First published 2006
Violet sits trapped in the tower of Whitecliff, a sprawling country house where her family has locked her away in 1944. Her crime was falling for a local boy, a romance that took a dark turn and sealed her fate behind stone walls. Sixty years later, Claudine arrives at the same crumbling estate as a property negotiator tasked with its sale. Recently widowed after a hasty marriage following her father's death, Claudine struggles with her controlling stepmother and searches for direction in her life. As she walks through the decaying rooms of Whitecliff, Claudine uncovers traces of Violet's story. The two women's voices interweave across decades, revealing how love and family can both nurture and destroy. Violet's innocent passion led to imprisonment, while Claudine's impulsive choices left her adrift. Through their connection across time, both women confront whether redemption and joy remain possible despite the weight of their pasts.
Genres: romance, literary-fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century, 21st-century, family-drama
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, redemption, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Whitecliff
Period: 1944, 2000s
480 pages · Paperback · Headline