Winterset - Review

Winterset

By: Tiffany Odekirk

Expected Publication: October 7, 2025 by Shadow Mountain

272 pages

Genre: Adult, Historical Fiction, Regency

Source: Publisher via NetGalley (Thank you!!)

( Goodreads | Amazon )

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Goodreads description--A hidden past. A house with secrets. And one chance for two wounded hearts to find love together.

Northern England, Late Fall, 1820

Katherine Lockwood is hiding for her life in the most unlikely of places: the forgotten priest holes in the abandoned Winterset Grange manor house. When Kate learns that Winterset’s long-absent owner, Mr. Oliver Jennings, is about to return, she is desperate to find a way to make him leave, even if it means “haunting” him from behind her protective walls.

After a grand tour of the Continent, Oliver returns home to England determined to make the most of his inheritance. But from the moment he arrives, nothing is as he expected. His manor is in disrepair, the steward hired to care for his estate is a thief, and to top it all off, Winterset is haunted. Undeterred, Oliver resolves to reclaim his life, piece by piece.

When Oliver discovers the hidden rooms, he’s shocked and pleased that his “ghost” is actually a beautiful young woman. Captivated by Kate and her story, he invites her to stay at Winterset under his protection.

Yet, danger persists as the man who threatens Kate’s safety learns of her ruse and attempts to exact his revenge. Kate and Oliver find themselves ensnared in a perilous game of cat and mouse against a powerful opponent while also trying to untangle their blossoming feelings in this enthralling gothic Regency romance.

I loved Summerhaven. And I have been looking for a new release from Tiffany Odekirk since. It's been over three years since Summerhaven. And I wasn't even sure if this would be connected to the previous book or not, but it is. Oliver was a front and center character in Summerhaven. He's finally decided to settle down and take care of the estate he's received through his inheritance. The only issue is that it's in disrepair. And he's been paying a man to be the steward over the estate for two years, only to find out that he's been swindled, and the man was simply taking his money and not fixing Winterset at all.

Katherine was a tenant of Winterset when her father passed away. She has reasons for hiding out at the estate, and the two remaining servants are determined to do whatever they can to protect her. She is determined that all she needs to do is convince Mr. Jennings that the estate is haunted, and that will scare him away. Then she can return to living in peace.

I thought I would like this part of the story more than I did. But I guess I kept getting frustrated with Katherine's antics, and I knew Oliver would be a gentleman with her. So I found myself frustrated more often than not in the beginning. I did appreciate seeing Damon, Hannah, and their family briefly towards the end.

Some pieces of Winterset felt too over the top to me, but those pieces are spoilers, considering much of this story is shrouded in mystery. I don't want to reveal too much.

The only sentence I highlighted had to do with my predictions of a piece of the mystery, so I won't reveal those.

I'm glad that Oliver finally got his story. And I'm looking forward to more from Tiffany Odekirk. I wouldn't mind a little less mystery, but that's a personal preference for me. Winterset gets 3.5 Stars. Have you read Winterset? What did you think? Let me know!