I just love this author! I've been so excited to read this book, that I took my sweet time finishing it because I wasn't ready to be done with characters. I fell in love with this author when I read The Winter Sea and she never fails to impress me. In typical fashion, this story oscillates between past and present. With this story, I was definitely more drawn to the historical story...the lovely, colonial family that had seen so much tragedy and then, to have to billet French officers...I couldn't wait to see where the story would go. I would love to go into details, but I don't want to give the whole story away. What I can say, is that the ending was incredibly satisfying. Now, to wait for Ms. Kearley's next novel.

I received a copy of this title from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

I have been a huge fan of Susanna Kearsley for many years, so I was very excited to see another book coming out.
The story is a dual time line, told from 3 POV, 2 in the 1760’s between Lydia Wilde and a French Canadian soldier who is billeted at her house upon his capture and in the modern day of Charley, a young woman who is the newly appointed curator of the Wilde Family museum.
Sadly for me, this did not evoke the same enjoyment her as previous novels, especially her earlier ones. I did really enjoy Charley’s time, she has a few things going on in her life, with her move for the new job and being there for her teenage niece after the death of her brother. But I found myself often skimming the historical aspect, I just couldn’t connect with the characters.
There are a few supernatural aspects throughout the novel but I feel I enjoyed the author’s previous novels where the past impacts on the present a lot more. ie slipping through the centuries.
I’m still glad I read it but it was fairly slow moving.
Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for an ARC to read.

I love Susanna Kearsley books and this one didn't disappoint. Transitioning between the current time and the Seven Years War the story unfolds during the restoration of the Wilde House. I greatly enjoyed the research that which into creating this story. The twists in the plot kept me reading nonstop!

Want some atmosphere and a story focused on an old Colonial Era house out on Long Island that is on the cusp of revealing it's secrets? Susanna Kearsley does what she does best and offers a story within a story, a twisting tale full of secrets and love in the past? And that little bit where the reader catches something in their peripheral view and, for just an instant, believes in ghosts and superstition as reality.

The story opens with history buff, Charley, moving to Long Island and taking a job as curator for the Wilde House Museum that is set to open after restorations are complete. Charley is burdened by grief because she took this job because of her brother's death and a need to be there for his nineteen year old daughter and its a chance to sort out her own life. She is content to have a connection with Niels friend, Malaika and to enjoy Sam the contractor for work on the Wilde house. But, Charley stumbles on a ghost story and a tragic tale of lovers in the past surrounding the old Wilde House. Is it the Frenchman's ghost carrying the lantern in the woods at night looking for his lost love or is there more to it?

The past storyline in the late 1650's is told from dual points of view of both Lydia Wilde and Jean-Philippe de Sabran. Lydia just lost her fiance' to the French in one of the battles during the Seven Years' War and her brother didn't come back from that battle normal. Her hatred is palpable, but her family has two French officer parolees foist upon them even while she is trying to hold her family together after her mother's death. Jean-Philippe is captivated by the English beauty, but has a hard path to winning her. Ominous clouds form around the pair and the reader has the knowledge of the present day story that keeps the advancing tragedy always on the mind.

As usual with her books, I do prefer the past storyline especially since their differing perspectives were so wide of each other at first with the whole enemy nationalities and ideologies thing, but I still loved the present plot as well. Charley's story had me not all that disappointed when the focus would shift to the present. The author has a way of stringing a strong connection through so that past and present rub along nearly seamlessly. I think the reader is meant to connect with the past story moreso because there are two narrators for that bit as opposed to just the one in the present day. Neither story felt underdeveloped, but, I'm a history buff like Charley, so that will pull me in every time.

The author's research is meticulous. I always learn a little more and see the past well through her eyes when I'm getting the descriptions. It's not dry and she paints her settings in a colorful palette. She makes some pointed historical and present day social commentary that all weaves into the story well. I love the Colonial Era and don't pick up enough stories set in that time. Combine it with the atmospheric suspense and romance of the fictional characters the author wrote and I was sublimely happy.

I've purposefully kept things vague, but there is a sense of discovery that is the best feeling when reading this one that I don't want to destroy for future readers. I will warn that the pacing is gentle and the suspense is far from thriller intense. The author relies on emotion and character development rather than intense action. Those who love romantic suspense with a strong history element should definitely give this book and the author a go.

