The Hoarder, Jess Kidd - Ciska's Book Chest

*Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher *

Author: Jess Kidd
Publisher: Canongate Books
Pages: 352
Format: DRC
ISBN-10: 1782118497
ISBN-13: 9781782118497
Publisher: various formats

Maud Drennan - underpaid carer and unintentional psychic - is the latest in a long line of dogsbodies for the ancient, belligerent Cathal Flood. Yet despite her best efforts, Maud is drawn into the mysteries concealed in his filthy, once-grand home. She realises that something is changing: Cathal, and the junk-filled rooms, are opening up to her.
With only her agoraphobic landlady and a troop of sarcastic ghostly saints to help, Maud must uncover what lies beneath Cathal's decades-old hostility, and the strange activities of the house itself. And if someone has hidden a secret there, how far will they go to ensure it remains buried?

This book is fun but the story is a but messy. There are so many things happening and it takes most of the book to get all the storylines to match up.
There is Maud with her ghosts that keep her company. We do learn a lot about Maud, how she is thinking and approaching things but it takes most of the book to understand the influence of her past on her current decisions. This made it difficult to connect to her.
Cathal is big fun though. A very interesting and witty character. He build this whole world inside his house with all these automatons. I would have loved to know more about why and how he became like this and about his automaton building.
I caught on the secret of the man early on in the story so there was not much of a surprise there. The puzzle was much fun though. Renate and Maud deciding on the next step in their investigation based on all the books they read and movies they saw. I could relate to that.