There are some books you enjoy, finish, and move on from.
And then there are the books where you finish the last page, immediately look up when the next one comes out, and preorder it to your Kindle the second you're able to.
Nora Roberts' Lost Bride Trilogy was definitely the second kind for me.
I first discovered Inheritance, the first book in the trilogy, through an ad. The mention of paranormal elements immediately caught my attention. I had previously read Nora Roberts' Dark Witch Trilogy and had been keeping an eye out for another one of her series that really piqued my interest.
A mysterious inheritance? A sprawling old house overlooking the ocean? Generations of family secrets? Ghosts?
That was pretty much all I needed to know.
And once I started reading, it didn't take long at all for me to realize I had found exactly what I'd been looking for.
The Trilogy
The Lost Bride Trilogy includes:
Book One: Inheritance
Book Two: The Mirror
Book Three: The Seven Rings
Although there are three books, I really think of them as one long story. Each book continues the same central mystery, relationships, and paranormal storyline, so this is definitely a trilogy I would recommend reading in order.
If I had to choose a favorite, though, it would probably be Inheritance.
There's just something about discovering everything for the first time—the house, the family history, the ghosts, the mystery and the realization that something much bigger is happening.
Sonya Had Me From the Beginning
One of the reasons I connected with the story so quickly was Sonya.
Before we even really get into the haunted-house portion of the story, we get a pretty good idea of what kind of woman she is.
She discovers that her fiancé is cheating on her—with her cousin, no less—and she doesn't falter. He's out.
Then, when his behavior makes a job she loves increasingly difficult, she ultimately makes the decision to leave that behind too.
I liked her immediately.
She wasn't written as someone who needed to be rescued from her life. She was capable of blowing it up herself when she realized it wasn't the life she wanted anymore.
And then an unexpected inheritance gives her the opportunity to start over.
Of course, the inheritance happens to be a huge old house on the coast of Maine with a complicated family history and quite a few residents who aren't technically alive.
Even better.
But Really...I Fell in Love With the House
If you asked me to pick the one thing that made me love this trilogy as much as I did, my answer wouldn't actually be the romance.
Or even the ghosts.
It would be the house.
I could picture it so clearly while I was reading.
The enormous house sitting on the bluff overlooking the ocean. The large yard and gardens. The seawall. The wind coming off the water. The waves crashing below.
I loved imagining Sonya walking through it and slowly discovering its history.
I especially loved the furniture stored away in the attic and watching those pieces gradually find their way back into different rooms. There was something incredibly satisfying about picturing the house slowly coming back to life as Sonya made it her own.
There are boat rides and views of the water and all of these little moments that made the setting feel like somewhere I could actually imagine being.
Well...most of it.
There is one particular room associated with Hester Dobbs—the witch at the center of the darker side of the story—that I would be perfectly happy never stepping foot inside.
Some doors can stay closed.
The Ghosts Are More Than Just Spooky Decorations
I loved the way the paranormal elements were handled because the ghosts aren't all the same.
Some are comforting. Some are sad. Some become almost familiar.
And some are absolutely not anyone I would want hanging around my house.
I especially loved that Sonya's grandmother is among the spirits connected to the house. It adds an emotional element to the haunting because the ghosts aren't simply there to make things creepy. They're connected to the family, the house and its history.
Then there's Hester.
She brings an entirely different energy.
There are definitely moments throughout these books that are genuinely scary, and she's responsible for more than a few of them.
Overall, I'd describe the trilogy as moderately creepy with some genuinely scary moments.
I'm a paranormal-book person, so it takes quite a bit to really bother me, but there were absolutely a few scenes that made me think:
Maybe I'll keep the lights on a little longer tonight.
The Lost Brides Mystery
The central mystery of the trilogy is both incredibly sad and completely captivating.
Generations of brides. Tragedy. Missing wedding rings. A curse tied to the house and the family.
I didn't know exactly where Nora Roberts was taking the story, although I did assume pretty early on that collecting all seven rings would somehow be necessary to finally break the curse.
What I didn't expect was how much I would enjoy the mirror and time-travel elements.
Sonya is able to experience moments from the past through the mirror, and I loved the way that part of the story unfolded—especially when Owen could go with her but couldn't necessarily see or experience everything she could.
It made solving the mystery feel like more than simply digging through old family records. Sonya is actually being pulled into pieces of the house's history.
And as the trilogy progresses, the mystery becomes something the four main characters take on together.
Sonya, Trey, Cleo & Owen
I knew Trey was going to be the love interest pretty much the second he appeared.