I am a fan of the author's prior work and this book is incredible ! This is a sweeping historical generational novel of the effect of the devastating war on Canada and its residents.
The charcters are all well drawn to the story, the plot well crafted and the author's talent for drawing the reader into the time and place is a very enjoyable read.
I was spellbound by the story until the very end. This is the story of Lydia, a colonial, and Jean, a French soldier who is a prisoner of war being held in her home. The book transfers from war time to present seamlessly. Their story is captivating. This is a wonderful read that I highly recommend. Thank you for the ARC which does not influence my review.

3.33 stars. Susanna Kearsley is a popular Canadian novelist who writes historical fiction, favoring the dual-timeline model with a current plotline and a historical one that intersect in one way or another. Her novels are generally spiced with a mystery, a romance (or perhaps two, one in each of the timelines) … and a paranormal element, such as time travel, ghostly spirits, or a character with psychic abilities.

Bellewether (2018), Kearsley’s first novel in three years, is of the dual-timeline model. The historical plotline, set in about 1760, alternates between the points of view of Lydia Wilde and Jean-Philippe de Sabran, a French Canadian lieutenant who was captured during the French and Indian War (part of the Seven Years’ War) and is now billeted at Lydia’s Long Island home along with another French officer. Jean-Philippe speaks no English and Lydia ― for good reason ― carries a deep prejudice against Frenchmen and their military in particular, but neither of these things stop Jean-Philippe and Lydia from noticing each other.

In modern times, the story follows Charlotte (Charley) van Hoek, a museum curator who has moved up to the town of Millbank on the north shore of Long Island, to be with her grieving niece. In Millbank, the home of her ancestors (and where Charley’s estranged grandmother still lives), Charley also finds a welcome job as curator for the Wilde House, the Wildes’ ancestral home now turned museum, though there are a few museum trustees who opposed her hiring and are still looking to make life difficult for Charley.

Charley begins researching the Wilde family history, and becomes particularly interested in the story of Lydia and her rumored romance with a French prisoner of war. Local legend has it that the Frenchman was going to run away with Lydia but was killed by Lydia’s brother, and that his spirit now haunts the Wilde House. Charley, of course, doesn’t believe in ghosts. But then some inexplicable things start to happen …

Bellewether is meticulously researched and clearly a labor of love for Kearsley, who incorporates several elements of her own family history into this novel, which she explains in a detailed afterword. Bellewether deals sensitively with issues like slavery and racial and national prejudice. The Wilde family keeps a teenaged black slave, Violet, which initially deeply offends Jean-Philippe, who has his own reasons for hating slavery, but it soon becomes clear that Violet’s history and situation are complicated.

I found Bellewether interesting but oddly placid. One might think that a novel including a centuries-old mystery, wartime romances and conflicts, and ghostly dealings would be gripping, but the characters always feel somewhat distant and the novel rather long-winded and slow-paced. It just never fully captured my heart or imagination. Everything works out suspiciously easily and neatly, and there’s very little intensity in any of the interpersonal relationships, including the understated, slow-burn romances in both timelines.

The title Bellewether is from the name of a beautiful, swift ship owned by Lydia’s brother. It’s nicely evocative, but a bit of stretch to name the novel after this ship, which plays only a minor role in the plot. With just a little imagination, though, one might envision a particular member of Lydia’s family is playing the role of a bellwether sheep, the leader of the flock. And that’s all I’m going to say about that!

Bellewether is a worthy, respectable novel, if you enjoy cozy, deliberately-paced historical reads with just a dash of romance and the supernatural.

Laura C’s review of Bellewether by Susanna Kearsley
Contemporary/Historical Romantic Mystery published by Sourcebooks Landmark 7 Aug 18

Reviewing Susanna Kearlsey’s Bellewether is a bit like reviewing two completely separate novels. Of course, that could be said about most of Kearsley’s works, which are time-slip mystery-romances. Usually, there’s a modern woman who for some reason is researching a woman from a previous era. We see both their stories.


Unlike Kearsley’s other books, however, Bellewether is a colonial American story. The modern part of the novel feels as if it is given a bit short shrift. It’s hard for me to tell whether that’s accurate, though, because it may just be that unlike her books set in Europe and the UK, the language of Bellewether and even the history that’s discussed in the modern section is familiar to me. It’s set on Long Island, where I grew up. The petty politics of the modern house museum’s board, the small-town family entanglements…it doesn’t feel as fresh as the modern stories she tells in her other books.

