Friday, July 14

Book Review: Mask of Innocence by Marion Shepherd

Author: Marion Shepherd
Title: Mask of Innocence 
Genre: Historical Fiction
Pages: ebook
Published: Feb. 2017
Where I Got It: Netgalley

The Marchant family live in Cedar Grove, a majestic Tudor manor house nestled within the rolling Cotswolds hills. 

Upon the untimely death of their tyrannical father, Richard and Francesca Marchant are caught up in a web of dark family secrets, manipulation, murder, abduction and obsessive desires. 

Francesca is a rebellious and spirited young girl, despised by her stepmother Catherine, and relentlessly pursued by the obsessive Rufus Donaldson. She becomes the subject of a dangerous conspiracy to force her into an unwanted marriage, jeopardising her future with the man to whom she has given her heart. Can her brother, Richard, rise above his own lustful desires and save his beloved sister? 



I instantly fell in love with the cover and it seemed to be very interesting, so I decided I had to read this. 

The Marchant family seems to be perfect on the outside, but it is all a lie. When the mean dad dies, they hope it will get better, but it doesn't. There are so many family secrets and manipulation going on. Poor Francesca is being harassed and stalked by the nasty Rufus. Evil man. Stinks to be her. 

There were a lot of twists and turns and I found that refreshing. I had a hard time staying hooked though. Along with the twists and turns, there were a lot of slow parts that I skimmed over. I honestly felt like I was on a roller coaster. I was drinking in every word one moment and then the next moment I was yawning and waiting for the next exciting thing. 

The only character I could stand was Francesca at times. Isobel and Sanjay weren't bad either. However, I had a hard time connecting with anyone really, so it made it hard to stay hooked and curious what was going to happen next. 

The ending was really good! It was a nice way to tie everything together. So yes, this ended on a good note. 

In the end, this was okay. I had a hard time connecting with the characters and staying hooked with the story. There were a lot of good twists and the ending was done well. I do recommend it if you like historical fiction. I'll give this three stars. 





6 comments:

Melliane said...

well you had a good ending!

vvb32 reads said...

When I do not connect with characters it is tough and slow reading time for me . I always have to decide whether or not I should abandon a book. Glad to hear this one turned out alright in the end as the cover is appealing.

Blodeuedd said...

Hmmm dunno

Carole Rae said...

Melliane, yes! The ending was the best.

vvb32, it is rough. Story plot can be meh, but if the characters are connectable then it makes it better.

B, mmmmmmmmmmmmm lol.

Anachronist said...

boooo, characters you cannot connect with...but the cover art is lovely!

Carole Rae said...

Yaaaaaaaaas I love the cover.