The Last Party At Silverton Hall by Rachel Burton

 

The Last Party at Silverton Hall by Rachel Burton.

Published 2nd March 2023 by Aria, Head of Zeus.

From the cover of the book:

Two women. Two centuries. A life-changing night...

1952: Vivien and Max collide in the thick London smog. Within a few years, their whirlwind romance sees them living a quiet life on the Norfolk coast, blissfully happy with their beautiful daughter – at least, that's how it appears...

2019: Isobel is hoping for a fresh start when she inherits her beloved grandmother Vivien's house in Silverton Bay. But when she discovers an old photograph of Vivien at one of the infamous parties held at Silverton Hall in the 1950s, Isobel is forced to question how well she really knew her grandmother. Silverton Hall is a place Vivien swore she never went and never would – but why would she lie? And what other secrets was she keeping?

Together with an old friend, Isobel searches for answers. But is she prepared for the truth?

***********

1952: A fateful meeting in the smog-filled streets of London brings Vivien and Max together. City girl Vivien has never met anyone like upper-class artist Max before, and although she is not sure about the differences between the kinds of life they lead, she accepts his marriage proposal after a whirlwind romance. The happy couple then settle down in apparent marital bliss in a little village on the Norfolk coast.

2019: Isobel is unhappy with her life and disappointed in love, so when she inherits her beloved grandmother Vivien's house in Silverton Bay this seems like the chance for a brand new start. The house where Isobel lived as a child needs a lot of work, but she finds an unexpected helpmate in the form of someone she has not seen for eighteen years: Nick, the grandson of Vivien's old friend Spencer, who she has never forgotten.

As Isobel begins to pick up the threads of a life she never thought she would go back to, she comes across a photograph of Vivien at a party at Silverton Hall, where infamous parties were held in the 1950s. The Hall is now a hotel and Isobel is surprised to find that there is a mystery about Vivien's connection to its past. As family secrets are uncovered, Isobel begins to wonder how much she really knows about her nearest and dearest...

The Last Party at Silverton Hall is an engrossing time-slip novel that flips back and forth between the 1950s from the point of view of Vivien, and the present from that of her granddaughter Isobel when she returns to Silverton Bay. The terms of Vivien's will tie Isobel to the house she has inherited for thirteen months, during which her grandmother hoped her granddaughter would be able to find happiness again - but she did not bank on Isobel's quick attention being drawn to some things about her family's past that do not quite add up.

Through Vivien's part of the story you follow the history of her early romance with Max, and the halcyon days when they settle down to married life in Silverton Bay. However, things take a turn when Vivien discovers Max has been hiding something from her, on the night of a glamorous party at Silverton Hall - and the secret that he confesses has consequences that ripple through time.

In the present, Isobel is hit with a mass of conflicted feelings about being back in Silverton Bay. Although she has always wanted to return here, and now is the right time for her to make a new start, the addition of Nick to the equation knocks her for six. She has not seen Nick for eighteen years, and yet she has never forgotten the blissful summer they spent together - or the night of the kiss that no one else has been able to measure up to.

The story is a delightful mix of historical fiction, compelling family drama, intriguing mystery, and suspenseful romance. Evocative scenes from the 1950s onwards bleed beautifully into the present, and the threads of both storylines are rich in themes of disappointed love, the difficulty of living up to the expectations of others, complex relationships, and shattered illusions, which are balanced elegantly against more hopeful elements of family ties, new starts, reconciliation, and true love. I adored how Burton also echoes the importance of a single night for both Vivien and Isobel. 

I read this book in one highly enjoyable sitting, unable to tear myself away from the stories of Vivien and Isobel. This novel really holds you fast, all the way to a lovely twist of an ending that warms the cockles of your heart. Just the ticket for the perfect escapist read. Rachel Burton, you have a new fan!

The Last Party at Silverton Hall is available to buy now in paperback and ebook.

Thank you to Head of Zeus for sending me a paperback copy of this book in return for an honest review, and for inviting me to be part of this blog tour.

About the author:

Rachel Burton has been making up stories for as long as she can remember and always dreamed of being a writer until life somehow got in the way. After reading for a degree in Classics and another in English Literature she accidentally fell into a career in law, but eventually managed to write her first book on her lunch breaks. 

She loves words, Shakespeare, tea, The Beatles, dresses with pockets and very tall romantic heroes (not necessarily in that order) and lives with her husband and two cats in Yorkshire. A Bookshop Christmas was a finalist in the RNA Romantic Novel Awards 2022.