I loved this book so much!
The plot line is thrilling and engaging, between seances, ghosts, and murders. The character are compelling and well written.
My favourite thing however was the atmosphere. The Victorian London was brought to life in this novel and the representation of the history of the early spiritism was incredibly good!

This was a quick, entertaining read. I didn't know much about Victorian England's fascination with the supernatural so it was interesting. The time period was described very well, and I liked the murder mystery aspect of this book. Overall if you like historical fiction and mysteries, I would recommend this book. I received a free copy of this book from netgalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

The London Seance Society is set in 1873, high Victorian London, and follows Lenna Wicks as she tries to uncover the truth behind her sister's murder. Working with an internationally acclaimed spiritualist, Vaudeline D'Allaire, she embarks on an otherworldly adventure to bring about the downfall of quite an elitist Gentleman's Club, There are spooks, cliffhangers, and a little bit of romance in this wonderfully mysterious gothic tale.

I've been looking forward to this book since I first read about it a few months ago.It was a hauntingly good read, giving it a well-earned 4 star rating.

I absolutely adore the premise - I love spooky, dark mysteries and Penner delivers in spades. The characters are wonderfully crafted, the twists are unpredictable, and the dual POV and writing style are excellent at drip-feeding information that adds suspense...I loved it all. I actually nipped out to Waterstones and I picked up Penner's debut novel, The Lost Apothecary, I love her style that much!

The only slight drawback was the pacing. I did find it a little slow at certain points and there were a couple of instances where I felt flashback chapters were interrupting the flow of action just a little bit. These flashbacks were necessary to provide context, though, I just wonder if they could have been done a little differently.

I will absolutely by looking out for more from this author!

It is 1873. Victorian society is obsessed with death & spiritualism. Lenna Wickes came to Paris to become the apprentice of famed medium Vaudeline D’Allaire, but really wants to find out what happened to her sister. Vaudeline gets called back to London, one of the leading members of the London Séance Society has been murdered & although this is an all male society her expertise is required. The two women soon discover that all is far from well within the dark walls.

This book captured the age & the atmosphere very well. I felt I lived in Victorian London & it took me a while to get back to earth! Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book.

Lenna Wickes travels to Paris after the murder of her sister Evie for an apprenticeship with the famous medium Vaudeline d'Allaire. Vaudeline makes contact with spirits of deceased people who have been murdered in order to track down the killer. When Vaudeline receives a letter from a Mr. Morley to solve the murder of the president of the London Séance Society, a former friend of her, the pair return to London. And Lenna hopes to also learn the truth about Evie.

I enjoyed Sarah Penner's 'The lost apothecary' last year. 'The London séance society' is her second novel and has a very different theme that didn't attract me as much. Nevertheless, I decided to give it a try and after the first chapters I already noticed I was totally into it.

This time it isn't a dual timeframe novel. Everything takes place in the 19th century in London and Paris. The novel opens with a seance in a chateau in Paris where Vaudeline and Lenna receive a letter from one of the key figures of the London Séance Society, Mr. Morley. Vaudeline has fleed London a year before but is now asked to return as Mr. Volckman - head of the society - has been murdered on All Hallows Eve, the same day as Lenna's sister Evie was found stabbed to death. We read alternately from Lenna and Mr Morley. Soon you realize that the two murders are linked so you try to solve a central mystery.

Although I saw some things coming, I thought it was a well-developed plot. The ending was a bit too elaborate perhaps. Penner's writing felt more mature now. And although there are supernatural things in the book again, it didn't bother me. This time, those powers were more concrete - in the form of ghosts.

I am definitely looking forward to another book by Penner as her first two novels are already very different. This one is definitely my favourite so far.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Really disappointed in this one. The storyline was strange and slow. I had such high hopes after loving the lost apothecary but this one was just missing the same magic. Found myself skimming the last 1/3 as I just didn’t care what happened.

