The Chateau on the Lake

The opening sentence of Charlotte Bett's latest book grabbed my attention, and this only increases with each chapter: "It is often said that an educated woman is an abomination in the eyes of God".An historical novel, the reader should be prepared to delve deep into the eighteenth century - beliefs, fashion, travel, and inequality. This is all astutely obvious when we are taken to Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens for masquerade and fireworks. However, our author provides us with a journey from London to Paris, and rather subtly drops us back in time in a way that is comprehensible and enjoyable. Even when the climax of the story has peaked and there was only the "wrapping up" left to do, I was unable to stop thinking about our heroine, Madeleine. Having experienced life's rich pathway of ups and downs, our protagonist finally finds a new home. In this way, the story has many similar points to that of a traditional fairytale. Charlotte Bett's has been able to bring the French Revolution to life with vivid descriptions and dialogue - I could hear the crowds baying and the estate workers jeering. I could feel the anguish Madeleine experiences in the turret, and desperation in the diligence to Paris. The reader is presented with sights, sounds and sensations, evoking the emotions of the era. Charlotte Bett's has managed to dispel the myth that the guillotined aristocrats were powdered and pompous; that it was a just revolution. Personally, having read lightly around the Revolution last year, it has re-ignited my appetite for this period in French history. Our lovely author has provided further reading of her resources for this book. I have thoroughly enjoyed this book and look forward to her next novel.

Detailed historical fiction and nicely written. First time reading her books. I did expect a little more detail in the end and how it turned out but that can be left to your imagination....

Magical

Chateau on the Lake is yet another gripping romance from this award-winning novelist. I first came across Charlotte because she has written several books in one of my favourite periods - the seventeenth century, but for this novel we are invited to explore the 18th century and Revolutionary France.After the death of her parents Madeleine Moreau must travel to France to search for the relatives she has heard of, but never met. The meeting proves disastrous and she is given shelter at Chateau Mirabelle, a breathtakingly beautiful castle which is home to the aristocrat Etienne D'Aubery. Of course there is a little competition for Madeleine's affections, with the handsome Jean Luc, and plenty of dark and sinister secrets in the Chateau's past.Charlotte Betts recreates the detail of the period painstakingly, whilst still providing a pacy and satisfying romance. The sense of the course of the French revolution with all its horrors - the guillotine, the starving peasants, the mob violence - all these are faithfully depicted, whilst never losing the forward momentum of the plot. It is a hard thing to do, to juggle romance against such gritty realism, but Charlotte Betts does it seamlessly.

Very good. I thoroughly enjoyed it.