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Fiercombe Manor: A Gothic Mystery of Two Women United by Secrets and Shadows
In this haunting and richly imagined dual-narrative tale that echoes the eerie mystery of Rebecca and The 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 . . .
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 . . .
407 pages, Hardcover
First published January 15, 2015
262 people are currently reading
8269 people want to read
About the author
Kate Riordan
11 books572 followersKate Riordan is a writer and journalist from England. Her first job was as an editorial assistant at the Guardian newspaper, followed by a stint as deputy editor for the lifestyle section of London bible, Time Out magazine.
After becoming a freelancer, she left London behind and moved to the beautiful Cotswolds in order to write her first novel, 'Birdcage Walk'. Her second novel, a haunting dual narrative story set in the 1930s and 1890s will be published by Penguin in January 2015 as 'The Girl in the Photograph'. In February, HarperCollins will publish the same book as 'Fiercombe Manor' in the US and Canada. She is now at work on her third novel, another dual narrative story full of intrigue and secrets, but this time set in the 1870s and 1920s, and about the lives of two very different governesses.
After becoming a freelancer, she left London behind and moved to the beautiful Cotswolds in order to write her first novel, 'Birdcage Walk'. Her second novel, a haunting dual narrative story set in the 1930s and 1890s will be published by Penguin in January 2015 as 'The Girl in the Photograph'. In February, HarperCollins will publish the same book as 'Fiercombe Manor' in the US and Canada. She is now at work on her third novel, another dual narrative story full of intrigue and secrets, but this time set in the 1870s and 1920s, and about the lives of two very different governesses.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 717 reviews
February 6, 2017
The Girl In The Photograph by Kate Riordan was a beautifully written historical fiction novel that grabbed my attention from the very beginning, the characters of Alice & Elizabeth were well crated & written.
Set in two different eras, Alice in 1933 & Elizabeth in 1898 tell the story of 2 women in the same circumstances centuries apart Alice gets pregnant by John Elton a married man, her mother is so shocked by what her daughter has done she sends her to Firecombe Manor in the Cotswolds where she meets Mrs jelfs her mothers old friend who looks after Firecombe it is very secluded & out of the way.
as Alice settles in she senses an eeriness about the place that makes her a bit nervous, as she is looking around she finds a diary she reads it & finds out about Elizabeth who lived at Stanton house & Fire combe she starts reading it & starts to ask Mrs Jelfs about her she goes quiet, wanting to know more she reads more & finds out something so terrible it becomes an obsession.
What she finds out could be the end to her own life or will Alice meet the same fate.
Set in two different eras, Alice in 1933 & Elizabeth in 1898 tell the story of 2 women in the same circumstances centuries apart Alice gets pregnant by John Elton a married man, her mother is so shocked by what her daughter has done she sends her to Firecombe Manor in the Cotswolds where she meets Mrs jelfs her mothers old friend who looks after Firecombe it is very secluded & out of the way.
as Alice settles in she senses an eeriness about the place that makes her a bit nervous, as she is looking around she finds a diary she reads it & finds out about Elizabeth who lived at Stanton house & Fire combe she starts reading it & starts to ask Mrs Jelfs about her she goes quiet, wanting to know more she reads more & finds out something so terrible it becomes an obsession.
What she finds out could be the end to her own life or will Alice meet the same fate.
January 20, 2015
3.5 An old manor house, a hidden journal, a summer house with a secret room, a glass house falling apart and a 40 year old mystery. These are the things that Alice finds when she is sent to Fiercombe manor in 1933. Sent by her mother after a one night sexual relationship , leaves her pregnant.
Love the gothic tone of this novel, the slowness of the story and the secrets and the way they are revealed. What did happen to Elizabeth Stanton and her daughter Isabelle? In alternate voices, we hear from Elizabeth, her pregnancies ending in sadness, her faltering relationship with her husband, Edward, her deepest fears and terrible memories. We watch as Alice attempts to piece together all the things she uncovers along with the many things she senses.
A good, entertaining novel, perfect for the dark days of winter.
ARC from publisher.
Love the gothic tone of this novel, the slowness of the story and the secrets and the way they are revealed. What did happen to Elizabeth Stanton and her daughter Isabelle? In alternate voices, we hear from Elizabeth, her pregnancies ending in sadness, her faltering relationship with her husband, Edward, her deepest fears and terrible memories. We watch as Alice attempts to piece together all the things she uncovers along with the many things she senses.
A good, entertaining novel, perfect for the dark days of winter.
ARC from publisher.
April 15, 2017
I requested The Girl in the Photograph from Netgalley and then I found an interesting book called Fiercombe Manor on Edelweiss and requested it. A while later when I had been granted access to them both did I realize that it was the same book. The Girl in the Photograph is the English book and Fiercombe Manor is the title for the book in US and Canada. I chose to read the Fiercombe Manor because the text was formatted better in that version.
The year is 1933 and twenty-two-year-old Alice arrives at Fiercombe Manor in rural Gloucestershire, pregnant and unwed. She has been sent there from London by her mother to hide the shame and the housekeeper Mrs. Jelphs, who is an old friend of her mother, will look after her. The family who residents there lives abroad. Alice discovers, during the hot sunny summer days that some thirty years before something happened to the lady in the house, Lady Elizabeth Stanton, who like Alice also was expecting a child.
This is the kind of book I like, a historical fiction/mystery. I love reading parallel stories, and in this book, we get to follow both Alice and Elizabeth and as the story proceeds we get to know what happened to Elizabeth in the past at the same time as Alice in the present discover it. Now, the book wasn't that great that I had hoped it would be, but it was a good read and above all, it was interesting even though I felt that story dragged on a bit in the middle, but I was probably just a bit impatient. I also liked the characters, I didn't even mind the budding romance between Alice and Tom Stanton.
So if you like historical fiction/mystery books then this is a book for you!
Thank you Netgalley/Edelweiss for providing me with a free copy for an honest review!
The year is 1933 and twenty-two-year-old Alice arrives at Fiercombe Manor in rural Gloucestershire, pregnant and unwed. She has been sent there from London by her mother to hide the shame and the housekeeper Mrs. Jelphs, who is an old friend of her mother, will look after her. The family who residents there lives abroad. Alice discovers, during the hot sunny summer days that some thirty years before something happened to the lady in the house, Lady Elizabeth Stanton, who like Alice also was expecting a child.
This is the kind of book I like, a historical fiction/mystery. I love reading parallel stories, and in this book, we get to follow both Alice and Elizabeth and as the story proceeds we get to know what happened to Elizabeth in the past at the same time as Alice in the present discover it. Now, the book wasn't that great that I had hoped it would be, but it was a good read and above all, it was interesting even though I felt that story dragged on a bit in the middle, but I was probably just a bit impatient. I also liked the characters, I didn't even mind the budding romance between Alice and Tom Stanton.
So if you like historical fiction/mystery books then this is a book for you!
Thank you Netgalley/Edelweiss for providing me with a free copy for an honest review!
August 20, 2015
This is definitely a book Kate Morton fans will inhale. I'm having a tough time putting it down.
Update: This turned out to be a fun gothic romp and I was riveted for the most part and a little creeped out in places. Riordan has written a delicious homage to Victoria Holt (creepy English manor setting with a smidge from the "Had-I-But- Known" school thrown in), Kate Morton (dual storyline and dark secrets), Sarah Waters (spooky ghostly touch--which may or may not be real), and Daphne du Maurier (vibe of madness). The ending was fairly well expected but on the whole it was a satisfying read and will keep my gothic craving at bay until Kate Morton releases another book.
Also, I was glad I read the acknowledgements at the end before I started the book as the author credits Owlpen Manor in England for the inspiration of Fiercombe Manor. Google it so you can have a picture in your head of the house and grounds.
Recommended for readers of any of the above authors.
Thanks to Edelweiss for providing the e-galley.
