What seems to start as a pleasant little histfic about Gunpowder Plot conspirator Robert Catesby soon morphs into a tidy, dual timeline, supernatural, almost cosy crime caper. It’s a pleasing balance sure to engage lovers of historical fiction and those who like a little otherworldly intrigue.
For me the mark of good historical fiction is whether the reading of it makes me want to find out more. I did. I knew of Robert Catesby and his part in the Gunpowder Plot on a superficial level, this book just made me want to find out more about him, Anne his mother, and his wife Catherine.
The story is told from the perspectives of two engaging female characters. Anne Catesby mother of Robert, and Lucy, an erstwhile professional musician whose career is curtailed due to debilitating post viral syndrome.
It is the titular winter garden that links the two women. The garden is in the former home of Catesby and now owned by Lucy’s aunt Verity, another indomitable female character in the story. Lucy convalesces in the Gunpowder Barn at Knightstone and has visions of a woman in a Tudor dress.
Both stories have suspenseful moments , both very different but the weaving the two story lines appears seamless. The historical research is sound, giving us a fair impression of what it must have been like for families forced to subdue their true religious beliefs. The archaeological details also present plausibly. The two male characters, Finn and Johnny, demonstrate a keen passion for their undertaking. Their stories start to bubble alongside Lucy’s adding to the sense of mystery within the story. It would be a disservice for potential readers to detail too much more of the plot so I’ll say no more!
It’s a well constructed novel as one might expect from an experienced novelist like Nicola Cornick, well paced, with attention to relevant details and enough intrigue to carry the reader willing along, to seek the truth and answers from those in the past…….and the present.
My thanks to HQ stories for a gifted copy and a place upon the blog tour.
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