The Vanished Bride is a very enjoyable historical mystery set in Yorkshire and features the Bronte family; yes, the whole clan is involved in one way or another with a strange disappearance. Ms. Ellis’ knowledge of the famous family shines through as the sisters and brother figure out how to be “detectors” in a place and era when everyone was effectively isolated. Combine this tension with the stress of novice authors, hostility to women, overfondness for drink, and a semi-benign intruding father, all in a well-researched and written narrative, and you will be reading a fine debut novel.
– M.W.