The London Seance Society is a historical mystery by best selling author, Sarah Penner. I've heard her previous book The Lost Apothecary been talked about extensively so was very curious to dive into this one. Historical fiction is not normally a genre I read and I did find that the style of the book was a little hard for me to get into. In saying that while I personally think I'll stick to contemporary reads, I could definitely see why this author is widely praised. The writing is detailed so you can picture the settings but not so much that you feel it drags on. She creates very vivid and likeable characters and sets up a clever mystery that we want to know more about. I did like the themes of seances and the afterlife. This gave the book also have a gothic and horror vibe. Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for an opportunity to read this book.

After reading the Lost Apothecary back in 2021, I knew I NEEDED to read The London Seance Society.

The London Seance Society is about a group of mediums who perform Seances for the families of victims of crime. I.E Murdered victims. Leena, quickly becomes involved when her sister (an aspiring Medium) comes u dead. Leena then, knows what she has to do. She contacts no other than Vaudeline D’Allaire, The lady who once interned her sister, to perform a seance in order for Leena to find out what happened to her sister. However, it is not as simple as it sounds. In order for Leena to find the answers she so desperately wants, She might just have to become an intern for Vaudeline D’Allaire herself. However, Once Leena gets involved with the Seance Society, Things aren't as they seem. What actually happened to her sister?

I love Sarah Penner's writing and can not wait to see what else she has to offer us in the realm of story telling! Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to review this title in exchange for my honest feedback.

After having previously really enjoyed this author’s first book, The Lost Apothecary, I was so excited to be approved for an advanced reader copy of this book. However, it really fell flat for me. The pacing was very slow and I wasn’t invested in the story. Lenna was a likable main character and I enjoyed her POV more than the POV of Morley. I liked uncovering what happened to Evie and how she came to discover secrets of the London Seance Society, those secrets ultimately leading to her death. It was an interesting concept, but the execution didn’t quite hit the mark. Overall, this book was very mediocre. The writing was good and the tone made for a good book, in theory. I would pick up more books by this author, but this wasn’t my favorite.

I thought this was a wonderful paranormal murder mystery with a small amount of sapphic romance.
Lenna's sister was murdered so while seeking out the most renowned medium Vaudeline D'allaire to ask her sister from beyond the grave who killed her, but instead gets instilled as one of the students in the art of seance. While performing a seance in Paris the pair get interrupted with news of the London seance society head has been murdered too and could they return to London to assist in the Police investigation as solve the mystery.
This was such fast paced fun and constantly finding out new information I found myself swept up in the investigation too. Perfect for fans of murder mysteries on the lighter side, this was harmless fun and a wonderful addition to the cosier mystery genre

This book was ok. I had high hopes but I felt like it fell a bit flat. It is a beautiful cover. I didn’t relate to the main character. I felt the book was missing the mystery

Loved the previous book "The Lost Apothecary". I did find this book a bit slower than the previous one. But it was another interesting storyline for us to read. This book has historical fiction, ghosts, mystery, suspense, murders, and more. I enjoyed reading this but I really like the other one better. Overall good book.

I loved The Lost Apothecary but this one was even better even if ti's a bit slow at times.
I'm fascinated by the world of spiritualism at the end of XIX century and how it was popular amongst the members of the high society.
This is a mix of mystery, paranormal and some romance. Even if the romance works it doesn't add a lot to the plot even if it's a srtarting point for one of the MCs.
The plot kept me in thrall, turning pages and following the two POVs. I found the idea of mystery solving seances original and I liked what I learned.
The last part of the story is a firework and I turned pages very fast. The solution was satisfying and I liked it.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

I'm disappointed to give The London Seance Society 2 stars, but it just did not hold my interest and I did not finish it.

I really enjoyed Sarah Penner's last novel, The Lost Apothecary (4 stars), which grabbed me from the start and had interesting characters and an intriguing plot.

I look forward to Penner's next novel.

I am a library associate and received an advance copy from #NetGalley.

I really enjoyed this book! As soon as I saw it I knew I wanted to read it because historical fiction + ghosts + crime? What’s not to love!

The book is set in the Victorian era, when seanses start to become increasingly popular within society through fascination with the occult and supernatural.

The story follows Lenna Wickes who is trying to uncover what happened to her sister Evie, who was found murdered close to home in London. Before she died, Evie was doing a lot of research into séances and the occult, including being mentored the internationally famous medium Vaudeline.