Update: This turned out to be a fun gothic romp and I was riveted for the most part and a little creeped out in places. Riordan has written a delicious homage to Victoria Holt (creepy English manor setting with a smidge from the "Had-I-But- Known" school thrown in), Kate Morton (dual storyline and dark secrets), Sarah Waters (spooky ghostly touch--which may or may not be real), and Daphne du Maurier (vibe of madness). The ending was fairly well expected but on the whole it was a satisfying read and will keep my gothic craving at bay until Kate Morton releases another book.
Also, I was glad I read the acknowledgements at the end before I started the book as the author credits Owlpen Manor in England for the inspiration of Fiercombe Manor. Google it so you can have a picture in your head of the house and grounds.
Recommended for readers of any of the above authors.
Thanks to Edelweiss for providing the e-galley.
January 11, 2015
It is 1932 and when Alice finds herself unmarried and pregnant, she is sent on a long visit to Fiercombe Manor in the Cotswolds, a lonely mansion in the bottom of a remote valley, where the housekeeper, Mrs Jelphs is an old friend of her mothers. Under the pretence of being widowed she is to stay there until the birth of her child and then return to London. Alice is immediately drawn to Fiercombe in this atmospheric and haunting read. In particular she feels compelled to learn about its history, and especially that of the mysterious and enigmatic Elizabeth Stanton – a woman who lived there at the end of the 19th century and whose fate is shrouded in mystery. Mrs Jelphs certainly knows what happened but is reluctant to reveal her knowledge.
The story is told from the viewpoints of both Alice and Elizabeth. The story is very slow moving and very descriptive, the author really does instil the feeling of a long hot sticky summer on the reader. I did think sometimes it was a bit too descriptive, getting in the way of the story somewhat. I thought at one point that the story was going to be much more ghostly than it actually turned out to be, the tale didn’t really develop along those lines, just hinted at it now and again. What it does turn out to be is a very good relating of mental health issues in the late 19th century – I felt that aspect of the story to be really well done and riveting. On the whole I did enjoy the read, although would have preferred it to be a bit more fast moving and a touch more haunting. Many thanks to the publishers for the review copy.
The story is told from the viewpoints of both Alice and Elizabeth. The story is very slow moving and very descriptive, the author really does instil the feeling of a long hot sticky summer on the reader. I did think sometimes it was a bit too descriptive, getting in the way of the story somewhat. I thought at one point that the story was going to be much more ghostly than it actually turned out to be, the tale didn’t really develop along those lines, just hinted at it now and again. What it does turn out to be is a very good relating of mental health issues in the late 19th century – I felt that aspect of the story to be really well done and riveting. On the whole I did enjoy the read, although would have preferred it to be a bit more fast moving and a touch more haunting. Many thanks to the publishers for the review copy.
August 9, 2019
I meant to read this novel when it first came out back in 2013 because the reviews were intriguing, but it’s been a treat worth waiting for. Kate Riordan cleverly weaves the stories of two women: Alice in the early 1930s, pregnant after a brief affair with a married man, and Elizabeth in the 1890s, married to a cold, controlling man. They live in two houses in a lush valley – Fiercombe Manor and Stanton Hall – and these become almost like characters in their own right. Strange things happen in those parts: shadows seen out of the corner of the eye, rustlings in the trees and rhododendrons that bloom long after they should have. The summer heat is draining and oppressive: is that causing delusions or could there be something supernatural going on?
Alice keeps stumbling across clues to Elizabeth’s life and tries to find out more but she is blocked at every turn by Mrs Jelphs, the housekeeper, and Ruck, the gardener. Strangely, as she explores the estate, events in Alice’s life begin to mirror Elizabeth’s, almost as if she is reaching out across the decades. What happened to her and the little daughter who left behind a velveteen rabbit? Is Alice set to share their fate?
The novel is subtle and atmospheric, the two stories beautifully balanced. I was astonished to realize this was Kate Riordan’s first novel because it is rich and accomplished, a mesmerising read about two women who got pregnant with the wrong men.
Alice keeps stumbling across clues to Elizabeth’s life and tries to find out more but she is blocked at every turn by Mrs Jelphs, the housekeeper, and Ruck, the gardener. Strangely, as she explores the estate, events in Alice’s life begin to mirror Elizabeth’s, almost as if she is reaching out across the decades. What happened to her and the little daughter who left behind a velveteen rabbit? Is Alice set to share their fate?
The novel is subtle and atmospheric, the two stories beautifully balanced. I was astonished to realize this was Kate Riordan’s first novel because it is rich and accomplished, a mesmerising read about two women who got pregnant with the wrong men.
September 7, 2016
Time separates two women linked through similar challenges. Dark secrets revealed, a journal discovered. Richly atmospheric, enough of a mild gothic edge to add a chillingly eerie feel as the mystery is unraveled.
Riordan does an outstanding job providing details of the manor both inside and outside. The lush grounds, the vast interior of the manor all captured in the reader’s mind. As you travel alternately through the past and present you are aware of social propriety, the oppression women faced during these sexist times.
I found Alice and Elizabeth equally compelling, leaning towards Elizabeth more. Alice was so niaeve, easily impressionable, I felt for her predicament. Elizabeth’s story was heartbreaking, so tragic especially when it is fully disclosed. A few twists caught me off guard which I enjoyed.
The slow pace was welcoming, allowing for characters to become personable and intimate with the peruser, igniting your curiosity as to what happened to Elizabeth and what will become of Alice. Riordan presents a stark glimpse into the poor treatment of women, pregnancy, mental health, women under the controlling thumb of men, secrets, marriage, love.
Entertaining read, I only wish it possessed a stronger gothic presence. On the fence with the ending.
Riordan does an outstanding job providing details of the manor both inside and outside. The lush grounds, the vast interior of the manor all captured in the reader’s mind. As you travel alternately through the past and present you are aware of social propriety, the oppression women faced during these sexist times.
I found Alice and Elizabeth equally compelling, leaning towards Elizabeth more. Alice was so niaeve, easily impressionable, I felt for her predicament. Elizabeth’s story was heartbreaking, so tragic especially when it is fully disclosed. A few twists caught me off guard which I enjoyed.
The slow pace was welcoming, allowing for characters to become personable and intimate with the peruser, igniting your curiosity as to what happened to Elizabeth and what will become of Alice. Riordan presents a stark glimpse into the poor treatment of women, pregnancy, mental health, women under the controlling thumb of men, secrets, marriage, love.
Entertaining read, I only wish it possessed a stronger gothic presence. On the fence with the ending.
January 27, 2015
Why the booktrail?
Even the title is mysterious – just who is the girl in the photo? We wanted to know straight away!
Story in a nutshell
The Girl in the Photograph is a haunting and atmospheric novel that tells the tales of women in two different eras – the 1890’s and 1930’s – and how their lives seem to be entwined by fate.
Place and setting
Fiercombe Manor in Gloucestershire where Alice arrives at in disgrace is a beautiful house but one which is to hide her shame from society and keep her within its walls. It’s a fictional place but there are many mentions of neighbouring towns and villages to help set the scene. Gloucestershire in all its glory and rather chilling landscape is brought to life.
The landscape, a major character in the novel is at once ‘ impassable’, ‘ dark’ and intimidating. Certainly for Alice who is sent away to start a new and difficult life. Banished to Gloucestershire and to the old and mysterious Fiercombe Manor.
The valley is described as being ‘crowded with ghosts’ and ‘saturated with the past’ and as the action flits between 1930s and 1890s, then the sepia tone is added and we see the change how the valley’s state reflects that of either Elizabeth or Alice.
The mysterious Fiercombe manor is a creaky and intimidating place – whispers in the corridors and candles which refuse to go out. The inspiration for this was a real, stunning if not a bit spooky manor house called OwlPen Manor in Gloucestershire. Is this a salvation for Alice or her downfall?
