Barbara Wood delivers a gripping story of family secrets, madness, and
suspense in nineteenth-century England.
After her mother's death in 1857, Leyla's only links with her heritage
and family are a letter and her last name--Pemberton. Resolved to seek
out her past, she travels from London to the brooding countryside
mansion of Pemberton Hurst. Leyla longs to find a loving family, but
more important, she needs to uncover the truth of her past. But the
Pembertons seem strangely reluctant to discuss family history, and the
house feels smothered by the weight of untold secrets. Increasingly torn
between the safety of life with her sophisticated fiancé in London and a
new, dangerous love, Leyla is no longer sure where to turn and whom to
trust. Then terror strikes. A murderer roams the corridors of Pemberton
Hurst, and Leyla is suddenly thrown into a maelstrom of deceit, madness,
and horror. With her life in jeopardy, Leyla must uncover the truth of
her past before it destroys her.