Product Description

Summer 1924: On the eve of a glittering Society party, by the lake of a grand English country house, a young poet takes his life. The only witnesses, sisters Hannah and Emmeline Hartford, will never speak to each other again.

Winter 1999: Grace Bradley, 98, one-time housemaid of Riverton Manor, is visited by a young director making a film about the poet's suicide. Ghosts awaken and memories, long-consigned to the dark reaches of Grace's mind, begin to sneak back through the cracks. A shocking secret threatens to emerge; something history has forgotten but Grace never could.

A thrilling mystery and a compelling love story, The House at Riverton will appeal to readers of Ian McEwan's Atonement, L.P. Hartley's The Go-Between, and lovers of the film Gosford Park.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #933 in Books
• Published on: 2007-06-15
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 352 pages

Review
A charming mixture of love and mystery. --Lancashire Evening Post

Judy Finnigan, Richard and Judy, Channel 4
'It's a corker...probably my favourite of all the Summer Reads'

Richard Madeley, Richard and Judy, Channel 4
'It's one of the best pieces of writing on the First World War
that I've ever read...I can't think of a bad thing to say about this book'

Customer Reviews

A story to get lost in...
This book was an unexpected treat! I had not expected much when I started. But it is a rich, fully layered family saga, with great characters and plenty of juicy sub plots. It's the kind of book you settle down into and are soon lost to another world. I spent a summer in England like the one used as a setting in the story, and I think the author nailed the place. This is the kind of book that stays with you, I am still pondering the complexities of the plot and characters. I don't read many books twice, but this one I will! Another book that was out side my regular reading realm but I could not put down was "Across the High Lonesome" highly recommended.

A Great Book
This has to be one of the best books I have read in a long time. I first saw the book in the Amazon top 100 and later I saw it on the Richard and Judy Summer Reads list. I am so pleased I decided to pick it up! The book is set in the 20's and is told through the eyes of Grace, a ladies maid at Riverton House. The description of the times and the people are so real and I almost felt I was there. The story jumps between Grace now, at the age of 99 and Grace at the age of 14 as a maid. I agree with some of the other reviews that the beginning is a bit slow but it is definitely necessary. You share the characters loves, passions and grief and the story shows how Grace is also affected by the family's events. This book is beautifully written - I look forward to Kate Morton's next book.

Totally compelling - "A secret that can last a lifetime"
I bought this book on a dreary Sunday afternoon. You know how it is... desperate for a good read but not quite knowing what to buy. As I picked this book from the shelf I imagined it to be sitting months later, half read and abandoned along with countless others that had not quite managed to grab my attention longer than the first chapter. I couldn't have been more wrong.

Riverton Manor. A grand English country house. Home to Hannah and Emmiline Hartford. Theirs a life of privilage, with all its finery and glittering society parties. Mystery and secrets. Love, loss and tragedy.
Here, hidden beneath the layers of time the ghosts of old memories are stirred.

Their story is told by Grace Bradley. One time housemaid at Riverton. As the tale unfolds a secret is about to emerge, something forgotten in the midsts of time but not as it seems by Grace...

There is just something in the way its written. I couldn't put it down and was disappointed once I'd finished it. Realizing there was nothing more to learn about the lives of Hannah, Emm and Grace.

A book which will stay with you long after it has been returned once more to the shelf!