[Review] Alexandra Benedict: 'The Evidence of Ghosts'

Maria King, blind from birth and now blind by choice, sits by the Thames mudlarking, sifting through the history of London. Having been blind all her life, she can't get used to being gifted with sight after surgery. She wears a blindfold that gives her a feeling of security. Only, one day, while mudlarking, she finds a ring still on a finger in a box with 'Marry me Maria' on the lid in braille.

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DI Jonathan Dark is assigned to the case. The finger and the ring belonged to the last woman who received a similar proposal and was murdered. Jonathan Dark was unable to prevent that murder, and his intention is not to let Maria be the next victim of the stalker.

Jonathan Dark is a detective with a disintegrating private life. His personal problems constantly interfere with his professional life, but the real question in 'The Evidence of Ghosts' is: who's stalking Maria King and why?

The other question that may be on your lips is: if I were being stalked by a murderer, would I want to keep wearing a blindfold? I know that seems like an odd question, but when you consider Maria wears one by choice all the time, it makes sense to ask. While most reviewers think that this doesn't reflect true life, I can assure readers that one can never understand the psychology of the human mind.

Alexandra Benedict weaves a fascinating supernatural (or supranational) world where the dead are always with us, sometimes helping, sometimes obstructing, and sometimes urging us to kill.

What do I think of 'The Evidence of Ghosts'? I got the distinct feeling that Alexandra Benedict was trying to weave too many storylines into this book and not quite succeeding. It is a somewhat unusual amalgamation of a crime novel and a Gothic novel. At some points a bit rambling but still enjoyable.

Death has no sequel. So ends the book.

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