There was no big surprise there.
And I was completely fine with it.
I really liked the way Sonya and Trey got together. It starts in this fairly innocent, helpful, almost-handyman kind of way, but their relationship becomes serious fairly quickly.
And Trey is just...a really good guy.
He's attentive. He's dependable. He takes care of the people he loves. If Sonya needs him in the middle of the night, he's coming.
Basically, the kind of man most women wouldn't mind having around when their house is being terrorized by an evil witch ghost.
His family is wonderful too, which made that entire relationship even easier to root for.
And then we have Cleo and Owen.
Again, I saw that one coming.
Cleo seemed like someone who had a harder time trusting men, so I thought the way her relationship with Owen developed was really sweet. Owen also comes across as a genuinely good guy, and the two of them just made sense together.
Convenient? Maybe.
Did I care?
Not even a little.
I really liked Cleo on her own too. She brings this quirky, artistic energy into the story that balances Sonya nicely.
I also loved that she was willing to move to Maine and start this completely new adventure with her best friend. Because of her background and personality, she also seemed more open to the possibility of spirits and hauntings—which is useful when your best friend tells you the enormous house she just inherited is full of dead people.
By the later books, one of my favorite parts of the series was simply watching Sonya, Trey, Cleo and Owen become a unit.
It wasn't just Sonya's problem anymore.
They were in it together.
The Worst Part? Waiting for the Next Book
There is always something mildly frustrating about finding a book you absolutely love...and then realizing the rest of the story hasn't been published yet.
That's exactly what happened to me with Inheritance.
As soon as I finished it, I looked up when The Mirror was coming out.
And as soon as I could preorder it to my Kindle, I did.
Then I did exactly the same thing with The Seven Rings.
I literally couldn't wait for the next book.
That's probably one of the biggest compliments I can give a series. I wasn't casually thinking, Oh, I'll read the next one when I get around to it.
I wanted it immediately.
Did the Ending Deliver?
For me, yes.
Without spoiling anything, I felt satisfied when I finished The Seven Rings.
The story felt complete. The relationships ended where they needed to. The loose ends were tied up. I don't remember closing the book and thinking there was something I still needed from the story.
I felt content.
And happy.
But there's also that strange little sadness that comes when you've spent three books waiting for the next installment and suddenly realize:
There isn't another one coming.
Even when you love the ending, it's a little sad to know you're done.
And I think that's another reason I'm comfortable giving the entire trilogy five stars.
I cared enough that I didn't want there to be no more.
Who I Think Will Love The Lost Bride Trilogy
If you love:
- Haunted houses
- Family mysteries and family history
- Ghosts and paranormal stories
- Romance
- Strong female characters
- Old houses with secrets
- Coastal settings
- A little time travel
- Mysteries that stretch across generations
- Stories that are creepy without being full-on horror
...I think this trilogy is absolutely worth trying.
It's especially good if you like your paranormal stories with a substantial amount of character development, relationships and everyday life mixed into the supernatural mystery.
My Perfect Way to Read It
If I could choose the perfect place to reread this trilogy, I already know exactly where I'd be.
An old coastal house overlooking the ocean.
It's daytime, but a storm is rolling through. The sky is completely overcast. The wind is blowing hard enough that you can hear it outside, and the waves are crashing against the shore.
I'm curled up on a couch under a ridiculously soft blanket with a fire going nearby.
Preferably with nowhere I need to be for the rest of the day.
Basically, I'd like to read The Lost Bride Trilogy inside the setting of The Lost Bride Trilogy.
Minus Hester.
She can stay in the book.
My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Five stars for the trilogy as a whole.
Inheritance would probably still be my favorite of the three simply because everything felt so new and exciting. I was discovering the house, the family, the ghosts and the mystery right along with Sonya.
But ultimately, these didn't feel like three separate books to me.
They felt like one long story.
And I would probably read the entire thing again.
Because sometimes you finish a series because you want to know how it ends.
And sometimes you finish it, love the ending...and still wish you could stay in the house just a little longer.
Have you read The Lost Bride Trilogy? And more importantly—if you inherited a gorgeous old mansion overlooking the ocean but found out it was haunted, would you stay? Because apparently my answer is yes.
Want the whole series? Find it Here
Interested in The Lost Bride - Inheritance (Book 1)? Find it Here
Book 2: The Mirror: Find it Here
Book 3: The Seven Rings: Find it Here
Interested in Kindle Unlimited? Check it Out Here