On the other hand, the historical novel contained inside the modern novel is absolutely fascinating. This is the kind of history they should teach in school. Not “memorize the dates of these battles and who the commanders were.” Give history a face, a heart, a narrative that everyone can relate to, and they’ll remember it.

The historical section of Bellewether takes place on the North Shore of Long Island during the French and Indian War. A French-Canadian soldier, Jean-Philippe, is captured and sent on parole of honor to live with an American family, the Wildes. Although the French soldier with him speaks enough English to serve as a translator, Jean-Philippe himself speaks none. He is isolated and the terms of his parole frustrate him. Plus, he is living in the home of the enemy, many of whom do not want him there. Kearsley touches on a huge number of issues here: slavery and the practice of “slave leases;” the Acadians and the misery they endured for wanting to remain neutral, Quakers; how the nascent American army and trading fleet maneuvered within—and around—the restrictions of their monarch overseas; and, most of all, how little people change, even when everything around them does.

The Wilde family is complex. Lydia Wilde, our heroine, is trying to hold her family together after the death of her mother, who died of natural causes, and one of her brothers, who was killed in the war. The last thing she wants is another man in the house (as well as her father and one brother who is home occasionally, she has a brother who lives at home), let alone two, and Frenchmen at that, soldiers like the one who killed her beloved brother. The various Wilde men are well-imagined, and in them Kearsley shows the kinds of conflicts that came to characterize America from colonial days right through the Civil War. Rather than lumping them together as “well, this family is this way,” Kearsley carefully shows all their personalities and motivations.

In short, although this book is unusual, and I’d say the modern part is less than thrilling, you should read it because you will love the historical story. It’s beautifully told, and it never flinches.

Grade: A-

Ok I just didn’t love this as much as I loved some of Kearsley’s other books. It was clearly meticulously researched but it felt like too much of that research was shoved into the book in lieu of building the story. I really enjoy dual timeline narratives and multiple POVs never stymie me, but I just never felt engaged with any of the characters. This was clearly a labour of love on the author’s part and I wish I’d enjoyed it more because parts of it were fascinating, but ultimately she just didn’t communicate that love to me. I found it slow going with little tension build around the mystery and almost no jeopardy around the characters at all. If you like quieter historical fiction then this might well be for you. I’m afraid I would have preferred a more gripping story over so much painstaking detail. It felt like the actual story wasn’t really the point of the book and for me that will never gel because story is king.

Susanna Kearsley writes yet another lush saga in her newest novel Bellewether! Ms. Kearsley has become an “auto buy” author for me ever since I discovered The Winter Sea a few years ago. I love that these secular novels are fairly clean with such amazing writing. I have devoured all of her work since and my only complaint is that this novel took so long to be released!

Ms. Kearsley includes evocative descriptions and the setting (an old house on Long Island, New York) is almost like a character in and of itself. This is the type of story for when you want to sit back and be immersed in another time and place. It is slower paced and Ms. Kearlsey takes her time describing particular settings and historical circumstances in minute detail. But that richness of detail is one of the things her readers love about her books.

This is a dual-timeline novel, where one story takes place in the present and the other in the past; but both stories are connected. The love stories are so romantic and they take so long to develop that you can feel the tension between the characters. It’s also very touching how love builds between two people who can’t speak the same language. The contemporary story reminds me a bit of Luke and Lorelai from Gilmore Girls and their relationship.

There are so many great themes and messages that one can take away from reading Bellewether. Both the present and past stories have similarities and echo these same themes. Bellewether shows how wars can divide families, and deals with issues of slavery and racism. There is an amazing message of not turning your back on your family, especially when they need you. Bellewether also conveys the message of not dwelling on the past so much that you miss what’s in front of you and of learning to be happy with the life one’s been given. I absolutely loved this story and recommend it to lovers of historical fiction and romance!

Content: This is a fairly clean read for a secular novel in this genre. Overall, I would give it a PG-13 rating for some mild content. Some examples of the content are: mention of men drinking ale; minor curse words are used; mention of a woman possibly drowning herself; men speak curses but the words aren’t actually written; people drink alcohol; a man struggles with what seems to be PTSD; a man beats a slave; the N word for an African American is used in historical context; mention of past sexual and physical abuse, but nothing is described in detail.

Rating: I give this book 5 stars!

Genre: Historical Fiction; Romance; Dual-Timeline

I want to thank NetGalley, Susanna Kearsley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the complimentary copy of this book for review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I express in this review are my own. This is in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s CFR 16, Part 255.

