A Time to Change
Description
Louisa Arnold used to love playing in the grounds of derelict Hill House as a little girl. Now, a devastating loss sends her running to the overgrown gardens, seeking sanctuary in the manor's ruined halls.
There, to her astonishment, Hill House begins to transform around her - in place of rotting floors and sagging ceilings, are vast silk rugs of embroidered roses and majestic crystal chandeliers. Maids and footmen flit busily past - is Lou dreaming, or could she actually be standing in this place as it was a hundred years ago?
Lou is mystified by the warm welcome she receives as a guest of the illustrious Mandeville family. Over tea parties and shoots, banquets and dancing, she's suddenly living the life she always dreamed of. And, though she tries to fight it, she's increasingly drawn to the Mandeville heir, Thomas, whose heart-breaking fate she knows well from the pages of history.
As Lou falls more in love with this world, the truth about Hill House and the destiny of its family begins to unravel. Will the past run its stubborn course, swallowing Lou in its wake - or can she save this beautiful place and the people she's come to treasure from certain ruin?
A heart-breaking, beautiful, emotional and unputdownable read for fans of The Time Traveller's Wife, Fiona Valpy and Lucinda Riley.