Amy Snow

April 25, 2016
Set in Victorian England, this engrossing first novel chronicles the secretive treasure hunt that the titular heroine undertakes following her friend’s death. After finding an infant Amy abandoned in the snow, kindly child Aurelia Vennaway brings the baby into her family’s sprawling mansion, much to the chagrin of Aurelia’s spiteful and haughty rich parents. Amy is raised in the kitchen and treated like a servant when not kept out of sight, though the older Aurelia loves her like a sister. Aurelia’s declining health derails her parents’ plans to marry her off. She begs them to let her go on a short chaperoned trip before her heart fails her. What began as a three-month trip stretches to over a year, with Aurelia’s letters from different cities growing more uncharacteristically flighty and infrequent. Aurelia’s health rapidly worsens upon her return. After her death, she leaves Amy a letter that includes money and instructions to begin a complicated quest in London that will guide Amy to several locations in order to uncover a secret that Aurelia has been hiding. Rees has a fresh story with a great hook. There is a less successful love triangle involving Amy and two men, but the main plot is rife with mysterious clues, intriguing people, and varied settings.

April 1, 2016
The adventures of a foundling who embarks on a treasure hunt in Victorian England. An infant is found in a snowbank near Hatville Court, an estate in Surrey, by the landowner's only daughter, 8-year-old Aurelia. This is the prologue to a novel that will follow the fortunes of that infant, christened Amy Snow. Aurelia's parents, Sir Charles and Lady Celestina Vennaway, are far from cordial to this interloper. Only Aurelia's obstinacy prevents Amy from being cast out, and her status wavers uncomfortably between that of lady's companion and servant. As Aurelia blossoms into a lovely young heiress, her parents see only an opportunity for a profitable marriage and press her to entertain the usual unappealing suitors. When, in her early 20s, Aurelia is diagnosed with a weak heart, she embarks on a trip, convincing her dismayed parents that it may well be her last chance to see the world, or, at least, England beyond Surrey. Amy, 13, is left behind. After a year away, Aurelia returns home. Upon her rescuer's death three years later, in 1848, Amy is expelled from Hatville. She is, however, armed with Aurelia's legacy: a carefully plotted itinerary, with strategically placed letters as signposts, which will lead her to discover truths Aurelia kept even from her, including the real reason for her absence. Aurelia's instructions, accompanied by beautiful clothes and a large bequest--secret and in cash, to deter grasping Vennaways--take Amy from Hatville to London, thence to Twickenham, where she meets the Wisters, a welcome contrast to the frosty Vennaways. Then it's on to Bath, where she encounters the novel's only truly entertaining character, the octogenarian socialite and protofeminist Mrs. Riverthorpe. As the last leg of Amy's quest beckons, romantic entanglements threaten, not very convincingly, to interfere. The book is padded with Amy's ineffectual ruminations about courses followed or not followed, and a crucial revelation comes about via the hackneyed device of an overheard conversation. Far too predictable to be truly suspenseful.

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Starred review from April 15, 2016

Abandoned in the snow as a newborn, Amy Snow becomes lifelong friends with the little girl who saves her. It's 1831, and Aurelia Vennaway lives in a privileged and unhappy home with her perpetually hateful parents. When she rescues Amy, their lives are joined irrevocably. Upon Aurelia's premature death as a young woman, Amy is forced to leave the only home she's ever known. With a series of letters and the help of devoted friends, Amy follows a treasure hunt of sorts leading to the secret that Aurelia took to the grave. If this sounds pat, it's anything but. Amy is a delightfully spirited girl who grows into a sympathetic and wise young woman. English society life is charmingly (and sometimes damningly) drawn. The characters Amy meets along her journey are wonderfully done, and the puzzle at the center of it all will keep the pages turning. VERDICT Winner of the UK's Richard and Judy Search for a Bestseller competition, this is a hugely appealing tale of the endurance of friendship. With elements of romance, mystery, drama, and history, there's much here to love.--Liz Kirchhoff, Barrington Area Lib., IL

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