Thoughts
You will hear and feel every creak and whisper in the walls when you read this book. I immediately wanted to go to Owlpen manor but would be rather afraid to meet a Mrs Jelphs . She was the lady at the house who receives Alice and she has such a formidable presence that I was both intrigued and nervous around her. She provides many of the answers to Alice’s questions – about the past and the tragic Lady Elizabeth Stanton who lived there years ago.
The mix of past and present was neatly and artfully done rather like placing a sepia tone picture over the Valley only to remove it as Alice came onto the scene. It cleared as she discovered more and more about Elizabeth, and the fate of the two women, what they went through and how they coped with their pressures was heartbreaking to read about.
The place of women in society, hidden and secretive pregnancies, post natal depression are all subjects dealt with here and it makes you grateful that you weren’t born then. The constraints placed on them by society were shocking and as the full picture was revealed in the novel, I was held captive.
Even the title is mysterious – just who is the girl in the photo? We wanted to know straight away!
Story in a nutshell
The Girl in the Photograph is a haunting and atmospheric novel that tells the tales of women in two different eras – the 1890’s and 1930’s – and how their lives seem to be entwined by fate.
Place and setting
Fiercombe Manor in Gloucestershire where Alice arrives at in disgrace is a beautiful house but one which is to hide her shame from society and keep her within its walls. It’s a fictional place but there are many mentions of neighbouring towns and villages to help set the scene. Gloucestershire in all its glory and rather chilling landscape is brought to life.
The landscape, a major character in the novel is at once ‘ impassable’, ‘ dark’ and intimidating. Certainly for Alice who is sent away to start a new and difficult life. Banished to Gloucestershire and to the old and mysterious Fiercombe Manor.
The valley is described as being ‘crowded with ghosts’ and ‘saturated with the past’ and as the action flits between 1930s and 1890s, then the sepia tone is added and we see the change how the valley’s state reflects that of either Elizabeth or Alice.
The mysterious Fiercombe manor is a creaky and intimidating place – whispers in the corridors and candles which refuse to go out. The inspiration for this was a real, stunning if not a bit spooky manor house called OwlPen Manor in Gloucestershire. Is this a salvation for Alice or her downfall?
Thoughts
You will hear and feel every creak and whisper in the walls when you read this book. I immediately wanted to go to Owlpen manor but would be rather afraid to meet a Mrs Jelphs . She was the lady at the house who receives Alice and she has such a formidable presence that I was both intrigued and nervous around her. She provides many of the answers to Alice’s questions – about the past and the tragic Lady Elizabeth Stanton who lived there years ago.
The mix of past and present was neatly and artfully done rather like placing a sepia tone picture over the Valley only to remove it as Alice came onto the scene. It cleared as she discovered more and more about Elizabeth, and the fate of the two women, what they went through and how they coped with their pressures was heartbreaking to read about.
The place of women in society, hidden and secretive pregnancies, post natal depression are all subjects dealt with here and it makes you grateful that you weren’t born then. The constraints placed on them by society were shocking and as the full picture was revealed in the novel, I was held captive.
January 21, 2015
Two women, each of them pregnant.
Alice is a 22 year old typist living with her parents in the year 1932. Alice is wondering when her real life will begin when she falls pregnant to a married man and is sent to live at Fiercombe Manor (Fiercombe Estate) in Gloucestershire, where an old friend of Alice’s mother is the housekeeper.
The other woman is Elizabeth, she is pregnant and it is1898. She is the wife of the sixth Baronet of Fiercombe Estate - Edward Stanton. Edward has built Stanton House on the Estate choosing not to live in the old Manor. Elizabeth and Edward have a daughter Isabel, and Elizabeth has suffered some miscarriages. Edward desperately desires for the unborn child to be a son.
The chapters alternate between the two women. Questions are raised.
‘What happened to Stanton House?’, ‘Where did Elizabeth and Isabel go?’, ‘What is this illness of Elizabeth’s that is alluded to?’, ‘What is the housekeeper hiding?’.
Being pregnant ends up not being the only connection that Alice and Elizabeth share.
The Girl in the Photograph is quite a substantial read being over 400 pages. There was some lovely writing throughout, though I did at times find it to be a bit tedious.The novel made me stop and consider historical attitudes towards women in pregnancy and their mental health. Overall it was an entertaining read.
Thankyou to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy to read and review.
November 25, 2014
Just finished this and it was such a good emotional evocative read. Full review will be published (along with an author Q&A) around time of release. For now though you can find out about the inspiration behind the novel from one of my recent blog posts.
http://lizlovesbooks.com/lizlovesbook...
http://lizlovesbooks.com/lizlovesbook...
December 7, 2014
It is 1932 and Alice is a young woman feeling constrained by life. Despite making her father proud by doing well at school and getting a good office job, her mother is disapproving about her lack of possible husbands and insists that she will be left on the shelf. Unfortunately, the one man Alice is interested in is already married. Young and naïve, she believes his tales of divorcing his wife and finds herself pregnant and alone. If her mother was disapproving before, now she is shocked and disappointed. However, she manages to find a possible solution – a childhood friend is now housekeeper at Fiercombe and Elizabeth is hastily packed off there with a tale of being widowed and needing time to recover, so she can have the child is secret.
Secrets are familiar things at Fiercombe and, before long, Alice is fascinated by the previous Lady of the manor, Elizabeth Stanton. Although, she soon discovers that Elizabeth was mistress of the much grander Stanton Hall, which stood nearby. Possibly to take her mind off of her predicament, Alice begins to uncover the mystery of what happened to Elizabeth Stanton, who came to Stanton Hall in 1898.
Although this uses the, now familiar, plot device of two different time lines, this novel works better than most. Mrs Jelphs, the housekeeper, ties both the stories together. Now housekeeper, she was once Elizabeth Stanton’s lady maid and staunchest defender. Elizabeth needed friends, as her marriage descended into the desperate desire by her husband for a male heir and the disappointment which ensued. With both Alice and Elizabeth’s stories revolving around the bearing of children, this is an emotional, but skilfully woven tale, of desire, despair and maternal love. A very evocative and well written novel, which manages to be moving, rather than over sentimental. Lastly, I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review.
Secrets are familiar things at Fiercombe and, before long, Alice is fascinated by the previous Lady of the manor, Elizabeth Stanton. Although, she soon discovers that Elizabeth was mistress of the much grander Stanton Hall, which stood nearby. Possibly to take her mind off of her predicament, Alice begins to uncover the mystery of what happened to Elizabeth Stanton, who came to Stanton Hall in 1898.
Although this uses the, now familiar, plot device of two different time lines, this novel works better than most. Mrs Jelphs, the housekeeper, ties both the stories together. Now housekeeper, she was once Elizabeth Stanton’s lady maid and staunchest defender. Elizabeth needed friends, as her marriage descended into the desperate desire by her husband for a male heir and the disappointment which ensued. With both Alice and Elizabeth’s stories revolving around the bearing of children, this is an emotional, but skilfully woven tale, of desire, despair and maternal love. A very evocative and well written novel, which manages to be moving, rather than over sentimental. Lastly, I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review.
August 22, 2016
4.5 stars
January 25, 2015
This is a story of two women told in two time periods and the events that occur are a result of the societal attitudes of the time. It is also a story of the relationship between mothers and daughters. Both women, Elizabeth in 1898 and Alice in 1933, are expecting a child.
Elizabeth already has a daughter, Isabel, but after suffering two miscarriages is hoping this pregnancy will result in a baby boy to provide her husband Edward with his much longer for heir. Alice, a secretary, was seduced by a married man and is sent away in shame by her mother to an old friend, Edith Jelphs who works on a country estate, Fiercombe Manor. To maintain Alice's respectability, her mother concocts the story that she is recently widowed and needs somewhere restful to have her baby.
Alice soon discovers that there is a mystery at Fiercombe. A new grand mansion built for Edward and Elizabeth in 1898 has all but disappeared and the old crumbling estate now belongs to his brother Charles who lives in France. Edith Jelphs, as the current housekeeper at Fiercombe and Elizabeth's maid when she was young, is the link between the two stories, but she holds her secrets close and Alice soon learns is reluctant to talk about Elizabeth. However, after she finds a journal of Elizabeth's in the summerhouse she gradually pieces together the story behind the disappearance of the family with help from an old historian in town and Tom, the handsome but troubled heir to the estate.
