Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published in USA
Apr 2009
352 pages
Genre: Mysteries
Publication Information
Such a pretty girl. Four years old; well-loved by her young mother, Grace. But there’s something ... off about the child. Her deathly fear of water; her night terrors; most of all, her fixation with a photo of an Irish seaside town called Coldharbour.
“Sylvie, tell me about your picture. Why’s it so special, sweetheart?” My heart is racing, but I try to make my voice quite calm.
“That’s my seaside, Grace.” Very matter-of-fact, as though this should be obvious. “I lived there, Grace. Before.”
I sit very still for a long slow moment. Cold moves over my skin.
“I don’t know about it,” I say.
“Don’t you, Grace?” She seems surprised.
Every once in a blue moon, a masterful writer dives into Gothic waters and emerges with a novel that—like Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca, Henry James’s The Turn of the Screw, or, more recently, Patrick McGrath’s Asylum—simultaneously celebrates and transcends the genre. Welcome Margaret Leroy to the clan.
Click to the right or left of the sample to turn the page.
(If no book jacket appears in a few seconds, then we don't have an excerpt of this book or your browser is unable to display it)
"Heavy with atmosphere and rich in detail, Leroy's prose lures readers into a disturbing murder mystery." - Publishers Weekly.
"Leroy's delicate psychological insight falls to pieces under the weight of solving a preposterous murder mystery." - Kirkus Reviews.
"There is quite a bit of suspension of disbelief .... However, those who like Victorian gothics will enjoy getting to know Sylvie and Grace." - School Library Journal (Adult Books for Teens)
The information about Yes, My Darling Daughter shown above was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's online-magazine that keeps our members abreast of notable and high-profile books publishing in the coming weeks. In most cases, the reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author of this book and feel that the reviews shown do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, please send us a message with the mainstream media reviews that you would like to see added.
Margaret Leroy grew up in the New Forest and studied music at St Hilda's College, Oxford. She has worked as a music therapist, playleader, shop assistant and social worker. Her books include three non-fiction books, Miscarriage, Pleasure and Some Girls Do, and a story for children, Aristotle Sludge. She has also written widely for magazines and newspapers, and appeared on numerous radio and television programmes. Her first novel, Trust, was published in 1999 and has been translated into five languages.
Margaret Leroy is married with two daughters and lives in Kingston-upon-Thames. Visit Margaret at http://www.margaretleroy.com/
.gif)
"Berlin's new book is a marvel, filled with deeply touching stories about lives on the fringes."—NPR
About the book
The Seine
by Elaine Sciolino
"A soulful, transformative voyage along the body of water that defines the City of Light."
—Lauren Collins
Reader Reviews
BUTTERFLY YELLOW
Winner of the BookBrowse Award for Best Young Adult Novel, and the overall highest rated book of the year!
Visitors can view some of BookBrowse for free. Full access is for members only.
Your guide toexceptional books
BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.
Subscribe to receive some of our best reviews, "beyond the book" articles, book club info, and giveaways by email.
