THE GIRL IN THE PHOTOGRAPH by KATE RIORDAN

THE GIRL IN THE PHOTOGRAPH

BY KATE RIORDAN

THE BLURB:-

When Alice Eveleigh arrives at Fiercombe Manor during the long, languid summer of 1933, she finds a house steeped in mystery and brimming with secrets. Sadness permeates its empty rooms and the isolated valley seems crowded with ghosts- none more alluring than Elizabeth Stanton, whose only trace remains in a few tantalizingly blurred photographs. Why will no one speak of her? What happened a generation ago to make her vanish?

As the sun beats down relentlessly, Alice becomes ever more determined to unearth the truth about the girl in the photograph- and stop her own life from becoming an eerie echo of Elizabeth's...

THE REALITY:-

I did wonder why exactly this novel was named The Girl In The Photograph, as photographs are not mentioned until way into the novel and then, which girl is the novelist referring to- Elizabeth? Isabel? I'm inclined to agree with the cynical reviewer on Amazon who though that the title was something else, until the writer decided to (hopefully) cash in, having noted the recent success of other books with “girl” in the title.

Sarcasm aside, this was another novel that I found almost impossible to put down. I may even keep it in my collection for a while, as opposed to dumping it into the charity shop bag! The concept of a novel set in two different time frames, with the lives of both of the heroines echoing each other is not a new concept and, if executed well, can make for an enthralling story. Indeed, my second (not yet written) novel, entitled “Lydia Darling,” is such a book, with common themes appearing in both Lydia's and Lysette's biographies.

This book has been described as having shades of Rebecca and, to me, it also has shades of Jane Eyre and the mad woman in the attic syndrome. With a crumbling old house, secluded from society and with an atmosphere of foreboding in its extensional grounds, and another mansion that has since disappeared, this offering was right up my street! Puerperal insanity (what we, nowadays, call postnatal depression) was a big theme throughout this book and I found the sections detailing it extremely interesting- maybe for personal reasons. My paternal grandmother was institutionalized for exactly the same malady, from just after the birth of her fifth (fourth living) child until her death, some fifty years later. My father didn't know her as she went away, firstly, when he was three and then for good when he was eight. He would never discuss it (as was the way in those days) and she was more or less obliterated from my family's history, poor woman. All I'm going to say is that she must have been in a pretty bad way to stay away for so long- that or my grandfather desperately wanted her out of the way. I will do my research and find out as I feel for this poor lady.

Alice had a tricky relationship with her mother.  It seems that her physical needs were taken care of- she was fed, clothed and had a roof over her head, but her emotional requirements were neglected.  Now, that is something I can definitely relate to.  The post-Victorian and pre-modern generations were, quite simply, weird.  It would appear that many of this number thought that you simply produced children, plonked them down in the corner and, hey presto! they grow up all okay.  Sadly, it doesn't quite work like that.

All of the characters were interesting, both in Alice's and Elizabeth's time frame and the story certainly didn't plod. I've never been to the Cotswolds, so it was very informative to learn a bit about that part of the country as the book really brought it to life. Spoiler alert... I'm glad Alice got a happy ending and didn't have to give up her baby. It's exactly the ending I would have written for her. But, the demise of Elizabeth and Isabel seemed a bit of a cop out. I would have liked both of them to have been hunted for and found, alive and well. Oh well, if I'm not writing it then I suppose it's never going to be 100% perfect! An excellent and gripping read.