The author uses the two women's experiences of pregnancy to highlight society's treatment of women and childbirth in former times. Both women feel confined and trapped by their family's and society's expectations of them. Elizabeth must produce a boy to earn her husband's love and respect and Alice is expected to quietly give her baby up for adoption to keep her place in society and have any chance of marrying.In particular the author explores the attitude to female madness and postnatal depression in the 19th century and the way in which decisions about women's lives were controlled by men. Elizabeth's attitude and relationship to her daughter Isabel is also central to the story, as to a lesser extent is Alice's relationship with her mother.
The writing is strong and wonderfully descriptive and the characters are well depicted and real. Although I felt the novel was perhaps a little too long, it works well in describing the events over the gradual build up of a long hot summer with tension mounting that can only be released by the onslaught of a massive storm and resolution of the mystery. There are hints that the estate might be haunted, by ghosts of the family as well as more ancient ghosts, and although this is never strongly developed it adds to the slightly spooky atmosphere of the estate and the story.
With thanks to Netgalley for a copy of the book to read and review.
February 10, 2017
Maudlin, trite, slow. Takes itself so seriously heaven forfend there be any moments of levity. The idea behind it is good but you can't transplant modern ideas and thinking into the mind of historical characters. Bottle it up, stiff upper lip, wasn't just what British people were told it's what they *believed* You can't just transplant someone with attitudes from what looks to be the 1990s into the 1930s.
What utterly strips this of all it's stars is that the author is a absolute chuffing imbecile.
There were no workhouses in 1930. Honestly both time periods are wrong, especially the 1930s one, she didn't take into account the sweeping social chance with both attitudes and government benefits/housing post 1909. Set the 1930s story in 1890 and the 1890s story in 1850 and it would be accurate.
People rating this highly needs to read more history, as does Kate Riordan.
What utterly strips this of all it's stars is that the author is a absolute chuffing imbecile.
There were no workhouses in 1930. Honestly both time periods are wrong, especially the 1930s one, she didn't take into account the sweeping social chance with both attitudes and government benefits/housing post 1909. Set the 1930s story in 1890 and the 1890s story in 1850 and it would be accurate.
People rating this highly needs to read more history, as does Kate Riordan.
May 15, 2015
‘Fiercombe is a place of secrets. They fret among the uppermost branches of the beech trees and brood at the cold bottom of the stream that cleaves the valley in two. The past has seeped into the soil here like spilt blood.’
In 1932, twenty-two year old Alice Eveleigh finds herself pregnant by a man she thought she loved but is already married to another. In an attempt to spare the family scandal, her mother sends her to stay with an old friend, Mrs. Jelphs, at Fiercombe Manor in the English countryside until the baby is born and they can give it up for adoption. With nothing to do to keep her occupied, Alice gets drawn into the curious history of the Stanton family and the previous residents of Fiercombe that seemingly disappeared without a trace. Discovering a diary kept by Elizabeth Stanton which details her pregnancy only increases her curiosity and the more she finds out about her, the more she fears she’s destined for the same fate.
‘Elizabeth. That was the first time I saw her name. What did I think, if anything? I’m sure I traced the letters with my finger; perhaps I even whispered it under my breath, the hiss of the second syllable, the sigh of the last. But that was all. My interest in her and the estate’s history was fleeting then – a faint glimmer of intrigue that glowed and then dimmed again, though not before it had lodged itself at the back of my mind, ready to be brought out later.’
This book had everything going for it: Gothic setting in the English countryside, the dual-narratives/timelines that inevitably collide with one another in the end, and even a creepy Rebecca-esque housekeeper. It was everything I should have loved, and I did, for the most part. The issue I have with most dual narratives is the fact that one is most generally always more interesting than the other, as is the case with Fiercombe. Elizabeth’s narrative set in the late 1800s centered around the common affliction that was terribly misunderstood of puerperal insanity, a form of postpartum depression. It’s always difficult reading about medical issues being misconstrued in the past resulting in far worse instances than should have occurred. But Elizabeth’s narrative was not only terribly sad but it was gripping and truly haunting. Alice’s narrative involved her trying to uncover information about Elizabeth, having formed something of a mental kinship to her from her diary since most of Elizabeth’s writings were during the time when she too was pregnant. The attempt to join the two narratives together wasn’t exactly convincing, and Alice’s fears were tame in comparison to Elizabeth’s genuine ones, although my interest in finding out what happened to both women never seemed to wane.
Fiercombe Manor kept me fully invested to the very end with atmospheric writing and a haunting past revealed piece by piece.
I received this book free from TLC Book Tours in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
In 1932, twenty-two year old Alice Eveleigh finds herself pregnant by a man she thought she loved but is already married to another. In an attempt to spare the family scandal, her mother sends her to stay with an old friend, Mrs. Jelphs, at Fiercombe Manor in the English countryside until the baby is born and they can give it up for adoption. With nothing to do to keep her occupied, Alice gets drawn into the curious history of the Stanton family and the previous residents of Fiercombe that seemingly disappeared without a trace. Discovering a diary kept by Elizabeth Stanton which details her pregnancy only increases her curiosity and the more she finds out about her, the more she fears she’s destined for the same fate.
‘Elizabeth. That was the first time I saw her name. What did I think, if anything? I’m sure I traced the letters with my finger; perhaps I even whispered it under my breath, the hiss of the second syllable, the sigh of the last. But that was all. My interest in her and the estate’s history was fleeting then – a faint glimmer of intrigue that glowed and then dimmed again, though not before it had lodged itself at the back of my mind, ready to be brought out later.’
This book had everything going for it: Gothic setting in the English countryside, the dual-narratives/timelines that inevitably collide with one another in the end, and even a creepy Rebecca-esque housekeeper. It was everything I should have loved, and I did, for the most part. The issue I have with most dual narratives is the fact that one is most generally always more interesting than the other, as is the case with Fiercombe. Elizabeth’s narrative set in the late 1800s centered around the common affliction that was terribly misunderstood of puerperal insanity, a form of postpartum depression. It’s always difficult reading about medical issues being misconstrued in the past resulting in far worse instances than should have occurred. But Elizabeth’s narrative was not only terribly sad but it was gripping and truly haunting. Alice’s narrative involved her trying to uncover information about Elizabeth, having formed something of a mental kinship to her from her diary since most of Elizabeth’s writings were during the time when she too was pregnant. The attempt to join the two narratives together wasn’t exactly convincing, and Alice’s fears were tame in comparison to Elizabeth’s genuine ones, although my interest in finding out what happened to both women never seemed to wane.
Fiercombe Manor kept me fully invested to the very end with atmospheric writing and a haunting past revealed piece by piece.
I received this book free from TLC Book Tours in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
December 4, 2014
For someone who isn’t a fan of ghostly elements in books it is amazing how I have now read three books in quick succession that feature them in various degrees, although the ghosts in this book are in many ways ephemeral beings. For Alice Eveleigh newly resident at Fiercombe Manor the feeling that the house was host to those who’d lived before that made the former Lady of the Manor, Elizabeth Stanton’s life so intriguing and a welcome distraction for the exiled pregnant young woman who had been sent away in disgrace.
Told as a dual narrative between Alice in 1933 and Elizabeth in the last years of the nineteenth century in the beautiful setting of Gloucestershire. Although the story is set in the fictional village of Fiercombe it is nearby the actual village of Painswick and the descriptions of this village often cut off from the outside world by floods were certainly evocative, more so perhaps as this reader spent her formative years in Gloucestershire.
