What do readers think of Bellman & Black by Diane Setterfield? Write your own review.

The story immediately drew me in... but about half-way through the book, it started to really falter in terms of character development and plot. The book was well written but very dark and lost steam about half-way through. I also wouldn't call it a ghost story. Liked this authors' previous work much better

Fans of historical fiction will be much more likely to enjoy Bellman and Black than a reader looking for a good ghost story. The story moves slowly through a man's life and his experiences of handling great tragedies in his life while still managing to be a highly successful businessman. There is the occasional facts about rooks thrown in and some dealings with a "Mr. Black" which attempt suspense, but, in my opinion, fail.

Diane Setterfield has written another darkly Gothic novel in which the protagonist, William Bellman enters into a partnership with a phantom stranger, Black. The set of circumstances he encounters are haunted by a childhood game in which he kills a rook. The author weaves the symbolism of the rook into the tale of Bellman's fortunes and misfortunes. A fascinating story.

I have not read The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield, but heard good things about it and was looking forward to reading Bellman & Black. Although B&B is described as "A Ghost Story" on the book cover and title page, I didn't really see it as one. For me, ghost stories should be somewhat haunting and maybe a bit terrifying--Bellman & Black was neither.
B&B takes place in mid-19th century England and is the tale of William Bellman. It begins with an incident in his childhood and pretty much ends at his death. Bellman is a driven man who has experienced more than his share of tragedy. His single-mindedness and acuity lead to his success and wealth as a businessman, but at the same time do not allow him to appreciate that success or any of the good things that he has. Instead, he expends all his energy to maintain and improve his success and is obsessed with a perceived debt that he owes his absent partner, Black.
Bellman & Black is very readable and Bellman's story interesting, but I came away a little disappointed. Bellman & Black is a ghost story only in the loosest sense but, beyond that and more importantly, Bellman is a tragic character who is never able to see the error of his ways.

If you are looking for a ghost story, please skip this book as the ghost could be named "L'Arlesienne" rather than Black. But if you are looking for a book on the industrial revolution in 18th century England, this book is for you.
The story made me think of Zola's Ladies' Paradise but for the location (London instead or Paris).
After reading The thirteenth tale, I was expecting a gothic kind of story: big was my surprise as I finished the last page, I was still waiting for the ghost to appear.

The title Bellman and Black, A Ghost Store lead me to anticipate...a ghost. Anticipate I did! The writing in this book was beautiful and I was able to breeze along and connect with the characters and waited for the the ending to expose the ghost. Perhaps I missed something. The end confused me and left me thinking, well maybe Black is the ghost of the raven or maybe the ghost of the memories that Bellman seemed able to get past and get on with his life. I just don't know. I still loved the writing though and perhaps with a second read or a good book club discussion would shed some light on it for me.

I was pulled in right away by the storytelling nature of the voice, and the underlying eerie quality of the prose. But after the first chunk of the book, I wasn't as hooked by the story or the characters as I wanted to be. I kept reading because the writing itself was lovely and I was interested enough to see what was going to happen.

First of all, I was eagerly anticipating this book. I loved Diane Setterfield's previous book, The Thirteenth Tale. The cover mentions Bellman & Black A Ghost Story. Who doesn't' like a good ghost story? I was about half way through the book when I realized there wasn't any character development. The reader would meet a character and then they were gone in a chapter. Its about William Bellman. He had an incident in his childhood that will haunt him later in life. By the time I got to this part of the book- I didn't care. It isn't clear what time period the book is set. I tried to get through this book. I feel badly that I had to skim to the end. Maybe it's just me--I like to connect to a story by the characters. There wasn't that connection for me. I'm so sorry to say that I can't recommend this book.