History, a haunted house/museum, and a dual timeline--definitely a winner for me! Especially since this one deals with a place and time period we don't often read about.

Review featured at www.books-n-kisses.com

3.5 Hearts This is a sweet ghost story mixing the past and the present. Charley moves to her family hometown and soon is absorbed in the story of Lydia and the love she had for her Civil War officer. But when She starts to learn the story first hand Charley discovers more than she expected.

I really enjoyed this story. I will say sometimes it was a bit long and I would look to see how much longer it was but then something would happen and bam I was right back into the story.

If you are a fan of Somewhere In Time or The Two Worlds of Jenny Logan you will love this story.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Sorry, but I will not write a review. I couldn´t finish the book. The cover blurb looked good and appealed to me but I couldn´t get into the story and the characters. It simply was not my cup of coffee. Sorry! But Thanks for the eBook and the possibility to read a part of it.

I love the characters in this book, and I want to keep them close. Already at the half-way mark I was regretting the loss of the people that I have come to regard, and to wish that I could continue to follow their paths as they wound forwards. Charley and Rachel, Sam and Malaika from the present, and Violet, Jean-Philippe and Lydia and her family in the past… Rich in the history of the Seven Years' War, in New York, Bellewether is sheer pleasure for a historical novel fan.

I’ve always been too terrified to watch scary movies, but give me a good gothic novel and I’m in heaven. Especially a gothic novel with romance. Then I’m there with an awkwardly enthusiastic smile and a glitter covered poster-board.

That’s why I always eagerly anticipate a Susanna Kearsley novel. They have some of the things that I find most delicious in a gothic work: a historical and contemporary timeline, in which the contemporary characters are trying to solve a mystery related to the historical timeline; vividly rendered, atmospheric backdrops, often with supernatural elements, whether it’s ghosts, time travel, mysteriously found artifacts, etc.; romance in both the historical and contemporary timelines. Sometimes it’s doomed, sometimes it’s HEA, but it’s always lovely and fills me with the same happiness I get from a peaceful morning: dew still on the ground, pear-colored light slanting in through the windows, and a cup of coffee in my hand. You get the picture.

Kearsley’s latest, Bellewether, is set in Long Island and revolves around two timelines: one set during the French and Indian War (1754-1763), and one set during present day. In the present-day timeline, Charley Van Hoek has moved to Millbank, New York after the death of her brother to care for her young adult niece, Rachel, and her house, and to be the curator of the Wilde House museum. The Wilde House is famous for being the home of Benjamin Wilde, a famous Revolutionary War hero, and for being haunted. The locals say that you can see a lantern wandering the path from the house to the water, and they attribute the ghost carrying it to a doomed love story: a French soldier who has "signed the paper giving his parole of honor" (basically a POW, in our terms), was held in the home at the end of the French and Indian War, and he and the young woman of the house—who was loyal to the British, the opposing side—fell in love. The legend says that he was murdered by the young woman’s brother when their relationship was discovered.

We get Charley’s perspective, but luckily for us, we also get Jean-Phillipe’s—the French soldier—and Lydia Wilde’s, the young woman. Jean-Phillipe, a soldier born in Canada and fighting for the French, is drawn to Lydia, even though he knows no English and can sense her resentment toward his presence in her home. Lydia is recovering from the loss of her fiancé, who was killed by the French during the French and Indian War.

Did Jean-Phillipe and Lydia have a romantic relationship, despite the odds against them? Did it end in both of their deaths, as the legend says? Is there a ghost at Wilde House?

The answers are in Bellewether.

Though I was a little bemused (perhaps even slightly disappointed) by one plot element (DM me for spoiler-y details!), on the whole this book was exactly what I was craving and expecting. A compelling mystery-romance that kept me engrossed to the very last page; two haunting stories that intertwined; and richly developed historical details that made me think about how we write our history, and that prove once again how wonderful of a storyteller Kearsley is.

Pssst! If You Like This Book, Try: Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier, any Kate Morton book, The House at Tyneford by Natasha Solomons, and All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr.

**I was given an ARC of this book from Netgalley, but all opinions provided are my own.

Susanna Kearsley's novels are in part known for their dual historical perspectives: they usually follow a character in our own time, trying to understand what happened to historical figures, with a touch of supernatural. This time around, our protagonist was Charley, who had just been appointed as a curator to the Wilde House Museum and discovered the legend of Lydia and her French soldier, which made her curious to understand what really happened, to potentially include it into the museography of the museum.

