Written by Anne Allen
I absolutely
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| Published by | Sarnia Press (8th April 2019) |
| Genre | Saga, Fiction, Victorian Romance |
| Pages | 307 |
| ASIN | B07PC3F8TG |
| ISBN-10 | 0992711266 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-0992711269 |
My thanks to Rachel of Rachel's Random Resources for the invitation to join the blog tour for The Inheritance, and to author Anne Allen for a free copy of this book to review.
There is also a raffle at the bottom of this blog post to win either a signed paperback or an e-copy of
The Inheritance and a notebook.
There is also a raffle at the bottom of this blog post to win either a signed paperback or an e-copy of
The Inheritance and a notebook.
The blurb:
1862 Young widow Eugénie faces an uncertain future in Guernsey when her husband dies at sea. A further tragedy brings her to the attention of Monsieur Victor Hugo, exiled on the island and living in his voluptuous house only yards away from Eugénie. Their meeting changes her life and she begins working for him as a copyist, forming a strong friendship with both Hugo and his mistress, Juliette Drouet.
2012 Doctor Tess Le Prevost, born in Guernsey, now living in Exeter, is shocked to inherit her Great-Aunt’s house on the island. As a child she listened to Aunt Doris’s tales of their ancestor, Eugénie, whose house this once was, and who, according to family myth, was particularly close to Hugo. Was he the father of her child? Tess doubts it, but inheriting the house allows her to make a fresh start in her beloved island.
Will she discover the truth about Eugénie and Hugo? A surprise find may hold the answer as Tess embraces new challenges which test her strength – and her heart.
Fiction
Romance
My thoughts:
For my first ever Blog Tour, I reviewed Anne Allen's Echoes of Time, which I found to be the most enthralling read from start to finish. So, as you can imagine, when the opportunity to review another of her books came up, I jumped at it. And I was not to be disappointed!The Inheritance is Book 7 in Allen's Guernsey Novels Series, but it is completely self-contained, and can be read as a standalone. Like Echoes of Time, it is written with a dual time line. This time, we experience Victorian Guernsey through the eyes of Eugénie Sarchet, a young widow, who has recorded her life's story in a series of diaries.
In contrast, it is 2012. Eugénie's Great Great Great Granddaughter, Doctor Tess Le Prevost, has returned to Guernsey, having lived for many years in Exeter. She now intends to live in her deceased Great Aunt's house, which once belonged to Eugénie.
To add further interest, there is a family legend that the eminent French writer Victor Hugo may be the father of Eugénie's son, Victor. Eugénie's diaries reveal her connection with the author and his family, and direct the reader to a place where she has secreted her most treasured possessions.
In the present day, and until her death, Tess's Great Aunt had been conducting her own research, trying to resolve the matter of paternity one way or the other. How Tess discovers the hidden diaries to finally settle this matter, and finds love along the way, is beautifully told in this seventh book in the series.
I was gripped, almost from the outset, and found it difficult to put this book down. I love Allen's easy style of writing, and the way she has weaved fact with fiction. The real and fictional characters come alive in this story, and are all completely believable. She has obviously undertaken a great deal of research into the life and times of Victor Hugo, and his association with Guernsey.
Throughout the book, Eugénie and Tess's stories are told separately, in self-contained sections, which always left me with questions I desperately needed to have answered, and on several occasions, I was dearly tempted to read ahead to satisfy my need to know what happened next. However, I did manage to rein myself in, to avoid ruining a very finely crafted story.
Occasionally I come across a book which I think is exceptional, brilliant and compelling, and for me, this one is just that. Another one to add to my 6 Star Reads page!
The first 6 titles in The Guernsey Novels are only 99p/c across all ebook retailers and
The Inheritance is only £1.99/$2.99 until 15th April 2019.
| Author Bio – Anne Allen |
|---|
Anne Allen lives in Devon, by her beloved sea. She has three children, and her daughter and two grandchildren live nearby. Her restless spirit has meant a number of moves which included Spain for a couple of years. The longest stay was in Guernsey for nearly fourteen years after falling in love with the island and the people. She contrived to leave one son behind to ensure a valid reason for frequent returns. By profession, Anne was a psychotherapist, but long had the itch to write. Now a full-time writer, she has written The Guernsey Novels, six having been published and the seventh, The Inheritance, is due out in 2018. |
| Social Media Links – | |
| Web site | https://anneallen.co.uk/ |
| Facebook Author Page | https://www.facebook.com/Anne-Allen-Author-176883759173475/ |
| X | https://twitter.com/AnneAllen21 |
Giveaway – Win a copy of The Inheritance and a notebook (Open Internationally)
*Terms and Conditions – Worldwide entries welcome. Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.
1st Prize – Signed copy of The Inheritance and notebook
2nd Prize – E-copy of The Inheritance and notebook
*Terms and Conditions – Worldwide entries welcome. Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.
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