upon how awful things are/were for women, children, and anyone with the bad luck to land in an 19th Century asylum, and the characters manage to still be cute and determined through it all.

Maybe it's a bit overlong in spots. Maybe it's a bit light on ghost and heavy on trust issues. The book still moved quickly enough, and those overlong bits were easy enough to skim over, and Sam was cute, so it's forgiven. I'm looking forward to a Maggie-centric sequel.

This book was so thoroughly enjoyable, I didn't want to put it down. It had just the right amount of mystery and charm, along with characters that I truly enjoyed and felt connected with. Both Alva and Sam have their flaws, and both have their lessons to learn and things to work through. But, Biller does such a wonderful job of weaving the flaws into the fabric of the story, and keeping things interesting, and even a tad steamy and swoony at times, and it all culminates into a story that you DO NOT want to miss.

A widow surrounded by scandalous rumors, a murdered husband, and a haunted house. What an incredibly intriguing way to start a story!! I was enraptured from the start!
The author gives us multiple story lines woven together so well they drew you deeper into the story eager for answers. The main characters were a pair you don’t see often. Yes, of course we get female leads like Alva that are strong because of what they’ve endured and we get to join them on their journey of self-discovery and redemption. However, we don’t often get male leads that are the professor, inventor type with a genius mind. The quirky kind that easily get lost in their calculations yet, still hunky/alpha enough to make us melt and willing to wait forever for their engineering thoughts to stop brewing. It was a fun refreshing change to meet Sam and Alva. I enjoyed how their relationship evolved as they learned to work with each other and appreciate each other’s eccentricities. What I didn’t expect was the level of sparking passion that resulted, wow!

“He was light, and she was bruises and sharp edges and shadows, and people like her didn’t get to have people like him.”

“She had tasted of strength and passion, of meticulously banked fire and fury.”

This author put a unique spin on things that I really enjoyed. In addition to the difference in personalities, she created a house with a haunting that isn’t the norm. It really had me on edge trying to determine how it was all going to play out. I was truly captivated and entertained reading this story.

Diana Biller's debut novel is absolutely fantastic!!! I enjoy her style of writing and hope she writes more historical ghost stories. It is 1875 & Alva Webster is running from a scandalous divorce from a man of prominent means*rich*. She decides to buy an monastery of a house but it needs work done to make it inhabiting. Well appearantly there are ghosts in her new house and that somehow attracts the attention of Professor Samuel Moore. Alva doesn't believe in ghosts but she has to finish her house so she let's Mr Moore investigate and together they delve into the secrets surrounding her new house. Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for my honest review

“They were two sides of the same story. That’s what he’d been waiting for…the other side of his story. And now he very much thought he might have found her.”

Fleeing her abusive husband, Alva Webster believes she has finally found safety by returning to New York. Once word of her husband’s death and the scandal attached to their marriage reaches the newspapers and gossip columns, Alva perceivers to hold her head high, and make a life for herself. Purchasing a mansion in the Hyde Park area, Alva pitches to a publisher on how she could restore and write a book on architecture and design that everyone would benefit from reading. What she didn’t count on was the house being tainted of tales of ghostly hauntings…and one very handsome and persistent Professor Samuel Moore.

Absent minded Professor Samuel Moore is widely known for his engineering brilliance. When he hears that the Liefdehuis mansion has been purchased, he makes it his mission to get the owner to grant him permission to attempt to contact the spirits housed within. But when he discovers that the owner is non-other than the infamous Mrs. Webster, Sam becomes fascinated with her strength and will to rise above scandal to make her own way in the world…and Sam is determined she won’t do it alone.

While their romance may have started in an unconventional manner, Alva and Sam work together to unlock the ghostly secrets bound to the house. And little by little, Sam works towards getting Alva to share not only her own secrets, but her heart as well.

Now, rating/reviewing this story is a wee bit difficult for this reader. While I found the beginning and end quite enjoyable, the middle dragged on too much for me. Professor Moore’s character was my favorite, and I enjoyed how the author weaved his absent-mindedness into a delightfully charming quirk. Diana Biller’s debut novel The Widow of Rose House is perfect for fans of Victorian/Gothic Romance. Overall, the story was good and well written, and I’d recommend to fans of this genre!


