The Face in the Locket

by Alexandra Connor

When Harris Simons is orphaned at the age of eight, she is taken in by her aunts to live at their secluded large house. The two sisters have their own secrets, hiding difficult childhoods yet still maintaining an air of superiority and righteousness with those around them. Living with them is their brother, Saville, an adult but with the mind of a seven year old. The little girl’s arrival soon turns their world upside down.

Great plans are laid for their good-looking, headstrong niece. Harris is going to marry well. Everything changes when World War Two breaks out. Harris falls in love with a man who only has his own interests at heart. She scandalises and disgraces her family with her obsessive behaviour, making herself a laughing stock in the close-knit town.

But Harris is not to be put down. She begins to build a successful business with the support of her aunts and her close friend, Bonny. She eventually meets and agrees to marry the respectable local solicitor to the happiness of her aunts, but at the altar, she hears her lost love enter the church….

And once again, she shows her true colours. When tragedy strikes, Harris fights to regain respectability in the eyes of those who care for her but has Harris learned any lessons from her obsessive past…?

641 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 1, 2003

About the author

Alex (Alexandra) Connor was born in the UK. After beginning her career writing family sagas, she went on to write art thrillers and then historical novels. Having been published and translated in sixteen countries and enjoyed a No 1 best seller, she won the Rome Prize for Literature. Now returning to her love of thriller writing, she is extending her series of art thrillers with A WREATH of SERPENTS.

Reviews

[Vicki Whittiker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Life is a circle

I enjoyed this book immensely. It was well written and kept you spellbound and thinking about the storyline when the book had to be set down. Thank you for some wonderful time spent reading. It had mystery, sadness, love, and much more wrapped into the pages.

[Dawn Moon · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderful book...

The title caught my attention...and the story caught my heart. This was one of the best books I've read in a very long time. Definitely a must read. It made me laugh and cry and kept my attention throughout.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really lovely story, easy to read and had a bit of a twist at the ending, a happy one though! :)

[Kylie H · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this family saga - but did not think much of the twist at the end. Still a good read and some great characters.

[Patti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderfully funny

Very fun story to read. What a crazy family but so enjoyable. Such a tough life growing up but they endured.

[Gökçe]

Although the story is often unnecessarily extended, I was able to finish the book because the curiosity remained. It is understood that the author's salutation to Gone with the Wind by the frequent physical likeness of main character Harris to Vivien Leigh. However, I did not like the end. The sudden resurrection of one of the characters who died in the middle of the story with a letter at the end of the book was a surprise ending imposition and was unnecessary. I liked the character development of the Irma the most. The book also ruins the feminism discourse by marrying the main character to a happy ending. I also think that the Saville character could have been deepened further. But it's ok, i love the family saga.

[Denise · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thought it was brilliant.

[Flossie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book as it wasn’t at all predictable. It held my attention from the start right through to the surprising ending.

[Anne M.]

When I started this book I thought it was going to be a tale of the hardships faced by Harris, a young orphan being looked after by her two spinster aunts who also had care of their brother who had learning difficulties (as it would be called these days). However Harris's Aunt Mildred loved her from the beginning although Irma was harder on her and felt she was spoiled. Uncle Saville was a playmate to her.
In time she became friends with two very poor village children Bonny and her brother Richard. This friendship lasted their lifetime.
Harris was spoiled and became a bit of a snob like Irma.
The story goes on to tell of Harris falling in love for the new local doctor not realising that Richard had loved her all her life. These two things have devastating results on both Harris and Richard.
It is difficult to write this without giving too much away. Suffice to say it is one of the best books I have read for a long time.

[Raelee Carpenter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reads like a classic

Charming, fun, intense, and heart-breaking with a smart take on relationships and human nature with a good dose of grace.

There are a few technical issues: unstructured POV shifts and a couple inconsistencies in the timeline. And it felt a little too long, but it was an enjoyable read, notwithstanding.

[Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Slow in places, and lacked the certain something to make this a truly great read.

One slight up note though, the production values were great and I don't think I found any mistakes throughout the text ... always a refreshing change.

[Betty J. Clift · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent story.

A good page Turner. I could not put it down. I enjoyed following everyone's journey. it is very well written.

5 stars

[Kenneth Richardson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mystery very good

This book kept you wondering when the locket was going to be opened but it was not until the end. It was something you would never guessed.