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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This is one of those books that has been patiently sitting on my bookshelves for a year waiting to be picked up. I wanted to read this in the summer as it takes place in a grand old Cornish country house in a long ago summer.
What I loved: Dual timelines, delving into family secrets & long hidden family mysteries & forbidden romance. I loved the gothic setting in a beautiful, out of the way manor house. I loved the ending!
The book is definitely reminiscent of Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier and Kate Morton novels, which I love!
What I loved: Dual timelines, delving into family secrets & long hidden family mysteries & forbidden romance. I loved the gothic setting in a beautiful, out of the way manor house. I loved the ending!
The book is definitely reminiscent of Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier and Kate Morton novels, which I love!
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Death of parent
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Sexual content, Pregnancy
Minor: Child abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Blood, Injury/Injury detail
Black Rabbit Hall by Eve Chase is a very slow book. The story tells of Lorna and Jon looking for a place to get married. They find Black Rabbit Hall (aka Pencraw Hall). Lorna visited the hall with her mother when she was a child (her mother recently passed away). Then the story goes back to the late 1960s with the Alton children. Amber, Toby, Barney, and Kitty spent their school vacations at the hall. Their mother, Nancy called it Black Rabbit Hall because of the rabbits that came out at sunset and you saw their black shadows across the lawn. Their mother died at Easter when she was out looking for her youngest son (off playing and then it started storming) on horseback (got thrown and broke her neck). The father, Hugo quickly rebounds and married Caroline Shawcross (she pursued him). Caroline brings her son, Lucian with her into the marriage. Lucian and Amber are attracted to each other, but it is forbidden (like that will stop them). Caroline is not fond of the children and there will be many changes to the family (Toby does not handle the changes). When Lorna visits Black Rabbit Hall, she encounters Dill (the housekeeper/cook) and Caroline. Caroline has opened the hall for events (needs the money). What happened to Hugo Alton and his children? Why is Lorna drawn to Black Rabbit Hall (she becomes obsessed)? Lorna gets a chance to stay at the hall and find some answers.
I found Black Rabbit Hall to be an extremely boring book. It tried to be a mystery, but it did not succeed. I just found Black Rabbit Hall to be odd. We get the story from two different perspectives: Lorna’s and Amber’s (the majority of the book is from Amber’s point-of-view). The Amber section reads more like a young adult novel (she finds love at fifteen). The two stories go back and forth until we see how they are connected. I just found it dull and uninteresting (reading this book was like trekking through the desert). There is some very graphic violence (it is awful) in the book as well as sex and foul language. I did not enjoy Black Rabbit Hall (as you can tell). It sounded like such an intriguing and mysterious book (from the synopsis). I think the book (the idea) had potential, but the writer was not able to pull it off. I give Black Rabbit Hall 1 out of 5 stars. This book was just not for me. If you are looking for a book to help you sleep, then read Black Rabbit Hall.
I received a complimentary copy of Black Rabbit Hall from NetGalley and First to Read in exchange for an honest review.
I found Black Rabbit Hall to be an extremely boring book. It tried to be a mystery, but it did not succeed. I just found Black Rabbit Hall to be odd. We get the story from two different perspectives: Lorna’s and Amber’s (the majority of the book is from Amber’s point-of-view). The Amber section reads more like a young adult novel (she finds love at fifteen). The two stories go back and forth until we see how they are connected. I just found it dull and uninteresting (reading this book was like trekking through the desert). There is some very graphic violence (it is awful) in the book as well as sex and foul language. I did not enjoy Black Rabbit Hall (as you can tell). It sounded like such an intriguing and mysterious book (from the synopsis). I think the book (the idea) had potential, but the writer was not able to pull it off. I give Black Rabbit Hall 1 out of 5 stars. This book was just not for me. If you are looking for a book to help you sleep, then read Black Rabbit Hall.
I received a complimentary copy of Black Rabbit Hall from NetGalley and First to Read in exchange for an honest review.
To be honest if I had seen this in a book shop I would probably have ignored it. Bur received it as an ARC so decided to give it a go. I'm g!ad I did . Two stories run concurrently , Black Rabbit Hall and it's past. Also Lorna's a woman hoping to start a new future. This is a story of lies, deceit and eventually discovery and truth. Not normally my type of read but I loved it. Thanks to lovereading.co.uk for the ARC. In short Read it!!
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A bit melodramatic at times, and some scenes are a little too long.
If you enjoy a really slow burn book, with a lot of drama and dark themes, this is the book for you.
I found the mystery interesting enough to grab the book and continue reading
If you enjoy a really slow burn book, with a lot of drama and dark themes, this is the book for you.
I found the mystery interesting enough to grab the book and continue reading
Spoiler
The death of the mother was a little too drawn out for me. I understand that it is a tragedy and the beginning of the tragedies that unfold afterwards, but it could be a little shorter for my taste. For the longest time I was convinced Toby would murder someone. But he didn't. I have to say that Barney dying is something you see coming in the back of your mind from the moment it was mentioned he underestimated the sea in the beginning of the novel. Also Lorna being Amber's daughter is something you see coming the moment you understand who the love interest is.
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Loved this, kept me guessing till the end