**I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book that I received via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own. **

4.5

Well written book that is clever, intelligent, swoony, funny and a bit spooky! This one was a pleasant suprise.

It takes place in 1875. Alva is recently widowed and trying to start over in America. She had an ugly marriage that has left her reputation a mess. She buys a home with the plans to make it over. But her workers flee from the building muttering nonsense of a ghost. Sam, a scientist, shows up wanting to study her ghosts. After much persuasion she agrees.

Alva and Sam are both intelligent characters with lots of witty banter. Sam especially is a unique character that was a bright light in every scene he was in. The secondary characters were lovely except for the one character who came off a bit cartoonish in his devilish ways. I pictured him twirling his handlebar mustache as he wrecked havoc on Alva's life.

And I loved, loved, loved the supernatural element. Not enough to be scary for the faint hearted but enough for the book to be a page turner and lots of fun.

***Advanced copy obtained from St. Martin's Press via Netgalley***

Set in the Gilded Age this is a sweet romance.Loved the chemistry between Alva and Sam.The ghost part of it was not enough to scare you but enough to qualify this book as a ghost story.Its perfectly timed for the season!
#netgalley #thewidowofrosehouse # dianabiller

I enjoyed reading this, with my tea, on fall afternoons. I thought it was all done well, the setting, characters, pacing. That being said, there was nothing to make this book different from other books in the genre, it was good, not great and nothing special to make me run and tell everyone about it. I would recommend it to a new reader, that hadn't read plenty of these gothic romance or mystery stories. I will also keep an eye out for more by this author.

What a great read! I didn’t know what to expect when I began this book, and it was pleasingly good and hard to put down. A combination of Gothic, history, paranormal, and romance. The two main characters were fully developed, as were the other characters, I was drawn to the lovable “nutty professor,” his charm, his eccentric family, and brave Alva as well. Very curious predicament and meeting of the minds. Good plot, mysterious yet believable, great interplay between characters. There was some sex, but not so steamy as to be offensive. At times it seemed the writing was a bit too modern for a turn of the century novel, but not enough to distract from the plot. Brava to Ms. Biller, well done! Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and Ms. Biller for this ARC. Opinions are my own.

Best enjoyed with a hot cup of tea in a lavish sitting room. Beware of unexplained drafts.

Returning to New York, recently widowed Alva Webster finds herself in a hotbed of undeserved scandal at the hands of her less-than-kind late husband. Alva is bent on making her own small nest egg. She buys the abandoned–and notoriously haunted–Liefdehuis, planning to renovate it and write an accessible book about interior design for both the upper class and growing middle class. On her first outing with her publisher, Alva is approached by Professor Sam Moore, a famous inventor, who wishes to investigate the infamous paranormal goings-on in Liefdehuis. Alva is not one to fall prey to such superstition and–politely–declines the newly-smitten Professor Moore’s offer, unaware that Sam is not one to quit in his scientific pursuits. However, when Alva’s contractors flee Liefdehuis, refusing to return until something is done about the ghost, Sam’s offer seems to be the only way she will be able to pursue her dream of being published. As Alva and Sam search for the truth behind the haunting of Liefdehuis, they also find themselves falling in for one another. Unfortunately, Alva’s dark past comes back to haunt her in an entirely different way, and Sam finds that the fight for Alva’s heart is fraught with its own kind of ghosts.

Overall, I like this book. Not loved, but liked. There are definitely things I loved about it, and other things I was sore about, like the fact that the ghost doesn’t come into play as often as it should given the description (although other ‘ghosts’ certainly haunt the pages). There is also this a section of about 30% of it that felt drawn out way more than it had to be, to the point were I almost DNF’d. It was like a section of road under construction, but it was important for back story. I just think it could have been better.

Some of the things I loved most about it were Sam and the Moores. There’s something about fictional Sams that always has gotten to me. Not ‘real’ Sams, just fictional ones. Samwise Gamgee, Sam Winchester…now Sam Moore, the somewhat absent-minded professor trope that we all adore. Smart, sweet, somewhat socially naive, and protective Sam, who falls fiercely in love with Alva. He was so persistent yet also remained very aware of her autonomy and respected her wishes, no matter how much it broke his heart. I liked Alva, also, but moreover because I, like many people who have seen a bad past relationship, get where she came from with a lot of her decisions and felt that being selfish with her problems was the most selfless thing to do, even knowing how good they were together (spoiler: both in and out of the sheets).

