Dark Masquerade by Jennifer Blake is a 2014 Steel Magnolia Press publication.

This book was originally published in 1974- and it goes without saying that these older books are often hit or miss- that is especially true if you decide to pick up an old Gothic suspense novel published between the late sixties and mid-seventies. But, if you know what to expect, and are maybe familiar with Dorothy Daniels or maybe Victoria Holt- you'll probably enjoy this one- and the trip down memory lane, too.

This is a rare re-read for me. I read it back in 2014 when the author digitally formatted her Gothic collection and made them available in the Kindle store. Despite my mini collection of old Gothic paperbacks, I had no idea Jennifer Blake had ever written Gothic Suspense, having only known her as the NYT bestselling author of numerous historical romances.

Despite some legacy authors, such as those I mentioned previously, most of the Gothic suspense novels written during that brief period when they were extremely popular, were quite forgettable- and some were just plain bad, and they most definitely didn’t age well.

But now that I’ve read several of Blake’s Gothic stories, I found that her novels stood the test of time remarkably well, all things considered.

There are some dated attitudes and passages, but nothing too terrible. This one has a twofold thread of suspense, and Blake’s signature southern accent woven through it, which gave in an added layer of atmosphere.

Overall, this one is a cut above most novels published in this category -in this era- which is most likely attributed to Blake’s rapidly developing talent as a writer at the time.

I think it’s great that we can revisit these old novels now- especially as they are out of print and incredibly hard to find. It’s also fun to read an author’s very early work before they started making the bestseller lists, as well.

I had fun with this one- it was the perfect read a wet, gray and foggy day.

3.5 stars ( )