Really enjoyable read. Good characters and a Good story. Well worth a read. Think others will enjoy.

This is the second book by this author I've tried reading, but alas I feel that I'm the wrong reader. I can't seem to get into this story. I had the same problem with The English Girl. The books are too wordy, I just can't seem to focus on the story and frankly, I feel bored. I don't even feel like skimming this book so I will not finish it.

Thanks Orion Publishing Group and netgalley for this ARC.

Makes pain and isolation, and the process of grieving come alive with empathy and sincerity. This is uncommon novel wroth reading. It will make you want to be a better person and friend.

great read and easy to follow story line. look forward to reading more from this author.

I received an ARC of this book thanks to Netgalley and Orion Publishers in exchange for an honest review.
The story is an interesting one, set in 1922, in a Wiltshire village. The author starts off very well setting the scene by showing how through their beliefs in portents and omens, the villagers are superstitious, unsophisticated and inward looking, thus making the village a very insular place to live. This enhances the atmosphere of the book.
The novel also portrays well the moral standards of the time in how Irene, one of the main female characters, is judged and rejected for having an affair with a married man, and it brings out well her isolation and loneliness in village life, after marrying into the Hadleigh family, and leaving London to avoid the scandal that has been created. I also liked the inclusion of the effects of wounds sustained in the First World War by Donald, and how this affected his post war life,and how society treated him, I felt this was good period detail.
I enjoyed reading the book until three quarters of the way through, and then found it confusing at times, as a twist in the story changed some of the character timelines. I also felt that Nancy, another main female character, who was very strong and feisty thought the book, had a very weak ending to her story, it just seemed unrealistic to me after what had gone before. These are the main reasons why I have given the book 3 stars rather than 4.
Overall, an interesting book which I enjoyed reading, but felt it was let down by an ending which for me was confusing at times and as stated before unrealistic in some ways.

Wow! What a read! I loved this book! The story kept me completely engaged from the beginning to the end. It was a real wrench to put the book down! The story begins in the village of Slaughterford, not long after the end of WW1. The villagers have all been affected in some way by the recent conflict, none more so than the local doctor's son, Donny, who has returned but with a severe head injury. Meanwhile the local squire, Alastair, has brought a new wife home to live in the Manor House with his sister. Life is not easy for any of the characters as they try to settle into a new 'normal'. Things have changed unavoidably for everyone. Then something big happens, which really impacts on all of the village. The consequences of one person's actions have a massive effect on the whole village, and it is not clear how things will work out. Events from the past are affecting the future. The twists and turns of the plot kept me riveted. I really struggled with putting the book down. The ending had me totally surprised! A definite must read! Highly, highly recommended! I will seek out more novels by this author. Loved it!

This has the feel of the kind of rural romances that were written in the 1920s (e.g. Gone to Earth) as we have a cycle of murder, retribution and revenge. Set just after the First World War, the small village is contrasted to glamorous London, and a family saga is played out against a backdrop of twisted loves and death. This is quite slow moving, and there's a slight fogginess about the writing and characterisation - but everything ties up neatly by the end.

A beautifully written and researched story, beginning with a powerful sense of tragedy, which takes you by the hand through Slaughterford, then twirls you around before ripping off the blind to reveal a masterful twist which you won't see coming.