From the #1 internationally bestselling author of The Forgotten
Garden comes a gorgeous novel set in England between World War I and
World war II. Perfect for fans of Downton Abbey, it is the story of an
aristocratic family, a house, a mysterious death and a way of life that
vanished forever, told in flashback by a woman who witnessed it all and
kept a secret for decades.
Grace Bradley went to work at Riverton House as a servant when she was
just a girl, before the First World War. For years her life was
inextricably tied up with the Hartford family, most particularly the two
daughters, Hannah and Emmeline.
In the summer of 1924, at a glittering society party held at the house,
a young poet shot himself. The only witnesses were Hannah and Emmeline
and only they--and Grace--know the truth.
In 1999, when Grace is ninety-eight years old and living out her last
days in a nursing home, she is visited by a young director who is making
a film about the events of that summer. She takes Grace back to Riverton
House and reawakens her memories. Told in flashback, this is the story
of Grace's youth during the last days of Edwardian aristocratic
privilege shattered by war, of the vibrant twenties and the changes she
witnessed as an entire way of life vanished forever.
The novel is full of secrets--some revealed, others hidden forever,
reminiscent of the romantic suspense of Daphne du Maurier. It is also a
meditation on memory, the devastation of war and a beautifully rendered
window into a fascinating time in history.
Kate Morton's first novel, originally published to critical acclaim in
Australia, and quickly becoming a #1 bestseller in England, The House
at Riverton is a vivid, page-turning novel of suspense and passion,
with characters--and an ending--readers won't soon forget.