I truly enjoyed reading about Charley, especially because I knew how accurately Kearsley described what it meant to be a curator, talked about their daily duties and the opposition they could encounter by an administration board or local historical societies. Susanna Kearsley actually used to be a museum curator – so she's trained in history and that's why she's amazing with historical details! – and I felt like it showed, so it made me really happy, considering all the knowledge I have of that world. Charley's narrative also was quite interesting, because it was about reconnecting with your family, as well as grief, which was splendidly done. Bellewether also had references to some of Kearsley's previous novels, I didn't catch those she mentioned in her author's note, but she mentioned Sebastian from The Firebird, I wasn't quite sure until I double checked, but it made me so proud to recognise that as a fan of her works!



Moreover, while all of Kearsley's novels (that I have read, at least?) are set in Europe, this one was set in America and I was so curious, because I don't know that much about the Seven Years War from an American perspective. Once again, Kearsley astonished me with the accuracy of her research, how she wrote about some historical figures, how I time-traveled and was walking alongside Lydia and Jean-Philippe. As I'm French, I also was fascinated to learn about French people in America at that time, whether it was the Acadians or the Canadians, for we don't learn about them that much at school. Bellewether also was, in part, about slavery; the author wrote about people who owned slaves and people who were against it, about running away and staying, about how we, in our modern societies, could hide from that past.

"Lara told her, "That's true. You know, back when I went to school we never learned about us having slaves in the north. It was all just the Underground Railroad and Lincoln, and how we were good and the south was so bad, and then I read this article on slavery in Brroklyn and it said at one time New York had more slaves than any city except Charleston. And it blew my mind. I mean," she said, "it shouldn't have. I should have known of course we had slaves, too. The history was all right there, if I'd just looked for it." "You liked the 'nice' story better." Malaika was matter-of-fact. "Most folks do. It makes them feel good." (p. 125)


Bellewether confronted racism several times, when it talked about slavery, of course, but also about Native Americans. In the 18th century narrative, it approached the topic with a dual perspective from two soldiers, one talking about how they were 'savages' (that character was truly awfull), the second one trying to show him how wrong he was and how those societies that called themselves 'civilised' could be prejudiced and in the wrong. It also approached that topic in the contemporary narrative, as an important character was Native American. It also talked about respectful terminology, I don't know how accurate it was and it felt a bit forced at first, but then it got better.

The plot of this novel was really enjoyable, even though I had to confess that I struggled a bit to get into it and thought the second half was so much better than the first one. The first half of the novel was about setting the mystery and the characters, whereas the second half was about getting all the answers and it became gripping. I adored the atmosphere created around the Wilde House, with the supernatural element (a ghost this time), it was almost a bit scary considering the legend, which was so much fun in a way. I also have the feeling that the ending was a little bit abrupt: I did have the closure I wanted, but it all happened so fast, like the author realised that she had to finish her book. I truly hope this was resolved in the final copy, because it was a tad frustrating.



"She'd fought those feelings all the could, while standing in that doorway. She had told heself the trembling was from fear, and nothing else. But it had been an unconvincing explanation, and her heart had not believed it.Hearts were stubborn things, and often inconvenient." (p. 280)


Now, about the romance. There is always a point in Susanna Kearsley's novels when the romance takes a big step on the plot and unfortunately, they usually are my least favourite part of the novel, because there are one in the contemporary era, one in the historical one, it kind of feels too much. I quite liked the one involving Charley, in the 21th century, even though a certain scene didn't feel natural. However, I wasn't that convinced about Lydia and Jean-Philippe. I agree that they liked each other, I do. I agree that Kearsley can write romance scenes that make me smile, I do. But how am I supposed to believe that two characters are in love and want to spend the rest of their lives together when they didn't really speak the same language and had known each other only for a few months? I can understand attraction in this situation, but I thought that the love bit was a little too much. I know I'm not big on romance most of the time, but still.

Overall, Bellewether was a good historical novel, although it wasn't my favourite of Kearsley's works. While I adored the mystery, the setting and Charley's storyline, I had a suspension of disbelief problem with the romance between Lydia and Jean-Philippe. Still, if you're interested to read a historical novel set during the Seven Years War in America, you should give it a go! Otherwise, you should still try some of Susanna Kearsley's other works, such as The Winter Sea (my personal favourite), The Shadowy Horses or The Firebird (also that's the chronological order if you want to get all the references).

