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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-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:
N/A
A beautiful story that I know will stay with me. Well developed, evolving characters and relationships. Spooky, gothic setting. Mystery in both timelines that keeps you wondering and hoping.
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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:
Yes
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
I dnf'ed this book after 100 pages. I just can't get into the story. It's just slow and uninteresting for me.
Eve Chase is the Queen of endings. She knows the sweet spot-- just enough sad and just enough happy to leave the reader feeling satisfied. She also is an absolute wizard with writing relationships. The dynamic between the Wilde sisters was so intricately woven and it seemed so authentic. The relationship between Jessie and Bella was a heart-tugger.
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
take pride and prejudice but make it a 1950s mystery. it dragged on wayyyy too much and i didn’t find it that interesting. didn’t feel that mysterious, i think it was something to do with the writing. not for me.
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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:
No
"Houses are never just houses, I'm quite sure of this now. We leave particles behind, dust and dreams, fingerprints on buried wallpapers, our tread in the wear of stairs. And we take bits of the houses with us. In my case, a love of the smell of wax polish on sun-warmed oak, late-summer sun light filtering through stained glass. We grow up. We stay the same. We move away but we live for ever where we were most alive."
The Summer of 1959 becomes one of more tragedy for the Wilde family, four daughter's staying with their aunt and uncle at Applecote Manor in the Cotswolds. There's ethereal Flora, determined Pam, 'Strange Margot' (called 'Margot-A-go-go' by her late Pa) and little Dot, the youngest sister. Aunt Sybil and Uncle Perry (their Pa's brother)'s lives have stagnated since their daughter Audrey disappeared five Summers before.
Present day and Jessie, mother to toddler Romy and disgruntled stepdaughter Bella, purchases Applecote Manor with her beloved, new husband Will, having fled London for some peace. Peace is not what they find in this rural idyll, which is hiding secrets.
Reminding me of the glorious and nostalgic writing of Kate Morton, this is glorious, historical, mystery fiction. Told from likeable Margot's perspective, the metaphorical presence of their missing cousin hangs over her and her sisters during this languid summer, where they start to become women. In the present day, Jessie feels she is competing with Bella's late mother, dispairing that Applecote is not the escape she longed for her blended family.
There is tragedy but also family, hope and love to be found in these beautiful and rural Cotswolds. Spellbinding and atmospheric, this is a mysterious tale of secrets and sisters, which will definitely result in me seeking out the author's other novels.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Child death
Minor: Sexual assault, Sexual content
slow-paced
1959 and the young daughters of Bunny Wilde are sent to the country whilst widow Bunny travels to Morocco. The four girls decamp to Applecote Manor to stay with their Uncle and Aunt whose only child, Audrey, disappeared five years ago. As Margot Wilde suffers the pains of adolescence, her resemblance to Audrey provokes a strange obsession from her Aunt. In the present day Jessie moves to Applecote Manor with her family, husband Will, daughter Romy and resentful stepdaughter Bella. As Jessie tries to fit into local life, the rumours about previous events at Applecote dog the family and eventually the two stories come together.
There is much to like about this book, especially the sections set in 1959. I particularly enjoyed the juxtaposition of the characters of Margot and Bella as troubled adolescents and of Margot and Jessie as people trying to live up to the memory of 'perfect' others. At times I felt that the story was a little forced, particularly the revelation of what had happened to Audrey, but this didn't detract from a strong and readable novel.
There is much to like about this book, especially the sections set in 1959. I particularly enjoyed the juxtaposition of the characters of Margot and Bella as troubled adolescents and of Margot and Jessie as people trying to live up to the memory of 'perfect' others. At times I felt that the story was a little forced, particularly the revelation of what had happened to Audrey, but this didn't detract from a strong and readable novel.
I liked this book, but I also feel like the author thought it was about more than it was.