Montefiore's Goddaughter

Montefiore's Goddaughter #1

by Elizabeth Brooks

Where do you go at night, once you have turned out the light and snuggled down under the blankets? Abigail Crabtree’s imaginary world is precious to her; an escape from the waking world. That is until one wintry night, when a sinister horseman appears and threatens to wrest it from her in the name of the King of Traumund.

Desperate to save her realm from invasion, she turns to her godfather – the enchanting Mr. Montefiore – for help. She takes refuge in his desolate country house, where rumours of cruelty and murder abound. Encouraged by his apparent sympathy, Abigail and her giant owl soar beyond the borders of her own imaginary world and into the vast universe of collective dreams. But even as she delights in Traumund’s bewildering beauty, she finds herself ever more seduced by the very evil which threatens to destroy it. How can Abigail remember what she is fighting for? How can she even be sure where her loyalties lie? And – the most formidable question of all - will she ever be free of the intensely beguiling Mr. Montefiore?

Genres: Fiction

304 pages, Hardcover

First published April 20, 2010

About the author

Elizabeth Brooks grew up in Chester. She read Classics at Newnham College, Cambridge. On graduating in 2001 she moved to the Isle of Man where she lives with her husband and their two children. Her first novel, 'Call of the Curlew' was shortlisted for the Waverton Good Read Award 2018. Her fourth novel, 'The Woman in the Sable Coat,' will be published by Tin House in March 2024.

Reviews

[Caroline Labreche · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh, I finished it. I tried to read through it, but got really really annoyed. Abigail was a shitty protagonist and was pretty stupid the whole time. She kept blaming her actions on "love" nd infatuation, yet there just didnt feel like those were the emotions? she just felt very dumb and immature, even when her "friends" were literally going to become executed. The plot was interesting enough, but easy to guess. It wasn't horrible, but i dont think i would read it again.

[Joanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Montefiore's Goddaughter by Elizabeth Brooks is about the adventures of Abigale Crabtree. The thing that is different about Abigale's adventures, though, is that they do not stop when she falls asleep. In fact, that is when the real adventures begin: in the dream world of Traumund.

Since Abigale was little, she has always been able to escape to her dream world. She has a group of friends, made up of humans and animals, and her stuffed bear Boris. The friends congregate in a magical tree that keeps them safe from the giant cannibals who roam the dream forest, and is a place full of stories and fun. That is, until an evil creature that Abigale did not dream up enters her world, and demands she surrender herself to the King of Traumund.

Things are not going so well in the Waking World, either. She has been sent to an institution upon the request of her mysterious godfather, where she is expected to learn not Math or French, but how to care for her hair and nails and how to walk in high heels. The only things that keep her from being brainwashed are her dream land and her only friend, Joachim. When she is finally able to leave the Institute, Abigale meets her godfather to explain why she left. Abigale finds herself under his spell.

From there, a series of dark and dangerous events test Abigale's drive to save her dream world, and defeat the self-styled King of Traumund. Nothing is as it seems, and Abigale must choose between what she loves and what is right.

I didn't abandon this book, so I must have liked it. It was a darker story, and there were moments when I was nervous Abigale would make terrible decisions. The story is told by Abigale in the future looking back on her life, but I was not sure if it was a good Abigale or an evil one until later in the book. That added some suspense to the story, along with all of the paranormal and dream world adventures the characters have. The book was slow to start, and I found myself putting it down pretty frequently at the beginning. But I'm glad I stuck with it. Once the story picked up, it was engaging and I found myself doing the opposite of what I was doing before; I could not put the book down.

Abigale's character was especially pleasing to me because she was not all good or all bad as so many YA characters seem to be. Even when she was doing something good to help her friends, there was still a little tug in the other direction. I also found the parts where Abigale and Eyes the Owl travel through Traumund and see other people's dreams interesting. For a dream world, it was fairly realistic in that it showed that not all dreams are happy. The bouts of humor in this book kept it from getting too dark, and kept the spark of hope alive.

[Caroline · Rating 5 out of 5]

