Boat House

August 9, 2010
Fans of traditional mysteries will welcome British author Oldfield's elegant historical, set in 1912. Georgina Matlowe deems the newly employed governess, 24-year-old Marianne Lefevre, "eminently suitable" for Georgina's two orphaned granddaughters, twin sisters Emmie and Edie. As for Marianne, she looks forward to a new, carefree life at the Matlowe estate on the Thames near Henley after recently nursing her parents through their last illnesses. But what is Marianne to make of Emmie and Edie's tales of seeing a ghost near the boat house? She also begins to hear disturbing stories about Georgina's son and the pregnant bride he brought home from America, both of whom mysteriously disappeared. Meanwhile, PI Donald Watson reopens the case of the missing Matlowes at the request of a family member, but every lead turns out to be a dead end. Oldfield (Truth Will Out) doesn't offer any startling twists or turns, but memorable characters and a juicy family drama will satisfy most readers.

September 1, 2010

Prolific Oldfield (The Birthday Present, 2010, etc.) spins yet another tale of England, this one just before World War I in the town of Henley-on-Thames.

Marianne Lefevre is a new governess. After losing both her parents, she's found herself in the employ of a dour Victorian matriarch, Georgina Matlowe. Mrs. Matlowe's daughter-in-law, Leonora, disappeared years ago, followed shortly by her son Neil, leaving their twin daughters in her charge. Though eight-year-old Emmie and Edie are charming, their home has a haunted feel: Mrs. Matlowe passes her days in her son's abandoned bedroom, and the girls say they've seen a mysterious man by the disused boathouse. The man, Marianne learns, is not a ghost but a private investigator, hired by Leonora's American brother to discover her whereabouts. Private Investigator Donald Watson's inquiries lead him to Ivy Busby, the aged nanny to both Leonora and her twins. Ivy's recollections turn the investigation back to the boathouse. Why, so soon after Leonora's disappearance, was the rockery in front of it replaced with rose bushes? What dark secrets are buried in the boathouse, and what aid can fair Marianne offer Mr. Watson?

More atmospheric than mysterious, with a mournful tinge but a happy finale—a mild, pleasant Gothic romance of the old school.

(COPYRIGHT (2010) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

September 15, 2010
In Henley, England, in 1912, Marianne Lefevre is hired as a governess to six-year-old twins Emmie and Edie, who are being raised by their forbidding grandmother, Georgina Matlowe. Their American mother, Leonora, disappeared without a trace several years ago, presumably abandoning the girls; and their father, Neil, died in a car accident while in the U.S. searching for their mother. Georgina and Leonora didnt get along, and Neil was considered a suspect in her disappearance. When Leonoras younger brother, Richard, comes to England to reopen the case, determined to find out what happened to his sister, he hires private investigator Donald Watson; Georgina, meanwhile, fears that he wants to take the girls to America to live with their other grandparents. With her health failing, she determines to fight him. With Mariannes assistance, family secrets are uncovered, and the mystery behind Leonoras disappearance is revealed. The engrossing story includes a possibly haunted boat house; well-developed, believable characters; and a plot that slowly reveals the storys secrets. Involving and suspenseful.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)