I was sorry to learn of the passing of the writer, Lucinda Riley. I’ve spent many wondrous moments soaking up the miraculous inventions of her characters. Lucinda Riley used her characters as the center of her works. They were created with love, devotion, and intent. The characters in THE HIDDEN GIRL are prime examples. THE HIDDEN GIRL was completed for publishing by her son. Kudos to him for keeping the art alive for her many fans. Welcome to THE HIDDEN GIRL.
We are treated to a look at the culture of the English during the seventies. Reference to ABBA made me smile. Devotion to the memory of the Brontë sisters fits so perfectly into my own love of the written word. Quite simply it is an art. And in THE HIDDEN GIRL, we are treated to a bird’s eye look into the work of art. We garner respect for those who toil to make ends meet in comparison to those with great riches within their reach. It’s a fine line between them and THE HIDDEN GIRL respectfully ponders each lifestyle.
So Brett Cooper is sent to spend the school holiday with a relative he had no knowledge of, his father’s sister Rose. Brett is having difficulty getting past his sorrow of losing his mother. His father David Cooper is a wealthy, busy businessman who candidly never really had much time to devote to his only child and wife. Not interested in Brett’s ability as an artist, Brett was to be groomed for the family business.
Be prepared for many surprising moments as we learn much about the history of these amazing and multidimensional characters. It is our past that truly shapes us and yet so many have had to hide their past in the recesses of their memory. And that is what opens up for David Cooper. Surely destined to change his life and that of his son Brett. And in the end, perhaps explains so many things.
I know I am being vague but on purpose. Lucinda Riley constructed a complex story of characters whose lives had seemed, let’s say one dimensional, and now we learn just what their lives had and could have been. Thoughtful and striking. Be prepared for many gut-wrenching memories. I’ve lost count of how many times I said – aloud – oh no. We witness great evil, through the eyes of a younger David, as a deadly time in history is recounted.
I prefer to be in the dark about how a book is going to ultimately unfold. THE HIDDEN GIRL was artistically created by Lucinda Riley and touched up by her son. Well done and worth the price of admission as they say.
Sweeping and evocative, The Hidden Girl is a lost treasure from the global number one bestselling author Lucinda Riley.
You can't alter destiny . . .
Born and raised in a small village on the Yorkshire moors, Leah Thompson grows more beautiful with each passing day. When she catches the attention of the influential, troubled Delancey family, she knows her life will never be the same again.
Years later, Leah takes the modelling world by storm, travelling from Milan to London and New York and living life in the lap of luxury. But her past follows her like a dark shadow, mysteriously intertwined with the tragic tale of two young siblings in Poland during the Second World War.
As two generations of secrets threaten to explode, Leah is haunted by a fatal, forgotten prophecy from her past, and must fight to challenge the destiny that has been mapped out for her in the stars . . .
Long before she became the bestselling author of The Seven Sisters series, Lucinda Riley wrote Hidden Beauty as Lucinda Edmonds. This standalone novel has been reworked and given new life as The Hidden Girl by Harry Whittaker, Lucinda's son and co-author of Atlas: The Story of Pa Salt.