I am a big fan of Sadie Jones. Her first two novels, The Outcast and Small Wars, are heart-wrenching looks at troubled characters trying to maintain tumultuous relationships. They are rich with historical detail, and centre on people who readers hope will find a way to succeed. They are far from cheery, feel-good novels, and yet there is a sense that things will be okay.

On the surface, The Uninvited Guests, Jones' third novel, feels nothing like her previous two. Set in pre-WW1 England in a manor home its inhabitants can no longer afford, it is a witty, Gothic-like tale of a crazy night in the lives of the Swift/Torrington family. Guests gather for Emerald Torrington's birthday; in attendance are her brother, Clovis; her mother, Charlotte; her sister, Imogen; and three friends, Patience, Ernest, and John. An accident on the local rail line brings an expanding group of strangers to the family home, and the snotty Torringtons avoid dealing with their lower class guests. Into the mix comes a dashing stranger from Charlotte's past who threatens to reveal devastating secrets. With its ridiculous plot points and scandalous characters, The Uninvited Guests is more of a tongue-in-cheek take on novels like Sarah Waters' The Little Stranger than anything resembling Jones' earlier work.

Or is it? Sure, The Uninvited Guests seems like a departure from Jones' first two novels, and in many ways it is. However, at its core it is still a book with characters who earn the reader's sympathy, despite their many shortcomings. The Torringtons may be selfish and small-minded, but they are endearing, and their journey toward greater humanity is funny and touching. Little Imogen, nicknamed Smudge, is particularly entertaining; she is attempting a final major piece of artwork, and will stop at nothing to complete it. Her actions bring about one of the most comedic moments of the novel, and allow the Torringtons to display their family bond. Also, while this book is undoubtedly lighter than The Outcast or Small Wars, it has moments of the emotional darkness that defined Jones' past writing.

As always, Jones is a superb writer whose descriptive prose is a delight to read. I simply could not put her book down. The Uninvited Guests may be a different style of novel for Jones, but it in no way lacks the qualities I have come to expect from her. She continues to be an author who I find rewarding to read, and one whose books I devour as quickly as she can write them.