January 31, 2026 
Reviewed by:
Debbie Dehart, Berean Baptist Church Librarian
Title:
The Bell Tolls at Traeger Hall
Author:
Jaime Jo Wright
Publisher :
Bethany House
https://bakerbookhouse.bethanyhouse
Date:
2025
Format:
Paperback
Length:
311 pages
OVERVIEW
At Traeger Hall in the late 1800’s, owner Leopold has had a bell tower built, and tells everyone in his household that if he is ever in danger of being murdered, someone needs to ring the bell to alert the police. Further, his will stipulates that when he (and, in this case, his wife) dies, they are to lie in state for 7 full days (to make sure they are really dead) and the house is to be sealed up and left untouched for 100 years. His niece by marriage, Waverly, will lose her home at this point, and would really like to find out who killed her aunt and uncle.
In current times, when Jennie finds a skeleton on the property that turns out to be Allison Harris, fiancée to a man named Zane Harris, who went missing years ago. She wants to open up Traeger Hall and discover its secrets, but at least half the people in the area are against it. Then Zane’s sister receives a threatening note which people assume came from her. This makes her very determined to find out just what happened.
What happened in each time line is the rest of the story – deep, convoluted, surprising, tense…It’s GREAT.
ASSESSMENT
Rating (1 to 5):
5
Suggested Audience:
Lovers of good, slightly suspenseful fiction.
Christian Impact:
Like Jaime Jo’s other books, the Christian content is not frequent but most definitely present. We see characters struggling to grow in their understanding of God (and succeeding), and Biblical principles undergird the story.
Thanks for this review. I really enjoy Jaime Jo’s books but have to be prepared for some unusual twists and turns.