The House at Riverton

Product Information

Kate Morton has said that the novel's setting is as important to her as its characters, that Riverton Manor is as much a character of the book as its inhabitants. Do you agree? Does Riverton mirror the fates of the Hartford family and the aristocracy in general? If so, in what ways?

Mail today. Something from the States by the look of the stamp. Your grandson, perhaps?” The left brow arched—a question mark—and her voice lowered to a husky whisper. “Terrible business, that. Just terrible. And him such a nice young man.” There are also two portrayals of the aftereffects of the First World War. Those weren't done unnecessarily dramatic or over the top, either. They were kept at bay (to a believable point), and I really liked and appreciated that. The book includes many characters. I tend to get confused by that, but thankfully all of them were well developed in this case. They had different personalities and character traits, so I was able to easily tell them apart and picture them in my head.There was a lot of deaths in this book, but of course there is going to be when Grace who is 98 tells her story! I loved the secrets and thought they were thrilling and some very suspenseful. Its hard to write a review because I don't want to spoil anything! I did think the part when Emmeline went to the fortune teller and the fortune teller's tarot cards kept coming up with the death card I thought this was really creepy and spooky! Of course, the story is not as simple as that, and many secrets have been kept for almost 100 years. This is such a beautiful book. I read it when if first came out and instantly fell in love with the book and I have been a huge fan of Kate Morton ever since. In every plot that Morton incites, she welcomes the reader to go through it alone; believing that every reader is equipped with enough courage, intellect, & heart to walk the road that will journey them through time, the lives of the unseen, & expose them to the treachery that exists in their communities snuggly between people like you & me. I appreciate this very much. I cannot say enough positive things about an author who works their skill. It is one thing to be insatiably talented, another ordeal entirely to know one’s own talent so well as to recognize how to shape it into a masterpiece. I hope all readers have the chance to come across books written by authors who care so very much about the work they are producing. Then there are those where you see them coming from the beginning (a good example for this is another book I read from this author, The Forgotten Garden) and dislike them at once.

As Sylvia tut-tutted, I thanked her for the letter. I like Sylvia. She’s one of the few people able to look beyond the lines on my face to see the twenty-year-old who lives inside. Nonetheless, I refuse to be drawn into conversation about Marcus. Told over two timelines, the years of the first world war and after, and the current time. Grace's life is nearing its end, but when she is approached to offer her opinion on the sets for the period drama being made culminating in Robbie's death, she agrees. The film script, although being far from accurate stirs up memories of what actually happened.Kate Morton was born in South Australia, grew up in the mountains of south-east Queensland, and now lives with her family in London and Australia. She has degrees in dramatic art and English literature, and harboured dreams of joining the Royal Shakespeare Company until she realised that it was words she loved more than performing. Kate still feels a pang of longing each time she goes to the theatre and the house lights dim. This, of course, is utterly unfair. It may not be great art, but Morton has written it and we have not. She researched and struggled and sweated and got the job done while we were out having coffee and talking about it; and so she deserves every penny and every red carpet that comes her way. ( The House at Riverton was first published in Australia as The Shifting Fog, but was renamed for its 2007 publication in the UK. Kate Morton creates intriguing characters and weaves a powerful spell slowly and beautifully in this novel and I found the read both entertaining and satisfying.

A case of a little of what you fancy does you good. This is my second reading of this novel having read it the first time around in 2009 and happy to report I enjoyed it every bit as much on my second reading. One Christmas, David brings home a school friend, Robbie Hunter, with whom eleven-year-old Emmeline is infatuated but fifteen-year-old Hannah is less impressed. Nearly ten years later, after David has been killed in WWI, Robbie finds Hannah to return a book she had given her brother. Hannah is living in London and unhappily married to an older businessman, and Robbie provides a glimpse of the life she wanted to have. They fall in love and begin an affair. I can not recommend this book, in any format that you like and I also highly recommend the author as well.Wow..... what a story. This is the first book of this author that I have read. I was hooked from the beginning to the end.