And then the Moores! Remember that 30% of the book where I was getting so bored I almost DNF’d? When I thought of the Sam’s family, the intelligent, scientific-minded, chaotic, loving, and fun Moores, and I needed…well…more! I truly hope that there is another book starring one of Sam’s family members, Maggie especially, although Henry and Benedict should also get their moment! They were honestly the highlight.

Overall, I did like The Widow of Rose House, especially the last half.

Thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions written above are my own!

This is a book that combines both hot,steamy romance and evil ghosts,in just the right combination,to keep the reader interesting in the outcome it is a book you can't put down and if you do its easy to pick up the gist.
Both,the main characters slowly develop throughout the story,shining a bright light to the evil people can do.

My, oh my, what can I say about The Widow of Rose House? A beautifully written gothic romance, with a sprinkling of haunting flair, was just the ticket to start Fall 2019 off just right.

I’m not usually a romance novel person per se (I turn back into a 10 year old and wonder if I’m actually allowed to read what’s going on), so I was a tad apprehensive. But the haunted house background pulled me right in- what I won’t do for Halloween vibes.

The book was beautifully written throughout, which was absolutely wonderful. The romance, although a bit fast, felt pretty natural- you grew to connect with the characters and root for them throughout the story. The horror backbone of the story was lovely, though I wished it could have been incorporated a bit more.

This book has a couple of steamy bits! I was not prepared. They fell in line with the storyline pretty decently, though the first scene was a tad out of left field.

Overall, a wonderful read! I would definitely read more from this author- I truly appreciate her writing style!

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read this ARC! A comprehensive review will be posted on social media closer to the date of publication.

There’s something about the combination of beautiful prose, believable romance, and well-written historicity that can rocket a book to the top of my “favorites” list. This book struck precisely the right balance for me. Widow of Rose House is refreshingly fresh, layered, thoughtful and witty. The characters are richly rendered, the house a character in itself, and I loved that this was just as much a ghost story as it was a romance. The author is particularly skilled at capturing the angst and fear of a woman slowly learning to love again, and I found Sam and Alva’s story moving, evocative, and beautifully real. I’m very much looking forward to the next book from this wonderful author.

Will the open to life scientist be able to break down the defenses of the lonesome widow.

Twice in a short span of time I have read the first published book of a new historical author. Twice I was left stunned by both story,
With one only outcome, to read more about these awesome talented writers.

Mrs Diana Biller is one hell of a gifted with words person. She has crafted a moving and transcendental story of healing and redeeming the wrong done to others.
She brought all her characters to life, they are more blood and flesh than paper with their shortcomings and successes.
Sam and Alva are two sides of the same coin, they need to trust on each other and themselves to make things work between them.

Sam is one man to love so easily, the perfect portrayed scientific, losing himself in his work, very singleminded when focused to get what he is looking for and rebuffs do not deter him. With his sole smile as his weapon, he disarms anyone by his simple and quite naive view of life, not influenced by rules, gossips and expectations.
Alva never experienced love even in her young years, every aspect of her life controlled by her overbearing family, so when a handsome man seduced her, she mistook it easily but too late, she was already in an other gilded cage. To break free, she confronted scandal and nearly lost everything, but a wounded animal must do what need be to stay alive. But now she is ready to wipe the slate clean of her past if only it hadn’t the wrong habit to jump at her face.

It was a tale about darkness and light, Sam is the light source in this story while Alva lives in the shadows, only surrounded by gloom and when her past is slowly revealed, will Sam’s life force be enough to pull her out of her nightmares. When she drowns in her fears and doubts, he brightens and alleviates the whole scene. With his truthfulness close to candor and his humor, he slowly brings back Alva on the side of the livings, opening her to a colorful avenir instead of the dreary one she was designing for herself.

This was a big five stars read to slowly devour to appreciate all its various depths and layers, the painful past of Alva, Sam’s appreciation of life, the Moore family’s humor, eccentricities and their shared love and the mystery behind the ghosts tale. Everything combined a wondrous journey beyond love and time.

I was granted this advance copy through Netgalley and Edelweiss via the publisher St Martin’s Griffin. I so loved it I purchased my own copy.
Here is my true and unbiased opinion.