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House of Lost Secrets
Some people keep secrets, this house hides them for generations. Can Cleo dig back in time to save the present? When genealogist Cleo is asked to investigate the family of Upper Moore House as a favour to her estate agent friend, it’s a different commission to the ones she’s used to. And right from the start she feels there’s something not quite right about Mrs Darcy D’Eath Wytcombe. What is Mrs Wytcome’s real motive for digging so deep into her late husband’s family? What secrets does she think Cleo will uncover? And is she prepared for what else might be revealed?
As Cleo discovers increasing numbers of old letters, some of which have been buried for over a century in hiding places within the house, a strange web of deceit begins to appear. What was the family’s connection to Georgian and Victorian Croatia and Italy, and just how closely related to one another were some of the Wytcombes? More urgently, who have been the real heirs to the house down the generations, and have others been willing to resort to blackmail or even murder to keep it from them? With Mrs Wytcombe pushing for a swift sale of the house, Cleo must work against the clock to find the true heirs to Upper Moore House and prevent a terrible miscarriage of justice. If you love paranormal mysteries by authors like Phil Rickman and James Oswald, and a dash of romance with your mystery as with Barbara Erskine, Lucinda Riley, and Karen Swan, or the magical elements of Diana Gabaldon’s Lord John Grey novels, then this is a book for you!
Get your copy of House of Lost Secrets today to find out just how far back the deceit and lies go!
As Cleo discovers increasing numbers of old letters, some of which have been buried for over a century in hiding places within the house, a strange web of deceit begins to appear. What was the family’s connection to Georgian and Victorian Croatia and Italy, and just how closely related to one another were some of the Wytcombes? More urgently, who have been the real heirs to the house down the generations, and have others been willing to resort to blackmail or even murder to keep it from them? With Mrs Wytcombe pushing for a swift sale of the house, Cleo must work against the clock to find the true heirs to Upper Moore House and prevent a terrible miscarriage of justice. If you love paranormal mysteries by authors like Phil Rickman and James Oswald, and a dash of romance with your mystery as with Barbara Erskine, Lucinda Riley, and Karen Swan, or the magical elements of Diana Gabaldon’s Lord John Grey novels, then this is a book for you!
Get your copy of House of Lost Secrets today to find out just how far back the deceit and lies go!
- GenresFiction
471 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 30, 2020
192 people are currently reading
100 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
March 15, 2024
3.5 stars!
This was a rather convoluted and complicated story of inheritance, murder and ghastly goings on within an aristocratic family. Chloe, a professional genealogist, is employed to uncover the family history of a member of England's landed gentry. The current "owner" of the family mansion is an extremely unpleasant widow who may, or may not, have murdered her husband in order to get at his money. A bit of a family trait as it turned out! However, diligent Chloe turns up some astonishing family secrets which blows the whole inheritance saga out of the water. Being a bit of a genealogist myself I appreciated the level of detail underpinning this story, along with the numerous family trees. However, it may not be to everyone's taste and so be aware before embarking upon this tale.
This was a rather convoluted and complicated story of inheritance, murder and ghastly goings on within an aristocratic family. Chloe, a professional genealogist, is employed to uncover the family history of a member of England's landed gentry. The current "owner" of the family mansion is an extremely unpleasant widow who may, or may not, have murdered her husband in order to get at his money. A bit of a family trait as it turned out! However, diligent Chloe turns up some astonishing family secrets which blows the whole inheritance saga out of the water. Being a bit of a genealogist myself I appreciated the level of detail underpinning this story, along with the numerous family trees. However, it may not be to everyone's taste and so be aware before embarking upon this tale.
May 5, 2022
3.5 stars, it was very cleverly done from the authors part as so much detail and constant backwards and forwards through the family tree. I kept having to revert to the family tree drawings in the book that were really useful. If interesting in ancestry this is the book for you as you kind of follow the investigation along the way. Story itself based upon a greedy widow trying to take what’s hers (it’s not) and overall I enjoyed it but it’s not a quick read nor a book you can read if distracted as need to concentrate.
