"Historical romance with gothic overtones"
Alyssa Lockhart, an American heiress, has been sent in
disgrace to visit with distant relatives in Cornwall.
Alyssa's family wants her as far away as possible until the
scandal dies down. Alyssa's aunt, who was to chaperon her,
has broken an ankle and is forced to stay in Southhampton
with a friend, while Alyssa travels on alone. Before Alyssa can reach Penridge House, the home of her
relatives, her carriage is stopped by Reverend Whittle, who
warns her to be wary, because the former Lord Penridge died
under suspicious circumstances. Once Alyssa arrives at
Penridge House, she finds a very dour and oppressive
household. Lady Penridge, the wife of the former lord,
appears to be in deep grieving. Lady Penridge's daughter,
Meggie, is an angry and belligerent child, who makes it
evident that she doesn't want Alyssa at Penridge House.
Alyssa, also, meets the new Lord Penridge, Harris Trevell,
who seems rather cold and distant. Was the former Lord
Penridge murdered, and, if so, who was his murderer? Alyssa
sets out to answer these questions and puts herself in
great danger. SILK AND SECRETS is a romance novel with gothic overtones,
which contains interesting characters. I enjoyed the
relationship that developed slowly between a grieving and
angry Meggie and a patient and understanding Alyssa.
Alyssa's character swung back and forth between intelligent
and independent and foolish and impulsive. At times, it
seemed that Alyssa was a little too modern for her times.
The relationship between the hero and the heroine was only
resolved, when the murderer's identity was revealed. I
found the hero's reluctance to explain his actions to the
heroine frustrating. Even with these small quibbles, I
found myself enjoying the read and looking forward to the
villain's unmasking, to see if I had guessed the villain's
identity correctly. All in all, SILK AND SECRETS was a nice
read. Marlene Breakfield © Copyright January 2003
Reviewed by Marlene Breakfield
Posted March 4, 2003
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After an unfortunate prank on her part embarrasses her
family, American Alyssa Lockhart is shipped off to her
distant country cousins in Cornwall. Arriving at Penridge
Hall, Alyssa finds the mood at the estate to be quite
somber since the Trevell family is still mourning the death
of Alistair Trevell. Even though the official verdict was
that Alistair died of food poisoning, Alyssa hears rumors
hinting that Alastair was murdered, with the most likely
suspect being Alistair's cousin, Harris, who recently
returned from India and has inherited the title and the
estate. Alyssa manages to befriend Alistair's hostile young
daughter, Meggie, only to be put in the position of having
to promise the young girl that Harris did not murder her
father. Now Alyssa must find a way to prove to both Meggie
and herself that Harris, the man she is slowly falling in
love with, is not a killer. A complex, resourceful young
heroine slowly unravels a tangled murder in this quietly
compelling historical.
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