Upon Evie’s death, Lenna goes to Paris to understand her sister’s obsession and also becomes Vaudeline’s student (despite not believing in the supernatural). Lenna does this in hopes of being able to conducting a seance to reach her sister and finally learn who killed Evie.
However a new murder, that of the President of the London Seance Society, brings both Vaudeline and Lenna back to London. As they try to find out what is happening, under the careful gaze of Mr. Morley (who seems to be hiding his portion of secrets), both Vaudeline and Lenna start to unravel the mysterious deaths and the wrongdoings within the Seance Society.

I really grew to love Vaudeline’s character and her passion for séances and Lenna’s unwavering bravery. The mysteries and unexpected turns throughout the book really gripped my attention and I thought it was really well done.

Overall it’s a 4 stars from me and I would love to know more about Vaudeline’s and Lenna’s future 👀

Thank you for the opportunity to read this eARC in exhausting for my completely honest review.

Review in exchange for netgalley e-arc

Sarah Penner is a master at telling stories that are eerie, spooky and atmospheric yet filled with emotion, characters that win your hearts over, and a plot to keep you gripped.

I loved The Lost Apothecary so much and I had high hopes for this book after loving that one so much, but I was not disappointed. The world penner had brought to life was so vivid and beautifully written, I barely had to imagine it as it was there right before my eyes. This book was a bit of a slower burn but I never felt it was dragging or boring; the attention to detail is what gave the plot that depth that’s so needed on a book like this. I found although it was a slower burn, I was still hooked from page one with this eerie story.

When I finished the book I was left quite stunned. What a book! And now it’s over? What do I do now! I want more content! Another stellar read from Sarah Penner. Fantastic. I can’t wait to get my physical copy and read it again.

I really enjoyed this delightful mix of historical thriller and ghostly mystery. My thanks Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy to read and review.

Sarah Penner is a new author to me as I haven't read The Lost Apothecary (yet) I found the authors gothic storytelling to be both atmospheric and captivating. I was immediately drawn into the Victorian world and their enthusiasm for the occult and spiritualism.

I felt that the story unfolded at a good pace and there were some twists and reveals which I didn't guess. I enjoyed the alternating POV of Lenna and Mr Morley and found them both to be fantastic characters.

The research and attention to detail was evident as I was fully immersed in 19th century London. I really enjoyed reading the authors notes and recipes at the end of the book too. That was an unexpected treat.

After reading The Lost Apothecary, I was excited to see what Sarah Penner would write next. The London Seance Society takes place in 1873 and is about Lenna who has recently lost her sister. She is training with Vaudeline D’Allaire to become a spiritualist. She is determined to get to the bottom of who killed her sister.
I really loved reading a historical fiction novel about the spirituality movement that was so popular in the 1800s. I was aware of the time period, but I hadn't read anything specifically about it. Plus bonus points for the LGBT rep with Vaudeline and Lenna's relationship.

Happy release week! Finished this in a day and couldn’t bring myself to put it down. In The London Séance Society, Sarah Penner brings together a mystery, murders, and plenty of twists along the way with dual POV. While some of details were revealed early on, the ending still had some surprises I didn’t see coming.
Thank you to Legend Press & NetGalley for the ARC!

I appreciate the unique characters and storylines that Sarah Penner crafts. It is refreshing to be transported to a time and place that’s part mystery, fantasty and historical fiction.

Personally, I had a hard time connecting with The London Séance Society, until I was about two-thirds of the way through the book. I’m glad that I didn’t give up on this because it did deliver some unexpected turns, but failed to grip me the way that I hoped.

There is just a lot of set-up involved with Vaudeline, Lenna, her sister Evie, Mr. Morley and the Séance Society business. It is all leading somewhere, but takes quite a bit of character and plot development to get there.

For me, this was more of a 3.5 star rating, I’ve bumped it to 4 because Sarah Penner’s writing is beautiful. She sets a scene in such an immersive way and I love that she infused a bit of a love story in this one as well. So while this wasn’t my favorite, I am looking forward to what she pens next.

Thank you to Net Galley and Legend Press for sharing this ARC with me in exchange for my honest review.