Shadows of Ladenbrooke Manor

I absolutely love it when an author so richly describes a novel, especially one that cross back the historical timeline in such detail, that you aren't reading a book, but you are really there as part of the story, merely watching it unfold before your eyes. Melanie Dobson is one such talented author. In her latest novel, Shadows of Ladenbrooke Manor, the reader is taken between two generations of family members as it toggles back and forth from present day to 1954 in England to uncover a long buried mystery from the past that is now unfolding the answers in present day.

In 1954, we are thrust back in time to the life of Maggie Emerson who sits waiting to the man she loves and who has promised to marry her once he returns from the sea just in time for Christmas. Only this time, she has to make some important decisions. She has found herself pregnant and with not only her reputation on the line, but those of her foster family. She finds Walter Doyle, on the eve of planning to throw herself and her unborn child into the sea, a man who has proposed many times to her with a regrettable no each time. She realizes that if she plays it right, she might just have the answer to her problem if she can keep it a secret. But like all great secrets, some day they find their way to the light and in the process ruin the lives of those they promised to keep safe.

Present day, moves us through Heather Toulson who is returning to her father's cottage in England in hopes of settling his belongings after his death. Along with her daughter Ella, she is reminded of a childhood and love she once hoped would offer something more, but now it something she wants to keep buried. As fate would have it however, Heather runs into her old love, Christopher and discovers that the family she once thought she knew was far from what they seem. This may be the one thing that time won't be able to mend and at the heart of this lies the murder of a young boy from the past.

I received Shadows of Ladenbrooke Manor by Melanie Dobson compliments of Howard Books, a division of Simon and Schuster, and Litfuse Publicity for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review outside of a complimentary copy of this book. The opinions contained here are strictly my own. Sometimes the best part about novels like this is the ability to weave together to very different stories from two time periods and be able to blend them so well, you forget that they are so different. They work so well that it appears seamless as they begin to merge almost like ghosts from the past. For fans of a great mystery and a love of historical England complete with old wealthy manors complete with secret gardens, thatched cottages and cobblestone paths, will absolutely be drawn to this novel. Well worth a 4.5 out of 5 stars in my opinion.

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Shadows of Ladenbrooke Manor

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