Author: Lucinda Riley
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publisher: Atria Books
Publication Date: Reprint Edition June 11, 2013
Paperback 418 Pgs
ISBN: 1476703558
Book Summary from Amazon:
An aristocratic French family, a legendary château, and buried secrets with the power to destroy two generations torn between duty and desire.
La Côte d’Azur, 1998: In the sun-dappled south of France, Emilie de la Martinières, the last of her gilded line, inherits her childhood home, a magnificent château and vineyard. With the property comes a mountain of debt—and almost as many questions . . .
Paris, 1944: A bright, young British office clerk, Constance Carruthers, is sent undercover to Paris to be part of Churchill’s Special Operations Executive during the climax of the Nazi occupation. Separated from her contacts in the Resistance, she soon stumbles into the heart of a prominent family who regularly entertain elite members of the German military even as they plot to liberate France. But in a city rife with collaborators and rebels, Constance’s most difficult decision may be determining whom to trust with her heart.
As Emilie discovers what really happened to her family during the war and finds a connection to Constance much closer than she suspects, the château itself may provide the clues that unlock the mysteries of her past, present, and future. Here is a dazzling novel of intrigue and passion from one of the world’s most beloved storytellers.
My Review:
There may be slight spoilers… I’m not sure how to describe some of the book without them…
This was my first Lucinda Riley novel. I was attracted by the cover (I won’t lie) and the reviews. I at first found it hard to get into, the first 100 pages took me a while. But after page 150 I finished it within the day (ish). It had many elements of a gothic novel. As with any gothic novel there are secrets, lies, a manipulator, a naive vulnerable person, and greed. (And there is a chateau in France! And a huge house in England!) Only half of the novel had gothic qualities and interestingly enough it was the 1999 time period or Emilie’s part of the story. Constance, back in 1944 had a lot of action and plot.
I found Connie’s story more engaging and interesting. I always looked forward to when her story would continue to be told. I must say there is a part in the book where Constance is sexually abused. It’s not extremely graphic but it is descriptive. I understand that it’s generating more dislike (or in my case utter hate) for the abuser but it was hard to read. So I would suggest a more mature audience. It was interesting how Connie’s and Emilie’s stories wrapped around each other. Only a few times did I have to pull away and have to process the information. At some points it does get a little complicated as to who is related to who and how. Or where an object is and why. But it does all get explained in time. I found myself trying to figure it out before the author would tell the reader. I was wrong on most occasions and was surprised, which is a nice change from many other books! Some characters were a bit predictable (I’m looking at you Sophia and Sebastian) but it wasn’t obvious, just every now and then.
Emilie’s starts the book just after losing her mother. After first I had a hard time caring for Emilie. She is extremely naïve even though she’s been to college, has her own apartment, and a real full time job. She is described as having trust issues but it was sometimes hard to believe because she starts to trust a man she doesn’t know. Without going to much into Emilie and Sebastian’s relationship they end up on rocky terrain. But as Emilie’s story develops she changes. She becomes braver, smarter, more independent, and confident. By the end of the book I was quite proud of her choices! All of her character development was believable too, it was just she woke up one day and decided to change. She went though realistic challenges and problems.
Now for the ending. I won’t tell you HOW it ends but I’m not sure what I was expecting. I do like when it ends securely and all tied up with no questions. BUT I felt it all happened a little to quickly and simply. It was like if you were playing Tetris and 5 pieces fell perfectly into place at the same time without your help… with a bow on top. I was kind of expecting some type of danger where Emelie would have to fight for her life…. (Yes. I do read Nancy Drew, and played the games….) But I was happy when I closed the book and that does count for something!
I would give it a read! And let me know what you thought about it!
Rating: 7
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