Bluebells glos wildlife trust
Picture of Bluebell woods courtesy of Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust
With both women pregnant albeit under very different circumstances the reader is drawn into comparisons of the two women’s lives as their pregnancies prove to be a difficult time for both of them. Both Alice and Elizabeth’s characters are well-developed as are the secondary characters of Mrs Jelph the housekeeper and Ruck the groundsman at Fiercombe Manor. The beauty of the two narratives being less than forty years apart enables Kate Riordan to weave many of the characters into both stories which lends a feeling of continuity that can be lost or contrived during these dual time tales. The issues facing both women are well-researched which helps keep the story rooted in the time it’s set in although I think this was more successful for Elizabeth than Alice whose life was more isolated until the heir to the manor, Tom, returns to carry out some estate work, but Tom has his own burden and Alice is intrigued to have another Stanton mystery to uncover.
For once it was the more recent story that grabbed my attention and I wanted all to turn out well for Alice, a bright and inquisitive young lady who having left her busy London life with her job, her friends and her parents behind doesn’t dwell on her own misfortune but instead uses her banishment to learn more about Elizabeth aided by a diary and the local historian Hugh Morton she finds pictures of houses, gardens and finally a picture of Elizabeth.
This book has a melancholy feel to it and the author doesn’t try to make everything all better so if you decide to read this one prepare to have a lump in your throat as you realise how much easier women’s lives are today than the times depicted in this novel.
I’d like to say a big thank you to Real Readers who sent me this book in the hope that I would enjoy it and write a review. How could I not enjoy a well-researched historical novel that deals with the issues it tells in a realistic but not overly sensational manner.
Told as a dual narrative between Alice in 1933 and Elizabeth in the last years of the nineteenth century in the beautiful setting of Gloucestershire. Although the story is set in the fictional village of Fiercombe it is nearby the actual village of Painswick and the descriptions of this village often cut off from the outside world by floods were certainly evocative, more so perhaps as this reader spent her formative years in Gloucestershire.
Bluebells glos wildlife trust
Picture of Bluebell woods courtesy of Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust
With both women pregnant albeit under very different circumstances the reader is drawn into comparisons of the two women’s lives as their pregnancies prove to be a difficult time for both of them. Both Alice and Elizabeth’s characters are well-developed as are the secondary characters of Mrs Jelph the housekeeper and Ruck the groundsman at Fiercombe Manor. The beauty of the two narratives being less than forty years apart enables Kate Riordan to weave many of the characters into both stories which lends a feeling of continuity that can be lost or contrived during these dual time tales. The issues facing both women are well-researched which helps keep the story rooted in the time it’s set in although I think this was more successful for Elizabeth than Alice whose life was more isolated until the heir to the manor, Tom, returns to carry out some estate work, but Tom has his own burden and Alice is intrigued to have another Stanton mystery to uncover.
For once it was the more recent story that grabbed my attention and I wanted all to turn out well for Alice, a bright and inquisitive young lady who having left her busy London life with her job, her friends and her parents behind doesn’t dwell on her own misfortune but instead uses her banishment to learn more about Elizabeth aided by a diary and the local historian Hugh Morton she finds pictures of houses, gardens and finally a picture of Elizabeth.
This book has a melancholy feel to it and the author doesn’t try to make everything all better so if you decide to read this one prepare to have a lump in your throat as you realise how much easier women’s lives are today than the times depicted in this novel.
I’d like to say a big thank you to Real Readers who sent me this book in the hope that I would enjoy it and write a review. How could I not enjoy a well-researched historical novel that deals with the issues it tells in a realistic but not overly sensational manner.
April 7, 2015
FIERCOMBE MANOR
Kate Riordan
FIERCOMBE MANOR is the story of two women of different eras living in the manor house. One woman is depicted in the 1930’s and the other in the 1890’s and they have pregnancy in common. The book is described as haunting and will appeal to readers who loved REBECCA.
I, personally, am very tired of reviews that use the beloved REBECCA as a selling point and especially when the book or books don’t even come close to the comparison!
The novel has a housekeeper (probably the comparison to Mrs. Danvers) who is the keeper of the secrets of the house and the family to herself.
A predicable ending.
Kate Riordan
FIERCOMBE MANOR is the story of two women of different eras living in the manor house. One woman is depicted in the 1930’s and the other in the 1890’s and they have pregnancy in common. The book is described as haunting and will appeal to readers who loved REBECCA.
I, personally, am very tired of reviews that use the beloved REBECCA as a selling point and especially when the book or books don’t even come close to the comparison!
The novel has a housekeeper (probably the comparison to Mrs. Danvers) who is the keeper of the secrets of the house and the family to herself.
A predicable ending.
April 29, 2015
Everything I love in a novel: an old house, a mystery, an unfolding romance and a whole heap of exquisite, evocative writing. I was transported to high summer in a lush, green valley and I absolutely adored it.
April 11, 2015
I find it difficult to resist period romances set in country houses, especially when there’s a hint of suspense or a touch of the gothic, and ‘The Girl in the Photograph’ promised all of that.
This is a story is told in retrospect, recalling events that had happened just a few years earlier.
‘I could never have imagined all that would happen in those few short months and how, by the end of them, my life would have altered irrevocably and for ever’
In 1932 Alice was young, and she was holding down a good job while she waited, quite passively, for when ‘her life – her real life – would begin’. That made her susceptible to a charming older man she met at work. She thought that he was the great love of her life, but he seduced and abandoned her.
Alice’s mother was horrified when she found that her daughter was pregnant, but she was practical and she took matters out of Alice’s hands. She arranged for her daughter to stay with an old friend who was the housekeeper and custodian of Fiercombe Manor, in the depths of Gloucestershire , while she waited to give birth. She told Alice that she must present herself as a widow, whose husband had died in an accident not long after the wedding, and that when the child was born it would be put up for adoption, so that Alice could resume her old life without shame or stigma.
The story was well told, and it rang true. I believed in Alice’s fall, and in her mother’s response. I understood how each of them must have felt
The old acquaintance in the country – close enough to offer such help but not so close that she might have any idea that the story she was told was untrue – seemed a little convenient, but the story was engaging and it held such promise.
“Firecombe is a place of secrets. They fret among the uppermost branches of the beech trees and brood at the cold bottom of the stream that cleaves the valley in two. The past has seeped into the soil here, like spilt blood. If you listen closely enough you can almost hear what’s gone before, particularly on the stillest days. Sometimes the very air seems to hum with anticipation. At other times it’s as though a collective breath has been drawn in and held. It waits, or so it seems to me.”
When Alice arrives at Fiercombe Manor she is uncomfortable with the story she has to tell, and the unwarranted sympathy that she receives. And at night, when the house is silent, she feels another presence in her room. She wonders if the house is haunted, if that is why the family who own the house but who never visit, if there might be a story to be uncovered.
‘I felt intrigued and almost excited, as though a mystery had presented itself to be solved. Delving into the past was just the sort of distraction I needed to take me away from my own present.’
She asks Mrs Jelphs, the housekeeper about the history of the house and about Lady Elizabeth Stanton , the last lady of the manor. Mrs Jelphs had been concerned, helpful and supportive of Alice, she became evasive. Even though she knew that Alice knew that she might have told her a great deal; because years ago she had been Elizabeth’s maid.
Elizabeth’s she recalls the summer of 1898 when she too is awaiting the birth of her child. She lived in Stanton House which was nearby to Fiercombe Manor, but was there no more. Like Alice, she is pregnant, she is alone and yet not alone, and she is apprehensive about what will happen when her baby is born.
The Girl in the Photograph tells Alice and Elizabeth’s stories, until one of them comes to a dramatic, shocking end.
The story with beautifully told. The house lived and breathed; the atmosphere, the mystery and intrigue, were pitch perfect; and the gothic overtones were so very well done.
But though I loved Elizabeth’s story, which broke my heart in the end, I was less taken and less moved by Alice. I found her gauche and self-absorbed, and when I came to the end of the story and thought back to her words in the prologue …. well, that confirmed my feelings..
