The House at Riverton - Kate Morton

"It's a corker...probably my favourite of all the summer reads" Judy Finnegan

A story of love, mystery, and a secret history revealed.
Summer 1924. On the eve of a glittering society party, by the lake of a grand English country house, a young poet takes his life. The only witnesses, sisters Hannah and Emmeline Hartford, will never speak to each other again.
Winter 1999. Grace Bradley, ninety-eight, one-time housemaid at Riverton Manor, is visited by a young director making a film about the poet's suicide. Ghosts awaken and old memories- long consigned to the dark reaches of Grace's mind- begin to sneak back through the cracks. A shocking secret threatens to emerge, something history has forgotten but Grace never could.
Set as the war-shattered Edwardian summer surrenders to the decadent twenties, The House At Riverton is a thrilling mystery and a compelling love story.

This beautiful novel was the winner of Richard and Judy's Summer Reads. Clearly Kate Morton has done extensive research on this period, and the bibliography at the back is testament to this. Morton writes that this period of history has always fascinated her, and this is clear from the way she engages the reader, painting a credible picture of the time.
The characters are very rich and believable, but I would have liked to learn more about Frederick and his secret past. I loved the upstairs-downstairs theme in the book, and enjoyed the banter the servants enjoy.
Some reviewers felt that the book was too long and contained unecessary detail, though I strongly disagree. I loved the confessional narrative of Grace, and felt that these details were important in understanding her loyalties to the sisters, especially Hannah.
Ultimately, the secret is revealed, and though it didn't really suprise me, I felt it was written both cleverly and originally, in Hannah's letter. The ending is sad on a number of levels, but I shan't give anything away.


"An extraordinary debut...written with a lovely turn of phrase by someone who knows how to eke out tantalizing secrets and drama" The Sunday Telegraph.