I 'm not entirely convinced, this is partly a ghost story, partly a mystery story. But somehow it seems to be missing some tension, some thrilling anticipation..... ( )

I received this novel as an advanced copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I struggled so much when reading this novel. I could not get past the immature writing style that seemed so at odds with the story and its setting. I couldn't take it seriously at all. The characters are not well developed at all; the novel just jumps straight into dialogue, and I found myself rereading quite a few pages to understand what exactly was going on. I also didn't really feel the historical vibe; in fact, there were aspects where it was quite "modern". While the writing jumped in terms of conversation material, the plot itself moved at a very slow pace. At the end of the day, it took a great deal of effort to concentrate and finish this novel, and it wasn't worth all of that for me. ( )

Sir Richard and Lady Mary’s castle in the English countryside has been standing for a thousand years; the Sedgeley family has owned the castle and the surrounding farms for 500 years. The cost of keeping up the castle, upgrading the farms, and the increasing taxes have made it impossible for the nobility to keep their family estates, and Sir Richard is forced to sell the castle in order to take care of the farms for his tenants. His best option for a buyer is John Blayne, an American who wants to turn the castle into an art museum. What Sir Richard doesn’t realize is that Blayne wants to dismantle the castle stone by stone and reassemble it in America. While Sir Richard spends more and more time living in the past of his ancestors and Lady Mary prays to the castle’s ghosts to help them save the castle, Blayne falls in love with their maid, Kate, who has her own secrets to keep.

There was a lot going on in this short novel. Every time I thought I knew where things were going, Buck twisted things just a bit more, so I was engaged the whole time I was reading this one. It wasn’t as good as some of her novels about Asia, but it was better than most of her western novels.
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Le 1er roman de Pearl Buck que j'ai lu. Situé au coeur de la campagne anglaise, l'histoire s'éloigne totalement de la chine de Pearl Buck.

Ici, on s'attache à ce couple d'aristocrates "so british" ancré dans leur coutume et leur savoir vivre. L'arrivée d'un américain va bouleverser leur mode de vie. Sur ce point, cela me rappel un peu Vent d'est vent d'ouest, où le mode de vie chinois est confronté à l'occidentalisation de la nouvelle génération.

Mais qui sont ces fantômes sur lesquels Lady Mary fonde tous ses espoirs ? Ceux de ses illustres ancêtres ?

This was an interesting storyline. The book began with an older couple, Sir Richard and Lady Mary, getting ready to meet the person to whom they were selling their castle. There was a surprising turn at the very beginning when you find out what "John Blayne", the buyer, is actually going to do with the castle. There is a love interest between the maid, who is also secretary and beloved Kate, and John Blayne. The storyline explores relationships between the English and Americans, spirits of the past and the historical relationships between the gentry and the farmers in England. ( )