March 9, 2024
I thought I was going to love this book, and to begin with I did. In the end, I found it a bit overwhelming really. There was so much unnecessary information, I thought the book could have been cut by at least half by just cutting out the waffle. The family tree was incredibly confusing. All in all it felt very hard work and when it became a chore, requiring a notepad and pencil to keep up, I decided to shelve it. DNF
March 14, 2023
I couldn't quite get to the end of this book, although I did make it through more than 350 pages. As I read, I realized that as events unfolded, I just had no idea who anyone was anymore. There were just too many people and I simply could not keep it all straight in my head. I referred pretty often to the family tree snippets the author included, and they were helpful, but not really helpful enough. I suppose it's a case of the events themselves being pretty interesting but slogging through the research to find those events being not so fascinating.
Sometimes when I don't finish a book, I resent every moment of my eyesight I wasted on it. This is NOT one of those times! There were things I enjoyed about the book and some things I didn't.
This book is all about a genealogist (Cleo) who solves a family mystery by tracing the family tree and filling in the blanks. I'm not sure whether being 'into' genealogy helps a reader in this case. I AM into genealogy and in fact am the author of a non-fiction book about genealogy. So, it's not a case of not being into the material, at least in my case. I have to say, though, in order for Cleo to know and analyze each fact off the top of her head as she did, she'd probably need degrees in history, archeology and architecture, at the very least.
I didn't like Cleo much. She seemed really manipulative. For example, when the police were called because of an altercation with Mrs W, Cleo's response is to encourage the other characters to get to the scene as quickly as possible because this was their chance to badmouth Mrs. W without having to be seen to call the cops themselves.
Cleo begins gossiping with Sarah the moment she arrives at Mrs. W's house and they are really nasty about her. That pettiness was too much. I get that Sarah was not meant to be friends with Mrs W and there was a legitimate issue between them, but I'd have preferred it be settled more maturely than everyone calling others names behind their backs.
The over-the-top nature of the relationship between Sarah and Mrs W, along with Cleo's immediate taking of sides with Sarah made it plain as day where the book's plot was going to take us. Once the handsome, single, perfect son came along, there was no question at all of how it was going to end.
My final point about the book is that it was poorly edited. In the prologue, which is only a few pages, a character's name changes from Sofia to Sophia and back again. Throughout the book there are missing words here and there. A particular item that irked me was that every time Cleo read a piece of information to Sarah, in response Sarah would either gulp or gasp. Jeez. It made Sarah sound like a complete idiot. I cannot emphasize enough to authors and editors that poor editing (and not just poor proofreading!) can completely toss a reader out of the story and ruin the continuity and enjoyment.
To me, the concept of the book is really great. And I think this author did a decent job of it. If other readers are better able to hold all the characters in their heads, I think they'll really enjoy it.
Sometimes when I don't finish a book, I resent every moment of my eyesight I wasted on it. This is NOT one of those times! There were things I enjoyed about the book and some things I didn't.
This book is all about a genealogist (Cleo) who solves a family mystery by tracing the family tree and filling in the blanks. I'm not sure whether being 'into' genealogy helps a reader in this case. I AM into genealogy and in fact am the author of a non-fiction book about genealogy. So, it's not a case of not being into the material, at least in my case. I have to say, though, in order for Cleo to know and analyze each fact off the top of her head as she did, she'd probably need degrees in history, archeology and architecture, at the very least.
I didn't like Cleo much. She seemed really manipulative. For example, when the police were called because of an altercation with Mrs W, Cleo's response is to encourage the other characters to get to the scene as quickly as possible because this was their chance to badmouth Mrs. W without having to be seen to call the cops themselves.
Cleo begins gossiping with Sarah the moment she arrives at Mrs. W's house and they are really nasty about her. That pettiness was too much. I get that Sarah was not meant to be friends with Mrs W and there was a legitimate issue between them, but I'd have preferred it be settled more maturely than everyone calling others names behind their backs.
The over-the-top nature of the relationship between Sarah and Mrs W, along with Cleo's immediate taking of sides with Sarah made it plain as day where the book's plot was going to take us. Once the handsome, single, perfect son came along, there was no question at all of how it was going to end.
My final point about the book is that it was poorly edited. In the prologue, which is only a few pages, a character's name changes from Sofia to Sophia and back again. Throughout the book there are missing words here and there. A particular item that irked me was that every time Cleo read a piece of information to Sarah, in response Sarah would either gulp or gasp. Jeez. It made Sarah sound like a complete idiot. I cannot emphasize enough to authors and editors that poor editing (and not just poor proofreading!) can completely toss a reader out of the story and ruin the continuity and enjoyment.
