Waterstones Synopsis:
A lost child: On the eve of the First World War, a little girl is found abandoned on a ship to Australia. A mysterious woman called the Authoress had promised to look after her – but has disappeared without a trace. A terrible secret: On the night of her twenty-first birthday, Nell Andrews learns a secret that will change her life forever. Decades later, she embarks upon a search for the truth that leads her to the windswept Cornish coast and the strange and beautiful Blackhurst Manor, once owned by the aristocratic Mountrachet family.A mysterious inheritance: On Nell’s death, her granddaughter, Cassandra, comes into an unexpected inheritance. Cliff Cottage and its forgotten garden are notorious amongst the Cornish locals for the secrets they hold – secrets about the doomed Mountrachet family and their ward Eliza Makepeace, a writer of dark Victorian fairytales. It is here that Cassandra will finally uncover the truth about the family, and solve the century-old mystery of a little girl lost.
This is a large book – over 600 pages, and to be honest, I was daunted by the size of it. However, I shouldn’t have been. The story flew off the page and the book read very quickly. There was adventure, life changing events, fear and destruction. There was also friendship, love and great fairytales.
There is not one main character in the book. The book spans a century and we get to know Nell, Cassandra and the Mountrachet family members well. The book does jump between time eras and events but it follows a stream of consciousness – by that I mean that when Nell or Cassandra discovers something about the past we then jump back in time and read what actually occurred. It is through this that we learn so much about the individuals featured in the book. I didn’t struggle with the time changes at all. As long as you note the year at the beginning of the chapter you are fine and it is easy to follow and keep up.
I loved the storyline. I loved how it was written so you kept discovering new things, and I enjoyed reading about London at the beginning of the 20th century, and how the upper classes lived. This is a historical novel, and I don’t think it was badly or inaccurately written. Nothing notably wrong jumped out at me; and reading the acknowledgements at the end suggests that Morton did research this well.
I found this book gripping and a great read. Once I got past the size of the book I loved it and only have praise for it. I have loaned my copy to my Mum I enjoyed it so much and she too is currently enjoying it. Morton is a gripping writer. She wrote characters I liked, set the scene wonderfully and wrote a story I was interested in and wanted to know what happened. I can only give this the top rating. A superb book.
5/5
Waterstone’s Synopsis:
A simple trip to Brighton turns into a summer of adventure for Cassandra Paxton when she encounters the enigmatic Lord Deverill. She believes him to be a friend of her dead brother, but she soon finds that there is more to him than meets the eye. Lord Deverill is hiding a secret, and, when Cassandra discovers its significance, the accidents that have befallen her appear in a new and deadly light. With danger looming on every side Cassandra reluctantly knows she must join forces with Lord Deverill if she is to survive. After searching her heart, can Cassandra admit that she loves him? And will Lord Deverill Manage to save her life.
To be honest, I was a bit reluctant to start reading this book. I chose it for my dissertation reading as it is set in Brighton, and I was worried it was going to be a boring, historically inaccurate Regency romance. To my pleasant surprise, I actually enjoyed the book.
The main character is Cassandra, who is determined, strong-willed and sensible. She is Brighton for one reason: to sell the family home. There she meets Lord Deverill, who knew her brother, and the real way he died. Yes there is a romance in the book but it does not overshadow the rest of the story. I liked Cassandra. She stuck to her guns and faced the truth and reality head on.
The history in the book didn’t seem too bad. The book is set in Regency Brighton and featured swimming in the sea, the horse races and evenings out at different parties – including one hosted by the Prince Regent at the Royal Pavilion. All of these things did occur during the late 1700s, early 1800s.
The plot was good. There was more going on than just falling in love. Cassandra had a little sister to look after, a house to sell and a suitor to chase away, as well as finding out the truth about her brother. Most of the story did not surprise me, but there was one twist that I missed. I thought the ending was a bit soft, but overall I enjoyed this book.
3/5
Waterstones Synopsis
Set in the 1950s, in an England still recovering from the Second World War, THE LOST ART OF KEEPING SECRETS is the enchanting story of Penelope Wallace and her eccentric family at the start of the rock’n'roll era. Penelope longs to be grown-up and to fall in love; but various rather inconvenient things keep getting in her way. Like her mother, a stunning but petulant beauty widowed at a tragically early age, her younger brother Inigo, currently incapable of concentrating on anything that isn’t Elvis Presley, a vast but crumbling ancestral home, a severe shortage of cash, and her best friend Charlotte’s sardonic cousin Harry…
This is chick-literature set in the 1950s; and for me that worked. We get a look at life in England in the 1950s, just as rationing is coming to an end through the eyes of an eighteen-year old girl. I found this fascinating – looking at how people lived after the war, and how rationing and America influenced lives. I loved the history in this book – how Rice explores the generation born into the War; how they were worried about what life would be like without War, and how they reacted once rationing was ended. It made me chuckle that the thing Penelope missed most was Cadbury’s chocolate! The other issue I found interesting was how the adults didn’t seem taken with America. The parents in the book all seemed suspicious of the country, whereas the children didn’t have any problems with the nation. I also liked how this book taught me things – such as who Johnnie Ray was – the guy who was popular before Elvis took his crown.
This was not a quick read but enjoyable. This is chick-lit, but more complex as it has the historical element. It was a bit predictable, but Penelope’s mother took me by surprise. I liked the characters and how we see Penelope slowly grow up. I wasn’t a fan of Harry, but Rice wrote so well I enjoyed not liking him! Charlotte and Penelope’s friendship was a joy to read about as well – I love the idea of going round to your friend’s aunt’s home for scones and tea! I wanted to live in Penelope’s house as well, and it broke my heart to read of its decay; although I liked how Rice was realistic about how women were struggling to keep houses and to live above the borderline after they lost their husbands in the War.
This was an easy read and I enjoyed it. It was touching as well, looking at how different people, different generations and different nationalities coped after World War Two.
8/10
Amazon description:
Autumn 1928. Three young women are on their way to India, each with a new life in mind. Rose, a beautiful but naïve bride-to-be, is anxious about leaving her family and marrying a man she hardly knows. Victoria, her bridesmaid couldn t be happier to get away from her overbearing mother, and is determined to find herself a husband. And Viva, their inexperienced chaperone, is in search of the India of her childhood, ghosts from the past and freedom. Each of them has their own reason for leaving their homeland but the hopes and secrets they carry can do little to prepare them for what lies ahead in India.
This is the first time I have come across Gregson, and to be honest I was disappointed. There were a few significant events, such as Rose marrying, the events on the ship with Guy Glover and the consequences of taking him to India, and the decision Tor makes….but between all these things the story was flat, and a bit boring. There was a lot of writing but it felt like nothing was really happening. I put down and picked up this book at least three times and by the time I had finished it, I was left empty.
I don’t think Gregson wrote characters I could like, or even care about. I really wasn’t overly bothered what happened to them. I don’t know what it is about her writing style, but it meant I felt no empathy for them, and by the end I was reading just to finish the book, not to find out what happened to any other them.
I don’t know how accurate the book was either, but I did find it odd coming across modern names such as Debenhams and Thomas Cook in a book set in the beginning of the century – that said, they might have been around, it just didn’t seem to fit with the story.
I wasn’t convinced overly by the storyline itself. Guy Glover’s character was very seedy and odd. What he said in the book didn’t seem realistic, and when Viva got kidknapped because of him I wasn’t convinced by her escape. The whole book seemed a bit like that. I found it long-winded and dull really – a complete let down.
4/10
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