The writing is gorgeous, the story is readable, and I’m sorry that it doesn’t quite live up to that writing and that it has no more than the writing to set it apart from many other stories like this.
This is a story is told in retrospect, recalling events that had happened just a few years earlier.
‘I could never have imagined all that would happen in those few short months and how, by the end of them, my life would have altered irrevocably and for ever’
In 1932 Alice was young, and she was holding down a good job while she waited, quite passively, for when ‘her life – her real life – would begin’. That made her susceptible to a charming older man she met at work. She thought that he was the great love of her life, but he seduced and abandoned her.
Alice’s mother was horrified when she found that her daughter was pregnant, but she was practical and she took matters out of Alice’s hands. She arranged for her daughter to stay with an old friend who was the housekeeper and custodian of Fiercombe Manor, in the depths of Gloucestershire , while she waited to give birth. She told Alice that she must present herself as a widow, whose husband had died in an accident not long after the wedding, and that when the child was born it would be put up for adoption, so that Alice could resume her old life without shame or stigma.
The story was well told, and it rang true. I believed in Alice’s fall, and in her mother’s response. I understood how each of them must have felt
The old acquaintance in the country – close enough to offer such help but not so close that she might have any idea that the story she was told was untrue – seemed a little convenient, but the story was engaging and it held such promise.
“Firecombe is a place of secrets. They fret among the uppermost branches of the beech trees and brood at the cold bottom of the stream that cleaves the valley in two. The past has seeped into the soil here, like spilt blood. If you listen closely enough you can almost hear what’s gone before, particularly on the stillest days. Sometimes the very air seems to hum with anticipation. At other times it’s as though a collective breath has been drawn in and held. It waits, or so it seems to me.”
When Alice arrives at Fiercombe Manor she is uncomfortable with the story she has to tell, and the unwarranted sympathy that she receives. And at night, when the house is silent, she feels another presence in her room. She wonders if the house is haunted, if that is why the family who own the house but who never visit, if there might be a story to be uncovered.
‘I felt intrigued and almost excited, as though a mystery had presented itself to be solved. Delving into the past was just the sort of distraction I needed to take me away from my own present.’
She asks Mrs Jelphs, the housekeeper about the history of the house and about Lady Elizabeth Stanton , the last lady of the manor. Mrs Jelphs had been concerned, helpful and supportive of Alice, she became evasive. Even though she knew that Alice knew that she might have told her a great deal; because years ago she had been Elizabeth’s maid.
Elizabeth’s she recalls the summer of 1898 when she too is awaiting the birth of her child. She lived in Stanton House which was nearby to Fiercombe Manor, but was there no more. Like Alice, she is pregnant, she is alone and yet not alone, and she is apprehensive about what will happen when her baby is born.
The Girl in the Photograph tells Alice and Elizabeth’s stories, until one of them comes to a dramatic, shocking end.
The story with beautifully told. The house lived and breathed; the atmosphere, the mystery and intrigue, were pitch perfect; and the gothic overtones were so very well done.
But though I loved Elizabeth’s story, which broke my heart in the end, I was less taken and less moved by Alice. I found her gauche and self-absorbed, and when I came to the end of the story and thought back to her words in the prologue …. well, that confirmed my feelings..
The writing is gorgeous, the story is readable, and I’m sorry that it doesn’t quite live up to that writing and that it has no more than the writing to set it apart from many other stories like this.
January 28, 2015
When in the late spring of 1933, 20 year Alice Eveleigh arrives at Fiercombe Manor in a Gloucestershire valley she is nearly 6 months pregnant by her married boyfriend. She has been sent there in disgrace from London by her parents. The housekeeper Mrs Jelphs is an old school friend of Alice’s mother and has been told that Alice is newly widowed and needs some peace and quiet for the duration of her confinement. From her first arrival at Fiercombe, Alice feels a disturbing presence and a sadness that pervades the walls of the manor. Mrs Jelphs has been at Fiercombe for decades but for some reason is reluctant to talk to Alice about the previous owners, Edward and Elizabeth Stanton which makes Alice even keener to find out more.
This is a dual narrative story told by Alice in the early 1930s and Elizabeth Stanton in 1898. Despite the decades between their stories, there are similarities in both women. Both are pregnant and both are constrained by the attitudes and traditions of their time. Alice has bought shame on her family and has to be hidden away.
Elizabeth is married to the cold hearted Edward Stanton. Although they have a little girl, Isabel, Edward makes no secret of his wish for a son to carry on his title and estate. Elizabeth has suffered badly with what we now know as post natal depression however in those times this was seen as madness and Elizabeth’s husband took full advantage of the rights he had over her. The lack of women’s rights, particularly on mental health issues, was very much highlighted in this novel and was quite shocking. Once you are married you sign away your money and your life to your husband – such a marked difference to how we live now.
This is quite a long and detailed story which leads to a gradual reveal of past events. Throughout it is very descriptive and atmospheric and has clearly been well researched. It is not a traditional ghost story but there is a supernatural element – the old manor definitely has echoes of the past and the unhappiness of the previous occupants can be felt by Alice. To fill her time, Alice explores the manor and the surrounding grounds and discovers a secret journal kept by Elizabeth and gradually we learn of her story.
Personally I enjoyed Elizabeth’s narration more than Alice’s and whenever Alice was the main focus, I was impatient to get back to Elizabeth. I felt that Elizabeth had a bit more of a spark to her when compared to Alice and I was intrigued to learn what had happened to her and why the fate of the Stantons was clouded in mystery.
I'm a big fan of this type of historical fiction and did enjoy the dual time aspect and mysterious background to the story. I would certainly like to read more by this author. There were times when I felt the descriptive text slowed down the story (although that could just be me being impatient to know what happens next!) but I can’t fault the writing for the atmospheric and evocative detail, particularly with regard to the old manor house and for bringing to life the searing heat of the summer and the oppressive feel of the valley where watches and clocks refused to work.
This is a dual narrative story told by Alice in the early 1930s and Elizabeth Stanton in 1898. Despite the decades between their stories, there are similarities in both women. Both are pregnant and both are constrained by the attitudes and traditions of their time. Alice has bought shame on her family and has to be hidden away.
Elizabeth is married to the cold hearted Edward Stanton. Although they have a little girl, Isabel, Edward makes no secret of his wish for a son to carry on his title and estate. Elizabeth has suffered badly with what we now know as post natal depression however in those times this was seen as madness and Elizabeth’s husband took full advantage of the rights he had over her. The lack of women’s rights, particularly on mental health issues, was very much highlighted in this novel and was quite shocking. Once you are married you sign away your money and your life to your husband – such a marked difference to how we live now.
This is quite a long and detailed story which leads to a gradual reveal of past events. Throughout it is very descriptive and atmospheric and has clearly been well researched. It is not a traditional ghost story but there is a supernatural element – the old manor definitely has echoes of the past and the unhappiness of the previous occupants can be felt by Alice. To fill her time, Alice explores the manor and the surrounding grounds and discovers a secret journal kept by Elizabeth and gradually we learn of her story.
Personally I enjoyed Elizabeth’s narration more than Alice’s and whenever Alice was the main focus, I was impatient to get back to Elizabeth. I felt that Elizabeth had a bit more of a spark to her when compared to Alice and I was intrigued to learn what had happened to her and why the fate of the Stantons was clouded in mystery.
I'm a big fan of this type of historical fiction and did enjoy the dual time aspect and mysterious background to the story. I would certainly like to read more by this author. There were times when I felt the descriptive text slowed down the story (although that could just be me being impatient to know what happens next!) but I can’t fault the writing for the atmospheric and evocative detail, particularly with regard to the old manor house and for bringing to life the searing heat of the summer and the oppressive feel of the valley where watches and clocks refused to work.
May 20, 2018
Kate Riordan’s The Shadow Hour was one of the books that convinced me to dig deeper into the historical fiction genre, convincing me it was a genre I needed to pay more attention to rather than reading it sporadically. I have read more of the genre since then, but mostly it’s been novella length stories with only the occasional full-length novel thrown in. When I saw Kate Riordan’s The Girl in the Photograph on offer, I decided it was time for another full-length historical fiction novel.
