Secrets of Sloane House Book Blurb: Against the backdrop of the 1893 World’s Fair, a young woman finds employment with an illustrious Chicago family—a family who may guard the secret of her sister’s disappearance.
Sloane House is among the most gilded mansions of Gilded Age Chicago. Rosalind Perry, the new housemaid, pours the morning coffee before the hard gaze of her mistress.
“It’s simple, Rosalind,” she says. “I am Veronica Sloane, heiress to one of the country’s greatest fortunes. You are simply one in a long line of unsuitable maids.”
Back on the farm in Wisconsin, Rosalind’s plan had seemed logical: Move to Chicago. Get hired on at Sloane House. Discover what transpired while her sister worked as a maid there—and follow the clues to why she disappeared.
Now, as a live-in housemaid to the Sloanes, Rosalind realizes her plan had been woefully simple-minded.
She was ignorant of the hard, hidden life of a servant in a big, prominent house; of the divide between the Sloane family and the people who served them; and most of all, she had never imagined so many people could live in such proximity and keep such dark secrets.
 |
| Ferris Wheel from the Chicago World's Fair |
My review of Secrets of Sloane House: This book was well done but pretty dark as it was dealing with a gritty topic. What would you do if your sister went missing while working as a servant in the home of a prominent Chicago family? And what would you do if your father went to investigate and was given the runaround by the family and the police. Wisconsin farmgirl, Rosalind seeks to find the answers by becoming a maid in the Sloane household. Her reactions are well written and the narrator did a great job of bringing the character to life.
I listened to a download of Secrets of Sloane house from audible.com. I had also purchased a kindle copy last year when it released but ended up busy writing my own books (and recovering from major surgery!), but after learning this year that there was an audiobook I listened to that, instead and was rewarded with a very good listen. This was a little dark for my taste in general but Ms. Gray does a good job of not dwelling upon each attack's detail. However, that results in the sensation of the crimes almost feeling trivialized, although I am sure that isn't the intention. There's a fine balance in Christian fiction to address difficult realities of a story without crossing the line. If you enjoy a little edgier suspense this is well written and you'll enjoy the narrator, too.
This has been an interesting series. I'm glad I listened to the second book first. It is much more uplifting. As a psychologist for twenty-five years, I've heard enough tragic stories to last me a lifetime but I wanted to listen to this book, too, and I'm glad I did.
Question: Do you prefer edgier/grittier fiction and if so, why?