To me, the concept of the book is really great. And I think this author did a decent job of it. If other readers are better able to hold all the characters in their heads, I think they'll really enjoy it.
January 16, 2024
3.5 stars
I listened to the audiobook and enjoyed the narrator's (Annie Aldington) voice. She has a warm and "homely" style, which is easy to listen to.
Cleo has the job of unearthing the real inheritor of Upper Moor House. The family have moved all over the world and it's Cleo's knowledge of where to look for information, and her having historical family letters to read, that moves this story along.
It's winding and quite complicated; it took some concentration to work out what was going on some times. I have since learnt that the physical book contains a family tree diagram, something that you just don't get with an audiobook.
Overall I enjoyed the story, but think it's one of those books that needs to be physically read, and as I said, the family tree diagram would have been a big help.
I listened to the audiobook and enjoyed the narrator's (Annie Aldington) voice. She has a warm and "homely" style, which is easy to listen to.
Cleo has the job of unearthing the real inheritor of Upper Moor House. The family have moved all over the world and it's Cleo's knowledge of where to look for information, and her having historical family letters to read, that moves this story along.
It's winding and quite complicated; it took some concentration to work out what was going on some times. I have since learnt that the physical book contains a family tree diagram, something that you just don't get with an audiobook.
Overall I enjoyed the story, but think it's one of those books that needs to be physically read, and as I said, the family tree diagram would have been a big help.
August 1, 2021
Gave up half way through
I just couldn't carry on with this book unfortunately, the sheer amount of names and family connections frustrated me and I couldn't keep the thread of it.
I also found the characters rather immature, there were far too many gasps of surprise at the most mundane of details. Sarah and Cleo were almost as unlikeable as "herself" with their petty comments about Mrs W. And Cleo, with her quick judgements about absolutely everybody.
Unfortunately not a book for me although for those with an interest in genealogy it might be a little easier to follow
I just couldn't carry on with this book unfortunately, the sheer amount of names and family connections frustrated me and I couldn't keep the thread of it.
I also found the characters rather immature, there were far too many gasps of surprise at the most mundane of details. Sarah and Cleo were almost as unlikeable as "herself" with their petty comments about Mrs W. And Cleo, with her quick judgements about absolutely everybody.
Unfortunately not a book for me although for those with an interest in genealogy it might be a little easier to follow
May 30, 2021
Book to persevere with
Initially I wasn’t sure of this book but I got totally enthralled by it in the end. The constant family tree drawings throughout really helped as otherwise I may have lost some of the characters through the decades. It is both interesting and intriguing and wanted so much for Sarah to be the rightful owner of the big house. I will defo look out for more books by this author.
Initially I wasn’t sure of this book but I got totally enthralled by it in the end. The constant family tree drawings throughout really helped as otherwise I may have lost some of the characters through the decades. It is both interesting and intriguing and wanted so much for Sarah to be the rightful owner of the big house. I will defo look out for more books by this author.
March 2, 2024
Reading this felt like studying for a test I knew I was going to fail. The family history being researched was so convoluted. With no hint at what details were going to be necessary to understand the inevitable culmination of the plot, names being reused through the years (though I know this is common in real family trees), and the jumbled, though organic, way the history unfolded, I just felt like I was constantly missing details that were going to be needed later.
January 5, 2021
Excellent book
This is the first book that I have read by this author. I found it fascinating and couldn’t put it down for the 3 days it took to read. I too, have researched my family history and found the author’s description of the process really accurate.
I will definitely read more books by this author - highly recommended!
This is the first book that I have read by this author. I found it fascinating and couldn’t put it down for the 3 days it took to read. I too, have researched my family history and found the author’s description of the process really accurate.
I will definitely read more books by this author - highly recommended!
May 13, 2024
This started promisingly enough but quickly became a boring oh so boring Manual of Jacobean and Georgian architecture. It’s an old much altered house, I get it!!!!! But my goodness it’s flogged to death by detail after endless detail. Enough!!!!
The storyline stalled and I stopped caring at page 108!! Won’t be reading this author again.
The storyline stalled and I stopped caring at page 108!! Won’t be reading this author again.
April 18, 2021
What a story! If ever a book makes me want to research my family history this book does, but hopefully without all the skeletons in the cupboard! Couldn’t leave it alone, it was well written, well done to the author. Looking for more books by her.
