The Secret of the Irish Castle

Santa Montefiore

Aug 2018 · Deverill Chronicles Book 3 · HarperCollins

About this ebook

International bestselling author Santa Montefiore continues the story of the Deverill family in the third book in her beautiful and moving Deverill Chronicles trilogy—perfect for fans of Kate Morton and Beatriz Williams.

“Nobody does epic romance like Santa Montefiore. Everything she writes, she writes from the heart.” —Jojo Moyes,  #1 New York Times bestselling author of Me Before You

1939: Peace has flourished since the Great War ended, but much has changed for the Deverill family as now a new generation is waiting in the wings to make their mark.

When Martha Wallace leaves her home in America to search for her birth mother in Dublin, she never imagines that she will completely lose her heart to the impossibly charming JP Deverill. But more surprises are in store for her after she discovers that her mother comes from the same place as JP, sealing her fate.

Bridie Doyle, now Countess di Marcantonio and mistress of Castle Deverill, is determined to make the castle she used to work in her home. But just as she begins to feel things are finally going her way, her flamboyant husband Cesare has other ideas. As his eye strays away from his wife, those close to the couple wonder if he really is who he says he is.

Kitty Deverill has come to accept her life with her husband Robert, and their two children. But then Jack O'Leary, the love of her life, returns to Ballinakelly. And this time his heart belongs elsewhere.

As long-held secrets come to light, the Deverills will have to heal old wounds and come to terms with the past if they hope to ensure their legacy for the future.

Ratings and reviews

The year is 1939 and Bridie and her husband, Count di Marcantonio and her son Leopoldo are the new owners of Castle Deverill- but apparently the town can't forget that Bridie was once Bridie Doyle, the daughter of the cook. Unremarkable until she fled to America to make her fortune, where she now has returned to ‘home territory’ having ‘made it. Or has she? Her husband is a cad and unfaithful, her son is a spolt brat, the castle still carries a curse, and Bridie’s son, given up to her former-friend Kitty to raise – and contact between the two is nonexistent. Add to those trials a returned from America lost love with wife and children in tow, the former castle residents, Deverills all, are haunting their former digs and trying to influence choices and decisions, and the telenovela-feel to this story with plenty of twists, mawkish and often overly complex love triangles, cheating and uncovered secrets – almost the only thing missing was a dead character come to life. Oh wait – that sort of happens with the characters from earlier stories coming back and haunting the current residents and characters. I think that perhaps I would have been more intrigued and impressed with this story had I done two things: read the earlier books in the series, and been able to suspend disbelief throughout the multiple reveals that were meant to be ‘shocking’ but honestly just felt coincidental and required too much work on this reader’s part to find them even remotely intriguing. I wanted more of the tension from war on the horizon – it is 1939 and while people are ‘hopeful’ that the last war would be the LAST war, Ireland was not so removed as to not have been feeling the rumblings on the horizon, and the cross-Atlantic travels of characters meant to be important to the story would have also been aware of, if not quite yet concerned with the changes and threats emanating from Germany. It also went to telenovela for me with the meant to be shocking reveals – that at this point weren’t anymore. I know that others will love this book and trilogy, and that mine is a voice contrary to that acclaim – I would suggest that you read these books in order and follow the intrigues and changes from the start. I received a paperback copy of the title from the publisher for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

About the author

Santa Montefiore was born in England. She went to Sherborne School for Girls in Dorset and studied Spanish and Italian at Exeter University. She has written sixteen bestselling novels, which have been translated into thirty different languages and have sold more than two million copies worldwide.