In truth, my rating for this one is more of a three-point-five-star rating. I considered rounding it up, but in the end I opted to round down. This is because I gave The Shadow Hour a four-star rating, and in comparison The Girl in the Photograph felt a bit flat. It was certainly an enjoyable read, but it wasn’t quite on the same level as my prior Kate Riordan read – it certainly had four-star moments, but it wasn’t a consistent four-star read, as I had been hoping for.
As with my prior Kate Riordan read, The Girl in the Photograph offers us a dual timeline tale, one that slowly unfolds as we work our way deeper into the story. Filled with family drama and mystery, there is plenty in both storylines that will leave you desperate for more, curious to see how the two become intertwined. With so much going on, you’ll be turning the pages, eager to see how all the details are brought together.
The reason I didn’t enjoy this one quite as much is because of the pacing. I felt as though some part of the story went by too slowly, that we were buried under information that was given more attention than it should have been. With so much going on, there were some things I feel were more deserving of attention and these things sometimes missed out.
Overall, though, The Girl in the Photograph was another enjoyable read from Kate Riordan.
In truth, my rating for this one is more of a three-point-five-star rating. I considered rounding it up, but in the end I opted to round down. This is because I gave The Shadow Hour a four-star rating, and in comparison The Girl in the Photograph felt a bit flat. It was certainly an enjoyable read, but it wasn’t quite on the same level as my prior Kate Riordan read – it certainly had four-star moments, but it wasn’t a consistent four-star read, as I had been hoping for.
As with my prior Kate Riordan read, The Girl in the Photograph offers us a dual timeline tale, one that slowly unfolds as we work our way deeper into the story. Filled with family drama and mystery, there is plenty in both storylines that will leave you desperate for more, curious to see how the two become intertwined. With so much going on, you’ll be turning the pages, eager to see how all the details are brought together.
The reason I didn’t enjoy this one quite as much is because of the pacing. I felt as though some part of the story went by too slowly, that we were buried under information that was given more attention than it should have been. With so much going on, there were some things I feel were more deserving of attention and these things sometimes missed out.
Overall, though, The Girl in the Photograph was another enjoyable read from Kate Riordan.
July 16, 2025
This book would have to be a 2.5 stars. It was very slow to get into and stayed that way until the very end where it only slightly picked up. I think this book could’ve been quicker and with more twists to keep you interested and actually willing to finish the book. The authors writing was very strange and although the premise was interesting the book overall fell through.
The extremely long chapters in this book also made it more unbearable.
The extremely long chapters in this book also made it more unbearable.
August 19, 2017
There's just something about stories set in old manors and houses that draws me in like a fly to honey. I really loved the descriptions of Fiercombe Manor and the Stanton House, and though I went in expecting this to be a haunted house story, I wasn't disappointed when it wasn't.
I feel as though I read a good number of books with alternating storylines, and, once again, I enjoyed that aspect of the narration. Like Alice, I found myself looking forward to reading Elizabeth's journal entries.
This book wasn't perfect for me, and it felt like it was just missing a spark, so it probably won't be one I remember for very long, but I did thoroughly enjoy reading it.
A solid 3.5-4 star read for me.
I feel as though I read a good number of books with alternating storylines, and, once again, I enjoyed that aspect of the narration. Like Alice, I found myself looking forward to reading Elizabeth's journal entries.
This book wasn't perfect for me, and it felt like it was just missing a spark, so it probably won't be one I remember for very long, but I did thoroughly enjoy reading it.
A solid 3.5-4 star read for me.
January 1, 2021
‘The Girl in the Photograph’ by Kate Riordan began with great promise but I thought the pace a little bit too slow and that it wound up fizzling out a bit towards the end. The story is told by two women, Alice in 1933 and Elizabeth in 1898, who both live at the Gothic and secluded English country estate, Firecombe Manor. When Alice became pregnant to her married boyfriend her mother sent her away to stay with her childhood friend, Edith Jelphs, who works as a maid at Firecomb Manor.
Alice soon discovers Elizabeth’s old diaries and begins a quest to discover all of the mysteries that Firecombe Manor holds. Even though Edith worked for Elizabeth she is reluctant to speak about the past, so Alice is left to do most of the investigating on her own, with a bit of help from a local historian.
I particularly enjoyed the chapters of ‘The Girl in the Photograph’ which were told from Elizabeth’s perspective. They had a real mysterious and Gothic feel to them and I was really interested to find out what happened to her and her children. I did feel though that Alice’s chapters dragged on a bit and that the ending was rather anticlimactic, but these are all very likely just a matter of my own personal preferences. The story was well written and the mysteries are subtly, although slowly, revealed in a way that will appeal to readers who enjoy Gothic mysteries.
The Girl in the Photograph was published in the USA under the title Firecombe Manor.
Originally posted at https://scatterbooker.wordpress.com/2...
Alice soon discovers Elizabeth’s old diaries and begins a quest to discover all of the mysteries that Firecombe Manor holds. Even though Edith worked for Elizabeth she is reluctant to speak about the past, so Alice is left to do most of the investigating on her own, with a bit of help from a local historian.
I particularly enjoyed the chapters of ‘The Girl in the Photograph’ which were told from Elizabeth’s perspective. They had a real mysterious and Gothic feel to them and I was really interested to find out what happened to her and her children. I did feel though that Alice’s chapters dragged on a bit and that the ending was rather anticlimactic, but these are all very likely just a matter of my own personal preferences. The story was well written and the mysteries are subtly, although slowly, revealed in a way that will appeal to readers who enjoy Gothic mysteries.
The Girl in the Photograph was published in the USA under the title Firecombe Manor.
Originally posted at https://scatterbooker.wordpress.com/2...
January 30, 2016
"The Girl In The Photograph" is one of those books that creeps up on you slowly and then refuses to let you go. I liked it from the beginning, but it wasn't until the second half of the book that I found myself unable to put this book down anymore.
There are two main stories: That of Alice, a young woman living in London in the 1930s, and that of Elizabeth, another young woman living on an estate in rural England thirty years earlier. When Alice becomes pregnant after a short-lived (and ill-fated) affair with a married man, her mother sends her off to the country to have the baby in order to avoid the scandal of having an unmarried pregnant daughter. Fiercombe Manor, Alice's new home for the duration of her pregnancy, is an old estate in a lonesome valley without any immediate neighbors. Only the housekeeper, Mrs. Jelphs, and a groundskeeper still live there. From the beginning Alice feels drawn to the past of Fiercombe Manor and Stanton House - the huge mansion that stood on the estate in the 1890s, and which was completely torn down at the turn of the century. There are many secrets surrounding Elizabeth Stanton, the beautiful young woman who was married to the lord of the estate. The woman who seemed to have disappeared into thin air one fateful summer, and whose fate no one seems to know.
The story is told in alternating chapters through both Alice's and Elizabeth's perspectives. While Alice's part is told in the first person, Elizabeth's story (excepting her diary entries) is told in the third person. I found both Alice and Elizabeth to be interesting characters, and their stories engaging from start to finish. But it was Elizabeth's story that was the more compelling one of the two, though that probably had a lot to do with the subject matter (of which I don't want to say much since it would spoil the overall effect of the book). It was also the more tragic one. Throughout the entire book I kept hoping for some miraculous happy end to her story, all the while knowing that it was hurdling closer to disaster.
Kate Riordan's writing is wonderfully vivid, and I saw the whole story come to life before my eyes while I was reading. I think it would make a good movie, actually. There were a few moments throughout the book that were a little creepy, but that might have just been because I read those parts late at night. The ghosts of the past are certainly present in this story, but I wouldn't go so far as to call this a real ghost story. Perhaps "athmospheric and occasionally a little unsettling" would be a better way to describe it.
