The Fiercombe Manor by Kate Riordan

I received this book in exchange for a fair and honest review

Fiercombe Manor by Kate Riordan

ISBN: 9780062332943

Hardback

Synopsis: In this haunting and richly imagined dual-narrative tale that echoes the eerie mystery of Rebecca andThe Little Stranger, two women of very different eras are united by the secrets hidden within the walls of an English manor house.

In 1933, naive twenty-two year-old Alice—pregnant and unmarried—is in disgrace. Her mother banishes her from London to secluded Fiercombe Manor in rural Gloucestershire, where she can hide under the watchful eye of her mother’s old friend, the housekeeper Mrs. Jelphs. The manor’s owners, the Stantons, live abroad, and with her cover story of a recently-deceased husband Alice can have her baby there before giving it up for adoption and returning home. But as Alice endures the long, hot summer at Fiercombe awaiting the baby’s birth, she senses that something is amiss with the house and its absentee owners.

Thirty years earlier, pregnant Lady Elizabeth Stanton desperately hopes for the heir her husband desires. Tormented by the memory of what happened after the birth of her first child, a daughter, she grows increasingly terrified that history will repeat itself, with devastating consequences.

After meeting Tom, the young scion of the Stanton family, Alice becomes determined to uncover the clan’s tragic past and exorcise the ghosts of this idyllic, isolated house. But nothing can prepare Alice for what she uncovers. Soon it is her turn to fear: can she escape the tragic fate of the other women who have lived in the Fiercombe valley . .

My review: This book to me was a book that I wanted to keep turning the pages so I could hear the next part of the story. The favorite parts of the story for me were Elizabeth's part of the story as they were historical but do not get me wrong I loved Alice's story as well. I kind of liked how the story switched back for forth between the two stories as it kept the book moving. These characters were all very strong, I am not sure who I liked the best though. I have to say though I felt bad for Alice being sent away to this old manor to await the birth of her baby as her situation was a "scandal". The details of the manor and the settings were so good that I felt as if I was right in the story. If you are looking for a good, dark/gothic type of historical book, then I recommend this for you.