The House at Riverton A Novel

Surprisingly liked this quite a bit; it’s sort of a neo-Gothic meets Downton Abbey.

This is a wonderful novel. It has a sweeping, historical plot about a family that owns a home, Riverton. It's about a young housekeeper, Grace, and her ties to the family. It's about war, grief, death, choices, and growth. I especially loved the multilayered characters and the gothic atmosphere. This book will stay with me for a long time.

The House at Riverton was the debut novel for Morton and whilst I did give it slightly less star rating than the others I read, it was still very enjoyable. I loved the dynamics in the house between the upstairs and the downstairs, the bonds made and how ultimately those bonds became part of the problem. I also loved how the book moved between past and present, as is typical in Morton's novels, it was easy to follow and very engaging. I didn't wish I was in either one, just happy to follow along with the story as the secret was finally uncovered. I guessed the secret but not the motivation and for me that was the stand out part. I otherwise would have found it a little too predictable. Overall, it was an enjoyable read and one I would recommend if you have a love for early 20th century historical fiction.

Kate Morton, where have you been all my life?! I loved everything about this book. The characters, the setting, the plot, everything about this book was everything I wanted it to be. Can't wait to read her other works.

This is one of those books that you can simply devour. It took me less than a week to finish it, it got me so involved in its mysteries. It helped that I'm a fan of period novels. I found the story interesting because it was told from the point of view of a servant, not from that of the main actors'. It gives the novel a certain complexity that it wouldn't have had had the story been told from Hannah's pov. On the other hand, I've had ups and downs when it came to actually liking Grace as a character. I found her devotion to serving Hannah - despite their blood connection - quite annoying, from a feminist's perspective. I also cannot get past her relationship with Ruth and that makes me dislike her quite a bit, although her later life sort of redeemed her in my eyes. I'm also not a fan of the Hartford family "telenovela". Too many tragedies one after another, after a while I got bored. But all in all it was enjoyable, for a debut novel.

Received an ARC of this book. Enjoyed it. This was a good read. Kate Morton is an author worth exploring. After reading this debut novel I followed up with "The Forgotten Garden".