May 3, 2021
Genealogical mystery
I really enjoyed this book, I've been tracing my own family tree, so this is fascinating. I don't think I've ever read a book with so many peripheral characters. Very clever.
I really enjoyed this book, I've been tracing my own family tree, so this is fascinating. I don't think I've ever read a book with so many peripheral characters. Very clever.
July 29, 2021
Enjoyable book
I did enjoy this book although I did have to re read some passages as they were, at times, confusing with all the various family trees. It was a good story and kept my attention through to the end.
I did enjoy this book although I did have to re read some passages as they were, at times, confusing with all the various family trees. It was a good story and kept my attention through to the end.
August 2, 2021
A truly amazing tale centred around ancient and modern secrets relevant to one house.
G
The reader is transported through several centuries as secrets that impact upon the current members of an ancient family are slowly unravelled.
G
The reader is transported through several centuries as secrets that impact upon the current members of an ancient family are slowly unravelled.
September 4, 2021
You can’t stop reading
Took me two days to read this book! I couldn���t put it down. There is so much mystery and history included that you want to know every detail. I highly recommend this book. Thank you L. J. Hutton
Took me two days to read this book! I couldn���t put it down. There is so much mystery and history included that you want to know every detail. I highly recommend this book. Thank you L. J. Hutton
January 11, 2021
No sleep book
Fabulous story. Was so good I couldn't go to sleep til had finished it! A few typos but nothing that hampered the enjoyment. Would definitely recommend.
Fabulous story. Was so good I couldn't go to sleep til had finished it! A few typos but nothing that hampered the enjoyment. Would definitely recommend.
March 6, 2021
Very Good Read
Bit maddening keeping up with the family lines but really good book, kept me turning the pages to see what would be uncovered next !
Bit maddening keeping up with the family lines but really good book, kept me turning the pages to see what would be uncovered next !
March 10, 2021
This book took me hostage so beware, luckily it’s lockdown, no housework done and no television watched. I just had to keep reading. I highly recommend this book !
March 11, 2021
Hooked
From the start until the finish, I was enthralled. I love a good mystery especially those involving buildings and families. So this was a definite hit. I could put it down.
From the start until the finish, I was enthralled. I love a good mystery especially those involving buildings and families. So this was a definite hit. I could put it down.
March 13, 2021
Intrigue done well
A wonderfully twisting take with all parts written and turning so that they interlocked at every stage. A really good read
A wonderfully twisting take with all parts written and turning so that they interlocked at every stage. A really good read
March 26, 2021
Enthralling mystery
Enjoyed the story, but at times too much detail, which found me skip reading, worked out some of the outcome earlier in the book.
Enjoyed the story, but at times too much detail, which found me skip reading, worked out some of the outcome earlier in the book.
May 27, 2021
While this book had some interesting parts and good genealogical work, it was way too long and too many relatives. Hard to keep straight.
June 14, 2021
So many secrets,
They say, where there's a will, there's a relative...well it's certainly true here. If you love genealogy then this is a must read...
They say, where there's a will, there's a relative...well it's certainly true here. If you love genealogy then this is a must read...
June 21, 2021
Far too complicated
Got increasingly frustrated with this book sooo complicated and convoluted and improbable. Not rushing to read more by this author
Got increasingly frustrated with this book sooo complicated and convoluted and improbable. Not rushing to read more by this author
August 1, 2021
Gripping
Thoroughly enjoyed this. Had me gripped from early on. Even if I did get a little confused with all the names.
Thoroughly enjoyed this. Had me gripped from early on. Even if I did get a little confused with all the names.
August 9, 2021
Brilliant
I found this story facinating . The twists and turns of the fsmily tree were amazing
I would definately recommend it
I found this story facinating . The twists and turns of the fsmily tree were amazing
I would definately recommend it
December 22, 2021
Not for me. Convoluted with too many characters. Persevered and finished the book but did not enjoy.
February 10, 2022
Good premis but a little confusing at times and hard to keep up (affecting my overall enjoyment) The 'love story' not really required and added nothing to plot...imo.
November 5, 2022
Great read
If you are into genealogy then you will love this book. I really enjoyed it . The story line was intriguing and the characters well rounded and real.
If you are into genealogy then you will love this book. I really enjoyed it . The story line was intriguing and the characters well rounded and real.
April 22, 2023
Oh, what a tangled web this was.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews