L #9- The Distant Hours

I first read a book by Kate Morton last year.  The Forgotten Garden was my favorite book that I read in 2011.  I picked up The Distant Hours many months ago, and have been waiting for the right time to read a book this large and with heavy subject matter.

This story was just as captivating as the other Morton book I read.  However, it did take me awhile to get into.  I was probably 200 pages in before the story really gripped me and I felt compelled to read faster.  The concept of the story is very fascinating, I just think the beginning could have been condensed. 

This is the story of 3 sisters, the Blythe sisters, that have grown up in Milderhurst Castle.  Their family has lived there for many years, and during the course of this time, many sinister and secretive things have happened.  The sisters are trapped in the castle, with their pasts shrouded in mystery and a terrible tragedy that made the youngest sister, Juniper, lose her mind.  Their father, Raymond Blythe, is a literary figure due to a mysterious story he had published many years before.  He is at the center of the mystery.

Many years later, a letter that has been undelivered for decades, shows up to Edie Burchill's mother.  This letter starts Edie's journey to the castle and the Blythe sisters.  Edie uncovers the dark past, and finds the answers to the questions plaguing the literary world in the years since Raymond Blythe's book was published.

This is not a light story.  And there isn't a happy ending.  However, Morton writes beautifully and paints a very descriptive picture.  I would definitely recommend this book, but only when you're ready for a heavy read.

560 pages.