I'd recommend "The Girl In The Photograph" wholeheartedly to fans of Kate Morton and Susanna Kearsley, and to anyone else who enjoys well-written historical fiction with engaging characters and a dash of mystery.
There are two main stories: That of Alice, a young woman living in London in the 1930s, and that of Elizabeth, another young woman living on an estate in rural England thirty years earlier. When Alice becomes pregnant after a short-lived (and ill-fated) affair with a married man, her mother sends her off to the country to have the baby in order to avoid the scandal of having an unmarried pregnant daughter. Fiercombe Manor, Alice's new home for the duration of her pregnancy, is an old estate in a lonesome valley without any immediate neighbors. Only the housekeeper, Mrs. Jelphs, and a groundskeeper still live there. From the beginning Alice feels drawn to the past of Fiercombe Manor and Stanton House - the huge mansion that stood on the estate in the 1890s, and which was completely torn down at the turn of the century. There are many secrets surrounding Elizabeth Stanton, the beautiful young woman who was married to the lord of the estate. The woman who seemed to have disappeared into thin air one fateful summer, and whose fate no one seems to know.
The story is told in alternating chapters through both Alice's and Elizabeth's perspectives. While Alice's part is told in the first person, Elizabeth's story (excepting her diary entries) is told in the third person. I found both Alice and Elizabeth to be interesting characters, and their stories engaging from start to finish. But it was Elizabeth's story that was the more compelling one of the two, though that probably had a lot to do with the subject matter (of which I don't want to say much since it would spoil the overall effect of the book). It was also the more tragic one. Throughout the entire book I kept hoping for some miraculous happy end to her story, all the while knowing that it was hurdling closer to disaster.
Kate Riordan's writing is wonderfully vivid, and I saw the whole story come to life before my eyes while I was reading. I think it would make a good movie, actually. There were a few moments throughout the book that were a little creepy, but that might have just been because I read those parts late at night. The ghosts of the past are certainly present in this story, but I wouldn't go so far as to call this a real ghost story. Perhaps "athmospheric and occasionally a little unsettling" would be a better way to describe it.
I'd recommend "The Girl In The Photograph" wholeheartedly to fans of Kate Morton and Susanna Kearsley, and to anyone else who enjoys well-written historical fiction with engaging characters and a dash of mystery.
April 10, 2016
- My Description -
The year is 1933.
Alice Eveleigh is in love with the man of her dreams, or so she thinks....
John is married. He tells her he plans on leaving his wife for her. (Never ever believe that, girlfriend. Lol)
After a brief tryst, Alice discovers she's pregnant.
He informs her he's changed his mind and is not leaving his wife.
Alice decides not to tell John about the baby.
Young Alice is unmarried and pregnant.
This was quite the stigma for young women back then.
She tells her parents.
Her mom knows of a place that is taken care of by an old friend, Edith.
Her mom has the idea of the duration of her pregnancy to stay at Fiercombe Manor.
After the baby arrives, the baby will be put up for adoption.
A lie is set into motion.
Alice's mother informs Edith that Alice is recently widowed and pregnant.
This lie will save Alice and her mother's reputations.
This is all a superb plan.
Alice arrives at this hauntingly beautiful mansion.
She discovers many mysteries within its walls.
- My Review -
This started off a little shaky for me. I really just wasn't "getting" it.
After page 30, it seemed to even out.
For one thing: The writer just didn't capture the era. I wasn't being transported to the 1930's.
Another thing: Alice is pregnant. She wasn't taking care of herself for the baby's sake.
Edith informs her of a set of stairs never to take. Did Alice listen? NO!
She was rattling around the manor like a Nancy Drew.
It was so irritating. I wanted to scream.
The manor had a library. Grab a book, freaking lay on a bed and REST!
Eat when you're supposed to eat. Alice had a problem doing this too.
Maybe I'm being a Nervous Nelly, but she made me nervous and pissed off.
When someone tells her something for her own good, she needed to listen.
All the mysteries in this house, and she wants to investigate. I get it. She's bored, and mysteries are hard to ignore. But when you're preggo, the best you can manage is being an armchair detective.
March 6, 2015
The atmosphere in this book is perfect; the way that Riordan tugs the story out into the open is unhurried and neatly; and the emotional turmoil is there from the beginning, tugging at the reader.
This is the heartbreaking story of a very real feminine plight that so often one turns a blind eye on.
Alice is a strong but not overpowering female lead, easy to like and easy to follow in her curiosity to seek out the answer to the mystery of Elizabeth, and later little Isabel.
The life of Elizabeth, itself, and that of her husband is wreaked in turmoil and sadness despite the perfect façade that is portrayed. Her voice, though muted by that of her husband, is still very strong as it pours out of the pages of her dairy tear at the heart.
Both women are so seemingly different, and yet at the core incredibly similar in their states.
This is one of my referred to as quiet books. It doesn’t seem to hold much content because there are no big explosive incidents and things go about in a rather steady pace. But everything leads to a really dramatic conclusion, and the settling of a mystery that has needed to be solved so that two souls could find their peace.
I rather enjoyed it.
This is the heartbreaking story of a very real feminine plight that so often one turns a blind eye on.
Alice is a strong but not overpowering female lead, easy to like and easy to follow in her curiosity to seek out the answer to the mystery of Elizabeth, and later little Isabel.
The life of Elizabeth, itself, and that of her husband is wreaked in turmoil and sadness despite the perfect façade that is portrayed. Her voice, though muted by that of her husband, is still very strong as it pours out of the pages of her dairy tear at the heart.
Both women are so seemingly different, and yet at the core incredibly similar in their states.
This is one of my referred to as quiet books. It doesn’t seem to hold much content because there are no big explosive incidents and things go about in a rather steady pace. But everything leads to a really dramatic conclusion, and the settling of a mystery that has needed to be solved so that two souls could find their peace.
I rather enjoyed it.
February 28, 2015
I love stories that go back and forth in time, with creepy old houses, secrets and best of all-asylums! However, this book did not fully live up to its potential, sadly. The book was slow for the first half, then only moderately picked up pace in the second.
I like when an author takes on a topic that is not very openly discussed or made aware. In this case, post-partum depression and anxiety were a very present subject of the story. It was so sad to read, what I already knew to be true, of how women who suffered from these mental illnesses were treated. They were treated as maniacs- locked away in asylums, kept from their babies, and often times underwent horrific unproven psychiatric treatments. It makes me very grateful that now days we have a better grip on how to treat mental illness.
As far as a book of family secrets, this one was not one of the more interesting or strong reads that I have come across. It was worth the read, just a bit of a snore at times.
I like when an author takes on a topic that is not very openly discussed or made aware. In this case, post-partum depression and anxiety were a very present subject of the story. It was so sad to read, what I already knew to be true, of how women who suffered from these mental illnesses were treated. They were treated as maniacs- locked away in asylums, kept from their babies, and often times underwent horrific unproven psychiatric treatments. It makes me very grateful that now days we have a better grip on how to treat mental illness.
As far as a book of family secrets, this one was not one of the more interesting or strong reads that I have come across. It was worth the read, just a bit of a snore at times.
August 25, 2015
As I was reading this I
immediately thought of Jane Eyre. No, the books were not alike. It was the atmosphere. Both authors have down pefectly the dismal feeling that isn't quite depressing because of the hint of hope they provide. I have always liked gothics, I read Jane Eyre when I was 11 and loved the book. I loved this book. It was well written and was a very English gothic. I just wished that I read it during a storm, I think that it would have made the story even more powerful...
immediately thought of Jane Eyre. No, the books were not alike. It was the atmosphere. Both authors have down pefectly the dismal feeling that isn't quite depressing because of the hint of hope they provide. I have always liked gothics, I read Jane Eyre when I was 11 and loved the book. I loved this book. It was well written and was a very English gothic. I just wished that I read it during a storm, I think that it would have made the story even more powerful...
March 14, 2015
Meh. It was fine. It was predictable. I read it, and that is all the energy I'm going to put into it.
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