Hannah Larson and her 9 year old son, Nicky, have left New York City. They arrive at Ashton Hall, which is a historical manor home located outside Cambridge, England. Hannah is to care for ailing family member, Christopher. Hannah recently found out her husband was seeing someone else so she has to decide how to proceed with her marriage.

Soon after arriving, skeletal remains of a woman are found by Nicky when he’s exploring the old house. A local archaeologist named Matthew Varet and his team work on identification and Hannah joins the team. Who is this woman and how did she end up dying?

This is my first book by this author. The story is good but it seems to drag on. The character of Nicky was really interesting for me and I could certainly relate to his mother in the story. It was a good read.

Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

"An American woman and her son stumble upon the dark history of a rambling English manor house in this "masterful, riveting, and atmospheric" (Alka Joshi, author of The Henna Artist) novel from New York Times bestselling author Lauren Belfer.

When a close relative falls ill, Hannah Larson and her young son, Nicky, join him for the summer at Ashton Hall, a historic manor house outside Cambridge, England. A frustrated academic whose ambitions have been subsumed by the challenges of raising her beloved child, Hannah longs to escape her life in New York City, where her marriage has been upended by a recently discovered and devastating betrayal.

Soon after their arrival, ever-curious Nicky finds the skeletal remains of a woman walled into a forgotten part of the manor, and Hannah is pulled into an all-consuming quest for answers, Nicky close by her side. Working from clues in centuries-old ledgers showing what the woman’s household spent on everything from music to medicine; lists of books checked out of the library; and the troubling personal papers of the long-departed family, Hannah begins to recreate the Ashton Hall of the Elizabethan era in all its color and conflict. As the multilayered secrets of her own life begin to unravel, Hannah comes to realize that Ashton Hall's women before her had lives not so different from her own, and she confronts what mothers throughout history have had to do to secure their independence and protect their children.

"Infused with the brooding, Gothic atmosphere of Jane Eyre or Rebecca" (Melanie Benjamin, author of The Children’s Blizzard) and rich with female passion, strength, and ferocity across the ages, Ashton Hall is a novel that reveals how the most profound hauntings are within ourselves."

The ghosts within ourselves and our roles in society taking place within a manor house!?! YAS!

Let me just start with I absolutely loved this book and couldn't put it down!!!!


Hannah Larson travels from her home in New York to Ashton Hall in England with her young son Nicky to care for an ailing relative.  While it is not clear what he suffers from, Nicky is an exceptionally bright child with some form of behavior disorder.  While exploring Ashton Hall, he uncovers the remains of a long dead woman.  Hannah, with the help of some experts, makes it her mission to discover who the young woman was and what happened to her.

This book was phenomenally written. I loved how it demonstrated current day research and techniques to solve past mysteries.  My favorite character was definitely Hannah. I thoroughly enjoyed her growth as a person. In the beginning, she seemed to be complacent with the way her life was going, unhappy, but not believing she had an alternative option. We watch her grow through her struggles (cheating husband, difficult child, ailing uncle) to become a strong and independent woman. It was made even more apparent by comparing her life through the book to women of the middle ages who truly had no other options.

The ending was great. In Hannah writing her own book, we get the background pieces of the woman who died. However, I would have liked to see some of her life interwoven throughout the book, rather than just at the end.

Overall, I adored this book and give it 4.5 stars.

This book touched me on so many levels! Like the protagonist, Hannah, I have a “neuro-diverse” son who has made motherhood a difficult and lonely path at times, with both visible and invisible wounds. But unlike her, I have not known the scorn and betrayal of a spouse. I cannot imagine having her resilience and courage! I love the way she takes comfort in her research (as I do in quality fiction), and that one reality helps her understand and deal with the other. Each character in this book is well fleshed out and easy to connect with.; there are no unnecessary pieces on Belfer’s chessboard. I was relieved that the issues of duty and freedom worked out for both the heroines in this tale. The only thing that would have improved this book for me was if faith was as foundational in Hannah’s life as it was in Isabella’s. I truly enjoyed the author’s notes after “Katherine’s Chapter;” they are not to be missed! Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving my an early complimentary peel at this great read. I was not required to post a review.

An engrossing story set in the modern day but immersed in the past. Hannah and Nicky arrive at Ashton Hall to spend what she believes to be the remaining weeks with her Uncle. However, she quickly realizes that this is more than what she anticipated. When Nicky finds the skeleton of a woman in one of the closed off rooms at the manor, a mystery unfolds: who is she? When is she? As Hannah and Nicky try to solve the puzzle, they are joined by a cast of characters who are intrinsic to the story and to unraveling the mystery.

Weaving history and the perils of motherhood, particularly with a child who is considered “different,” Belfer created a novel that was nearly impossible to put down. Clearly, this was thoroughly researched and as a mother myself, I was drawn to Hannah like I haven’t been to a character in quite a while. I truly did not want this to end.

