Having been a big fan of Ruth Hogan’s ‘The Keeper of Lost Things’ I was delighted to find out that she had released another book. The start of Madame Burova showed such promise- interesting characters and the suggestion of a gripping plot, the book lost its way in the middle but picked up again towards the end.
Billie’s life is shaken when the death of her parents leads her to discover the secret of her own adoption. Split between the 1970’s life of Imelda, a talented tarot reader and secret keeper and the modern day plot of Billie discovering her truth, the book skips between the decades to fill in the gaps. Billie knows that her parents were from Larkins Holiday Park, but with so many possible suspects, the book reads like a mystery.
Although I didn’t feel invested in the story- frankly anyone could have been Billie’s parents and it wouldn’t have mattered, Hogan does not disappoint on her usual way with characters and a warm prose.
The best thing about this book is the dogs- written like a true dog lover, each of them come to life with their own personality.
I think if I’d have read this book without such high hopes, I would have been able to enjoy it- but unfortunately the bar was set too high with Hogan’s previous work. That said, I would still pick up her next novel with the same enthusiasm as I did this!
Billie’s life is shaken when the death of her parents leads her to discover the secret of her own adoption. Split between the 1970’s life of Imelda, a talented tarot reader and secret keeper and the modern day plot of Billie discovering her truth, the book skips between the decades to fill in the gaps. Billie knows that her parents were from Larkins Holiday Park, but with so many possible suspects, the book reads like a mystery.
Although I didn’t feel invested in the story- frankly anyone could have been Billie’s parents and it wouldn’t have mattered, Hogan does not disappoint on her usual way with characters and a warm prose.
The best thing about this book is the dogs- written like a true dog lover, each of them come to life with their own personality.
I think if I’d have read this book without such high hopes, I would have been able to enjoy it- but unfortunately the bar was set too high with Hogan’s previous work. That said, I would still pick up her next novel with the same enthusiasm as I did this!