At the heart of the story are a pair of sisters, Irina and Lili Goliteva, ages 28 and 18 respectively, former Countesses who must now scrabble to provide food for what remains of their family. They still live in their ancestral mansion, Moscow House, but quite recently a contingent of Bolshevik soldiers have taken over and the family members have been forced to move into the attic. In addition to Irina and Lili, Auntie Marie, their Grand-mere, their cousins Natasha, age 14 and Seryozha, age 5, also share the attic with them.
Americans with the ARA (American Relief Administration) have recently come to Moscow to provide food and supplies to the many starving, and when Irina sees that they are hiring locals, especially "former people," which is what those who were previously considered nobility or royal are now called by the Bolos, she jumps at the chance for herself and Lili. It not only means a nice salary, but also food and supplies for their family as well, as long as the Bolos occupying their home don't get wind of it. The handsome American heading up the office, Will Hardwick, is also a bit of an incentive for Irina, but who has time for romance and nonsense?
While things appear to be looking up, tragedy strikes Moscow House when one of the Bolo soldiers is found dead in a closed-off wing of the home. He was a known drunk and his death is being ruled an accident, but Irina has been sensing some odd things around the house lately. Cold winds blowing through unexpectedly, an odd creature with red eyes that she thinks she saw, things that go bump in the night, stuff like that. Irina tries her best to ignore it, since they don't want the Bolos to accuse them of witchcraft, a huge no-no and completely illegal since Rasputin. But then another soldier dies and Comrade Suzhensky, head of the soldiers' contingent, must investigate, despite his soft spot for Irina.
Meanwhile, the sisters are delighted to be reunited with some dear old friends at the ARA, such as Paulina, a friend of Irina's, and Prince Kiril, a friend of their now-dead cousin, Andrei, beloved son of Auntie Marie. Most importantly for Lili is seeing her childhood best friend and crush, Prince Nicky, whom she thought long-dead, but is now a driver for the ARA. Despite being separated for many years, sparks still fly between the two.
While there's a sliver of joy at the ARA office, things are deteriorating at Moscow House. Both Irina and Lili are now seeing, hearing and smelling apparitions, such as their Grand-Pere's death rattle cough, but also his pipe smoke. Further, there are insects everywhere now and a black mold is beginning to cover the walls, as if something horrible has taken hold of the homestead. It seems something in the house is trying to tell them something, but what? Perhaps it has something to do with that awful night three years before when the Cheka police burst in on their family dinner, only to shoot their beloved Uncle Pasha to death and drag away their father and Uncle Aleksei, both of whom would later die in captivity.
Even as the house and the situation deteriorates around the girls, their Auntie Marie has also begun acting very oddly and they have reason to believe she has turned to a sorcerer and could be to blame for all of the goings on. At this point, the Bolos have fled the house, which might seem positive, except for the fact that the girls are frightened at what seems to be increased ghostly activity, to the point that a family member loses their life. Was it an accident or murder, and if so, was a ghost to blame? Or perhaps it was the imp with the red eyes they've seen running about, the Domovoy, the spirit of their first ancestor tasked with protecting the home.
Secrets abound at the Moscow House, both old and new, and it will take both Irina and Lili, and the ghost of their Uncle Pasha to solve the mysteries, reveal the long-buried secrets, and hopefully survive, as a hideous ritual has been started, one which threatens the entire remaining family.
The Haunting of Moscow House is pretty creepy and was quite different than any ghost story I've read before. I really enjoyed learning about the time after the Bolshevik Revolution, and found that bit of history an interesting backdrop for the ghost story. While I think I liked The Witch and the Tsar better when comparing the two, I still enjoyed this story. I just can't breeze through one of her stories like I typically would because of the Russian names and terms, which require a bit more brain power and processing.
If you've ever been fascinated by the Bolshevik Revolution and want to read a slice of life story with all of the horror that the time period entails, wrapped in a scary ghost story, The Haunting of Moscow House is for you.