Have you ever closed your eyes and gone to your secret place, a place special and unique where you can go to? In Montefiore’s Goddaughter, Abigail Crabtree visits a special place in her imagination every night. With a unique cast of characters, an engaging plot line, and a thought provoking ending I highly recommend this story.
Abigail is a teenage girl who is sent to a modern day finishing school in England due to the wishes of her godfather. She has never met her godfather before, but goes to the school to please him. Once there she realizes that the school is not an educational program, but a finishing school that teaches girls how to do their hair and teaches children how to take care of a home. She makes a friend who, like her, doesn’t belong in the finishing school and visits a special world at night. In Abigail’s dreams she visits a forest of hers with an owl named Eyes, her teddy bear, and Prince Constantine. As she discovers more and more about her grandfather the two worlds start melding together and she discovers that her forest could be in much more danger than she ever imagined.
As the plot unravels we discover a lot about secrets of the characters and we see the real personalities of some characters. The plot had some surprising turns and the secrets behind Montefiore, Abigail’s godfather, are shocking. Abigail is a very real character who makes very real mistakes which is why I like her. Her friends are extremely well thought through and are very loveable, especially the brave Prince Constantine who goes through many hardships for Abigail. I also enjoyed the setting of the English countryside; the depiction of Montefiore’s mansion in the midst of a forest of trees is a beautiful thought to behold.
When I first picked this book up I didn't expect anything from it. But I was pleasantly surprised. The book immediately engaged me because it played on dreams and a world where the main character can slip away to at night. I loved this concept and as the book went on I was shocked by the plot that was unfolding. Not because it was unpredictable, but because it was the last thing I expected from the book. The book slowly turned very dark and I couldn't put it down. It left me with a cold feeling and I'm not sure how much I enjoyed the book because it certainly wasn't a feel good book. If you are a fan of Bridge to Terabithia then this book is for you. It engaged me the entire way through and I couldn't put it down which is why I give it five stars out of five.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

I came across this book sitting on the 'last chance to buy' shelf of a book shop. I had never heard of the book itself or the author. The cover is not the one shown on Goodreads, it is a much prettier one, in my opinion. A painting, done by the author herself, of the oak tree from the story. I read the blurb on the back, and had to have it. It sounded so interesting. I wanted to love this book, but it just didnt do it for me. First off, I would say this is probably a YA novel, which is neither a good or bad thing, but it gives you an idea of what tone to expect. In a nutshell it is a gothic fantasy. There is a good cast of characters, my favourites being Allecto and Joachim. It is one of those stories were you as the reader need to just sit back and go with the flow, and try to ignore the temptation to over-analyse, because that would open a can of worms. I didn't tear it to pieces, I just read it, and I did enjoy it. The writing I found to be mixed, sometimes great and other times jarring, sentences that I thought were constructed badly. Sometimes the writing felt rushed, but other times as if it had been pondered over too long. I thought at times things could have been said better with less words. I don't want this to sound like I didn't like this book, because I did; I enjoyed the story and the concepts were original. I would assume that this is the authors first work.

[Dezra · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a teen/tween book that I picked up for fun. I liked the cover art and the synopsis on the back interested me.

I started out liking the narrative and became engrossed in the mystery. The plotting was intriguing at first with a couple of plot twists that kept the narrative alive. Then, about halfway through the book as I kept waiting for the next plot twist to move it along, I realized the twists were done. I found myself skimming after that until I came to the predictable ending, an ending that was rather clunky and inelegant.

I started out liking Abigail Crabtree, and forgave her flawed teenage character. But by the end, she hadn't changed. And, frankly, she couldn't change otherwise the ending couldn't be justified.

The premise of the story has a lot of possibility. I don't think it was realized.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is due out in May of 2012 and is geared for the tween/teen and up reader. I am not sure how I feel about this book. There are so many layers to it, and then there are not. The ending did not surprise me too much, and the main character who tells her own tale, even draws the attention of the reader to the fact that things are telegraphed. It was a little "The Never Ending Story" and a little of other books. The dream world is real and built on human imagination and there is a threat. I wanted to beat the first characters with a tire iron, but the heavy handed introduction does set the story for later as you do get some context as to why this was the opening situation. Not a bad book, but it left me unsettled.

[Chelsea · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book through a GoodReads First Reads giveaway. This book immediately drew me in. This Gothic novel had so many wonderful and magical elements. When Abigail sleeps every night she visits a world created by her own imagination. She is safe and happy there until the Vulture Men arrive and threaten her dream land. Things in the Waking World are also changing for Abigail as she meats her godfather Ludovick Montefiore.

I found the plot somewhat predictable but the book was still wonderful. Brooks writes beautifully was able to easily draw me in with her vivid descriptions. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it.

[Jaime Hudson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Confusion. Curiosity. Revelation. Disappointment.

Confusion: I didn't even know what I was reading most the time.

Curiousity: I needed to know so I kept on reading.

Revelation: Oh, so now I get it.

Disappoinment: Not in the book, but in the direction the characters went. I wanted it to end much differently than it did.

I enjoyed reading this book. I wanted to read this book, and I wanted to enjoy it. Great writing!

[Shoshana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite what I felt was a somewhat lackluster ending, I admire this book for its beauty. The writing is rich - almost too rich, like super-dark chocolate - and reading through it is almost visceral. It's slow, and took me forever to read, but I never felt I was wasting my time with it. Rich, rich, rich.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a treat! Beautifully written, takes you away to another place. The sort of book my oldest daughter & I would have stretched out to a chapter a night in her childhood(though she would have begged for more). Full of adventure & secret turns. Lavish descriptions. Wonderful writer-hope there's a series to follow!

[Larissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writting in this book was beautiful but it was such a slow book ans the ending was anti climatic.

[heather giles · Rating 1 out of 5]

so boring couldn't even get past third chapter