Interesting story of a woman and son who travel from NY to England to help her uncle who is old and frail. The woman already has her hands full with her son who suffers with fits. The son explores the old castle and finds a corpse. This leads the woman and son to try to find out who the corpse is.

Oh, this was a lovely book. This was the first book by Lauren Belfer I've read and it likely won't be the last. I enjoyed the way Belfer was able to bring history to the present without using dual timelines--something that seems to be quite popular these days.

Hannah is an American woman and she and her son Nicky go to England for the summer to spend time with her terminally-ill uncle at his home in Ashton Hall. Just having discovered that her husband is having an affair, Hannah welcomes the distance to consider her options. While at Ashton Hall, Nicky discovers a skeleton and Hannah and her new friends and colleagues jump at the chance to learn about who the skeleton was and why she was in a walled-up room. As Hannah learns more about who the skeleton was, she sees parallels between her life and that of the deceased.

Overall, this was a lovely book and I enjoyed it. My eyes did glaze over a bit when Hannah was imagining who took out what books and why and I found myself frustrated with her inability to be open about Nicky's struggles. I also found her husband's brief appearance to be very different than what she had described--he seemed out of character. There was a character who popped up every now and then only to be dropped completely without much explanation, which was odd.

Belfer did a wonderful job bringing history to life and gave the reader an opportunity to learn about the everyday life of Tudor people. It's a lovely book and I'm looking forward to reading Belfer's backlist and whatever comes next.

Well that was..alot. don't expect this to be a lighthearted manor mystery. It's a far more complex book, winding in various themes around family and the challenges of being, well, human. Great research and rich detail for the history buffs. 3 stars.

When I agreed to review this book, I expected a mystery around an English manor house. And yes, there is a very interesting mystery. But the surprising, delightful strength of this story is the relationship of Hannah and her son Nicky. The twists and turns of raising a special needs child are very realistic, Hannah is also dealing with juggling her academic professional goals while caring for her son and dealing with life in an English manor house. As an associate professor with a special needs son, I can relate. Clearly, this plot line and characters were well researched. My compliments, Ms. Belfer. I look forward to reading more of your work.

Quite a sad story of a woman, conflicted by the secret exposed in her marriage, managing her challenging young son and his explosive behavior, and dealing with the impending death of her beloved uncle. Hannah Larson gave up her academic quest in her doctoral studies when her child was born, hoping to later return on her career path. However, nine years later, Hannah and her son have traveled to England to take care of her uncle who is very sick. While there, Nicky, her son, discovers the skeletal remains of Isabella in a secret walled off room in the castle. As the mystery unfolds, this consumes not only Nicky but Hannah as well. As Hannah delves into the mystery woman’s history, she discovers a kinship about life’s choices, or lack thereof, available to woman regarding independence. The more Hannah learns about this Isabella’s secrets and past in the 1500’s, the more Hannah grows in confidence about her self-care and that of her son’s. But, this story was sad. All that Hannah had to deal with seems insurmountable. The conflict between Hannah and her myopic husband who feels compromise in a marriage should only be on his terms and not hers, wasn’t something new. I felt that I wanted to keep reading because I wanted to see how Hannah would grow. Ashton Hall is almost like a character unto itself, protective of Hannah and Nicky. The history intertwined with the house, and revealed through the documents and papers found, was very enlightening although long winded. Hannah wondered what evidence will one day be discovered about her existence and what will that mean. Interesting and reflective read, just sad and not left with a lot of hope. I rate it as just okay.

Many thanks to #netgalley #ashtonhall #laurenbelter for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I did not want this book to end. I loved how the protagonist entered the lives of the people she researched.

Ashton Hall is an almost Gothic tale of an American woman and her son who relocate to a historic manor house, Ashton Hall, in Cambridge, England. When her son Nicky discovers skeletal remains while exploring the house, the story really becomes interesting.

Impeccably researched and written, the story transports us to the Tudor era. The characters are interesting, especially Nicky, who appears to be on the autism spectrum. The prose is so wonderfully descriptive, I felt as though I was there, in the room, as events unfolded.

This is my first time to read Lauren Beller, and it is easy to see why she is a best-selling author.

Ashton Hall will be published June 7, 2022 by Random. House/Ballantine Books. Many thanks to the publisher and Net Galley for providing me with a copy. The opinions are my own.

The golden storyline thread of Ashton Hall ,I find, is the uncovering of the mystery and history surrounding the centuries old skeleton, which was found by one of the main characters, Nicky. Slowly we find out who this person was and learn more about life of women of an elevated position in the second half of the 16th century.

Nicky steals the show in the story set in the present. He is bright, loving, adventurous and also on the spectrum. I love this character. The challenges his mother faces in raising him are well thought through.

Unnecessary and negatively distracting is the story about Nicky's father, his sexual preference and stoicism. The only reason I give this promising book 4 stars and not 5.

There are many very enjoyable elements in this book.and would love a follow up on how life continues for Nicky and a possible new mystery.

Thank you Net galley for the opportunity to be able to read and review this book. And thank to the author for painting the picture of Isabella and drawing me into life in the 1500's.

Ashton Hall follows Hannah, whose son Nicky discovers the skeletal remains of a woman in the old English mansion they’re living in for the summer. Reeling from her husband’s recent betrayal and the sudden realization that she has become financially dependent on him, with little prospects of a fulfilling career or return to academia, Hannah throws herself into researching the mystery. Who was this woman, and how did she end up entombed in a hidden passage of the house?

The story of the 16th century woman is intriguing, its slow build-up enjoyable and its history well-researched. Hannah’s story, however, falls somewhat flat, and her relationship problems - with Kevin, Matthew, and Christopher - drag on for too long. In dismissing Mary Queen of Scots as a “self-absorbed woman,” Hannah fails to realize she has become one herself.

The Creshams’ story was the highlight of the book, and the last chapter was particularly well-done. Hannah, however, made the novel far more long-winded that necessary.

An American woman raising a son with behavioral issues takes him to spend the summer at a friend’s home in England, where the boy discovers a skeleton walled up in a forgotten room.

I generally enjoy this type of story about old English manor houses hiding deep dark secrets from the past. This one is a bit different in that it doesn’t have an alternate timeline featuring the historical characters. Instead, researchers in the present including the American, Hannah, use a variety of sources to piece together a history of the house’s inhabitants. This method is realistic, but some readers may miss the immediacy of getting to know the dead woman, Isabella, from her own perspective.

Besides the historical mystery, much of the story is devoted to Hannah’s personal life, including a marital drama and trouble dealing with her son, Nicky. He has an undiagnosed issue that mostly manifests in fixation on certain topics, but occasionally results in violent outbursts. I found Hannah’s somewhat cavalier attitude about the safety of others in the face of increasingly dangerous episodes to be concerning. But the representation of neurodiversity was welcome, and was clearly important to the author based on her endnote.

I appreciated the parallels in Hannah and Isabella’s stories, showing how women have always had the role of caregiver in addition to their other responsibilities. I also enjoyed the part that libraries played and the humorous way of addressing differences between the British and Americans.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the review copy.

Ashton Hall is the first Lauren Belfer book that I have read. However, I enjoyed Ashton Hall so much that I raced though reading it, and then I was sad to have finished it. Belfer brings her characters to life, both her contemporary characters, as well as the characters from the past. I do not want to give away spoilers. Thus, I will limit my review to only a few of the characters, who populate Ashton Hall.

Nicky is easily the most memorable character. He is a child who is described as neurodiverse, but at the same time, he is not easily categorized. Nor is he an easy child to raise. Nicky and his mother arrive at Ashton Hall at the request of an uncle, who is gravely ill. Nine-year-old Nicky is really the center and the focus of this novel. His discoveries and his family are peripheral to his needs and to his behavior.

The second major character is Ashton Hall, itself. The descriptions of this stately home draw the reader into the book and into the mysteries from its past. So much of the world of Ashton Hall is contained within manuscripts, ancient books, and hidden behind jib doors. As the mysteries unfold, readers need to pay close attention to the hidden clues.

I enjoyed reading Ashton Hall very much. I want to thank the author and publisher for being allowed to read this ARC, in exchange for my honest review. I also want to thank NetGalley for having introduced me to another memorable author. I have already purchased another of her novels to read.

Ashton Hall covers a wide range of issues. Thoughtfully presented, I found myself wondering how I would react to each of them. Well done.

I have to start this review out with the word, “unfortunately” because this book had such potential but unfortunately and I don’t have any reason why we had to go into a spin of a complicated gay relationship and then try to accept that it was possibly OK. I had to quit. If we just could have kept on the main theme of the haunted hall and the looking into the mysterious death. I was even learning how Hannah was handling the trials and tribulations of her son’s behavior. But sadly, we had to veer into the not needed side story.
The author had so much to work with, I just don’t understand why everyone lately has to add in an illicit affair when it wasn’t necessary and didn’t add to the story, in fact, it detracts.
3 stars is all I can give; it could have been a really good book.
I personally thank the publisher for the privilege to be offered this ARC from Random House Publishing and NetGalley for my unbiased review – This one comes in with 3stars

Ashton Hall is a unique work of fiction from Lauren Belfer, who embraces her subject with diligence, passion, and empathy. The protagonist, New Yorker Hannah Larson, visits the terminally ill Christopher St. John Eckersley at his ground-floor apartment at one corner of Ashton Hall – a Jacobean mansion.

One of the absolute pleasures of reading Ashton Hall is soaking up the incredible detail of the architectural features; lyrically described as "a red-brick extravaganza of turrets, chimneys and Flemish gables." Also, the names of the Long Gallery and the Chinese bedroom conjure up the feeling of size and luxury. The stately home traverses the timeline between Hannah Larson and Isabella Cresham in the 1500s.

Hannah's 9-yr-old son, Nicky, is one of my favorites characters. He is a neurodiverse child relating differently to society than other children and remains even more Hannah's concern as she contemplates whether to stay married to Kevin or reclaim her independence; either way, she longs to complete her Ph.D. - "Children as portrayed in ancient Greek art." Nicky uncovers a historically significant find while exploring the castle, which puts fervor into this story and stimulates the reader's imagination into working overtime.

Lauren Belfer through her ambitious and scholarly research creates a literary background for the Cresham's illustrating their personal development and growth providing authenticity and links to today's scholars. Characters that nourish the plot are the inspiring Mrs. Felicity Gardner, whose duties as administrator of the house and grounds grows heavier and heavier: and Martha Tinsley, Ph.D., cataloguer supreme of the most extensive collection of books in a private home in England. Their struggle for independence as modern women allows intriguing parallels to the Tudor ancestors.

I rate Ashton Hall as 5 out of 5 stars. I am in awe of the imagination, discipline, and devotion emanating from this author for her characters and her masterly way of intermixing the Tudors and the modern-day Elizabethans. Lauren Belfer invokes empathy and intuition for longstanding problems of women. Ashton Hall represents a scholarly work that includes the reader on the inside as a party to the audacious, ambitious whole.

I recommend Ashton Hall to a broad audience, including lovers of history, architecture, archeology, language, literature and scholars.

The publicity material for Ashton Hall refers to it as "atmospheric"—and it certainly is that. I wasn't sure what I was expecting when I picked it up. I was thinking, maybe a mystery novel? maybe horror? But it really wasn't either of these. There's a mystery, but it's set far back in the past with the real action of the novel occuring in the present day. And while that mystery from the past is certainly unsettling, it's not the kind of creep-fest offered by so many horror novels. Instead, Ashton Hall is an exploration of the vulnerability of women in the present day, reminding readers that the past isn't necessarily as past as we'd like to think.

Hannah and her son Nicky have traveled from New York to Cambridge, England, to help care for her adopted uncle who is dying of cancer. He rents an apartment in a historic manor house that uses such units to help balance the books. Besides the handful of private apartments in Ashton Hall, parts of the hall are open to the public, and the grounds include a tea shop and used book store. Parts of the hall haven't been explored in decades—or longer—and crumble away as those running the property focus on limiting the layoffs and losses that always seem to be hovering on the horizon.

Immediately after Hannah and Nicky arrive, her uncle announces that he is going to New York for experimental treatment, but he wants them to follow through on their plan of spending the summer at Ashton Hall. And as Hannah and Nicky are settling, Nicky—who is not particularly good at following rules—sets out to explore explore some of the long-abandoned areas of the house and discovers the body of a woman sealed inside a small room that has been bricked up for who-know-how-many years.

Hannah finds unsettling echoes of her own life in the life she imagines for this woman. The woman in the bricked-up room was clearly educated, not necessarily a positive during the Elizabethan era during which she probably lived. Hannah left graduate study when she'd nearly completed her doctoral dissertation after Nicky's birth as it became clear that he would need her full-time care due to undiagnosed difficulties connected to some sort of neuroatypicality. While in Cambridge, Hannah's hoping to finish that dissertation a decade after she abandoned it. She's also trying figure out how she feels about her marriage having discovered that her husband has had a long-term sexual relationship with a male friend.

At times, the present-day events felt a bit like a teen "problem novel," but the problems of problem novels are generally quite real. One simultaneously feels for Hannah and also observes how conveniently germane her challenges are in terms of the novel's narrative arc. But the implied comparisons aren't unreasonable. As Hannah considers divorce, she faces contradictory sorts of condemnations. Her husband is a successful lawyer; she's done nothing—except for spending a decade raising a difficult, sometimes violent son. And given how difficult the boy is, her devotion to him can be depicted as an forgivable failure on her part.

Ashton Hall was deeply engaging, despite the ways in which I felt as if I were being nudged none-too-subtly in one direction or another. I finished its 400+ pages in two days—two weekdays when I was simultaneously being a dutiful cog in the capitalist system, working full days, attempting to keep up with things like laundry and cooking, and squeezing the novel in during early mornings and late evenings.

Ashton Hall is a genuinely thought-provoking read, one that attempts to pull together multiple threads of the restraints that have been placed on women's lives for centuries.

I received a free electronic review copy of this title from the publisher via NetGalley; the opinions are my own.