 |
| To be Published by Penguin Books Uk January 2015 |
The story opens in 1936, with a
prologue which sets the scene for an emotional and thought provoking read following
the fortunes of Alice Eveleigh as she attempts to come to terms with a personal
event which will have a shattering effect on her life. Banished to Fiercombe
Manor, Alice gets drawn into the story of the beautiful and enigmatic Elizabeth
Stanton, who was the lady of the manor in the latter part of the nineteenth century.
This dual time narrative then switches seamlessly between two time frames, and
as the story of both Alice and Elizabeth start to evolve, the similarities in
their stories makes for compelling reading.
I was drawn into this story from the
beginning and soon started to empathise with both female protagonists and found
that the style of writing very easily allowed you to cross through time, so
that both storylines became quite compelling. The minutiae of a family caught
up in tragedy is well explored and the author has done a commendable job in
bringing the story alive in the imagination, so that the haunting nature of the
narrative continues to enthral from first page to last. There were some genuinely
creepy moments which, whilst reading, made me look a little more closely
at the shadows in the room, but overall this was a finely drawn story about
family secrets and the ultimate heartbreak of loss.
****
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thanks for taking the time to comment - Jaffareadstoo appreciates your interest.