Ellen Trawton is thirty-three years old but she's running away from home. She's had enough of her mother, Lady Trawton and she isn't sure she wants to follow through with her upcoming marriage. Ireland is the one place Ellen knows her mother will never look for her. After all, Ellen has never met her family in Ireland- but all that is about to change. Ireland is initially just a temporary hiding place for Ellen but what happens when it begins to feel more like home?
SECRETS OF THE LIGHTHOUSE is a hauntingly beautifully written story of love, loss, and finding one's place in life. We are drawn into Ellen's story even as we see the parallels with the ghostly presence of Caitlin Macausland. The supernatural element adds the perfect touch to a story set in Ireland, as I can easily envision Caitlin's ghost haunting the lighthouse.
Santa Montefiore perfectly captures the essence of Ireland. I could easily envision Connemara as Ellen takes her long walks. I want to visit the Pot of Gold pub and join in with the convivial atmosphere. Santa Montefiore's vivid descriptions make me want to revisit Ireland again and again as her vibrant descriptions are absolutely delightful.
SECRETS OF THE LIGHTHOUSE is the first book I've read by Santa Montefiore but it definitely won't be the last! Santa Montefiore's spellbinding prose keeps the reader engaged as the family secrets emerge. SECRETS OF THE LIGHTHOUSE is easily recommended.
Set in Ireland on the wild coast of Connemara, this
hauntingly romantic novel tells the story of a young woman
who goes in search of her familyβs past and ends up
discovering her future.
Ellen Trawton is running away from it all. She hates her
job, she doesnβt love the aristocratic man to whom she is
engaged, and her relationship with her controlling mother
is
becoming increasingly strained. So Ellen leaves London,
fleeing to the one place she knows her mother wonβt find
her, her auntβs cottage in Connemara. Cutting all her ties
with chic London society, Ellen gives in to Irelandβs
charm
and warmth, thinking her future may lie where so much of
her
past has been hidden. Her imagination is soon captured by
the compelling ruins of a lighthouse where, five years
earlier, a young mother died in a fire.
The ghost of the young wife, Caitlin, haunts the nearby
castle, mourning the future she can never have there.
Unable
to move on, she watches her husband and children, hoping
they might see her and feel her love once more. But she
doesnβt anticipate her husband falling in love again. Can
she prevent it? Or can she let go and find a way to
freedom
and happiness?
The ruggedly beautiful Connemara coastline with its
tightknit community of unforgettable characters provides
the
backdrop for this poignant story of two women seeking the
peace and love they desperately need. For each, the key
will
be found in the secrets of the past, illuminated by the
lighthouse.
No excerpt available.
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