Bellewether is told in three voices, those of Charlotte (Charley) Van Hoek in the present day, and Lydia Wilde and Jean-Philippe De Sabran in 1759. Charley has been hired to spearhead a historical renovation of the Wilde House on Long Island, Lydia's home, with plans to open it as a museum. The Bellewether of the title is the name of the ship captained by renowned (fictional) Revolutionary War hero, Benjamin Wilde, Lydia's brother. The French and Indian War is raging when Zebulon Wilde is called upon to billet two French soldiers in his home who are waiting for a prisoner exchange. This is a problem, as Lydia's fiance was killed by the French in battle, and her brother, Joseph, returned from the war significantly changed. Legend has it that Lydia and Jean-Phillipe fell in love, and Joseph murdered Jean-Philippe. Lydia then walked into the waters of Long Island Sound and drowned herself. It's said that the French soldier haunts the woods surrounding Wilde House. Charley herself has a history of sorts with the area. Her father fled to Canada to avoid the Vietnam War draft and has never reconciled with his Long Island family. The only family member still remaining is Charley's grandmother, whom she has never met.

I am a fan of Susanna Kearsley's work, which is well-researched in any period she chooses. She has a light hand with characters, both fictional and historical that brings the period to life. I began Bellewether knowing next to nothing about the French and Indian War and its causes and consequences. I now see that the seeds of the American Revolution were already planted and growing 15 years before it began. Issues such as taxation, the "pressing" of men into service in the British Navy and unfair trade practices all are chafing the colonists. Also, the issue that we in America cannot reconcile; slavery.

Kearsley mixes two quiet love stories with a touch of a ghost and history to make an absorbing read. Some might question the love story of Lydia and Jean-Philippe because they were hampered by language and did not often speak with each other. I think they did their speaking through their actions, quite often a better indicator of character than mere words. I can't say that Bellewether rises quite to the level of The Winter Sea and A Desperate Fortune, my personal favorites, but it is still an absorbing read that I am happy to recommend.

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for an advance digital copy. The opinions are my own.

Bellewether was beautifully written but I do not think this was the book for me at this moment in time. I loved the blend of history with presented day but it felt like it dragged a little in the middle. I had a hard time fully connecting.

With that said, thish is one that I believe I will give another shot. I do think I would love it, just at a different time.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read Bellewether.

This novel is typical Kearsley. We have multiple characters; two in the past during 1759 when French and British were at war over the North American colonies and one character in present time who is a curator at a museum in Rhode Island. We follow some of the old inhabitants of the museum in the past, learning of travesties suffered whilst hopeful for new beginnings.

The book ran a little long in the middle but I enjoyed the ending, light romances and historical information. Kearsley explains at the end how she intertwined her family history and research in this tale.

#netgalley

I received an advanced free copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for my honest review.

Susanna Kearsley does it again! Like other books she has written, there is a historical mystery, family secrets and romance. The historical portion of the story is set during the Seven Year's War between England and France over the territories in the New World. It is not a time period I knew much about so it was interesting to see how it was for the colonial citizens to be caught in a war between two world powers and to see how these seeds lead to the American Revolution.

One of the strengths of Kearsley's work is her ability to show how the lives of real, complicated people get muddled through historical records and family legends. She is also very skilled in drawing real characters and settings and weaving an evocative mystery. Even though there are no real surprises as the plot evolves, the conclusion is every bit as satisfying.

I would recommend this book for fans of historical fiction and family mysteries as well as for fans of Diana Gabaldon.

From the prologue you tell the tone of this book. It's quiet, rich and intriguing.

The stand out part is how all the elements seamlessly fit together. This is where you can tell she's an experienced writer. Part romance, part historical and part ghost story might feel like a lot to get in, but it really felt like a complete package. I also ended up really liking all the pov characters, which doesn't always happen. They all had their own voice and all added something to the story. I especially loved Jean Phillipe. Kearsley always makes her love interests such decent men - it's wildly refreshing.

The authors note adds some great context that I feel is worth mentioning - There's talk of slavery and abuses suffered by black and native amercan people that plays an important part in bringing the story full circle. This is something lacking in a lot of historical fiction and I thought it added another level of accuracy and emotion to the book.

Overall this is probably my favourite of hers so far after the rose garden, though I think it has a similar tone in its palpable atmosphere. A love story with a difference, it felt very real and I found myself really feeling for the characters - right down to the side characters.