I don't normally go for fiction but this one peaked my interest, right from the start I was intrigued and settled in to eventually devour this book. it was delicious, exciting, different and I would highly recommend.

Again, Kathleen McGurl has created another outstanding masterpiece.
I am a big fan of her work and I haven’t found one bad book of hers so far!
For fans, new and old, this is a gorgeous book and perfect escapism.

"The Secret of the Chateau by Kathleen McGurl"
I really enjoyed this book, if you have ever dreamed of living in a chateau and/or moving to France this is the book to read. Set in present day and during the French Revolution. Based on historical truth but the characters and the chateau are all fictional.

This was a brilliant read and is being featured on my blog for my quick star reviews feature, which I have created on my blog so I can catch up with all the books I have read and therefore review.
See www.chellsandbooks.wordpress.com.

The Forgotten Secret by Kathleen McGurl was one of my favorite books to read, this one was a lot harder to get into. It took me a lot harder to finish it unfortunately.

One of those stories that you don't want to end. A group of friends buy a French Chateau then follow up on its history. It goes backwards and forwards to the French Revolution. Great read.

A very satisfying read. Switching between the present day and a meticulously researched French Revolution era, we gradually learn what happened at the chateau centuries before. Highly recommended.

I really enjoyed the previous book I read by this author, The Forgotten Secret. Unfortunately, this one just wasn't for me.., it didn't grab me at all...

The story is written in a dual time line. Alternate chapters. Today & the French Revolution. The author has done great research on the French Revolution, and although the actual protagonists in this story are fictional the writing does give you a sense of the brutality of revolution. I loved the book, it was gripping and believable.

Review The Secret of the Chateau by Kathleen McGurl

A group of old friends decide it is a good idea to move to France to retire together in a chateau and live the dream. One of them decides to research the history of the chateau. This is where an alternate story of the past of another family from the chateau during the French Revolution begins.

I really enjoyed the underlying historical part more. The current one was a little far fetched that the retirees could live so harmoniously obviously I know a very different set of amicable retirees.

This is a lovely book though not as well done as some I have read before where they mix past and present .

Enjoyable depending on you mind set whilst reading the book.

3.5/ 5

What a wonderful tale! The two timelines work beautifully and I found myself invested in both stories. The historical aspect of the novel was interesting and I loved the relationships between the friends embarking on their new life in France. A thoroughly enjoyable read.

When Lu and her friends discuss selling their houses and buying a chateau in France together she thinks it is just the drink talking but the following morning they are still up for it and somehow she gets carried along with it unable to upset everyone else by telling of her misgivings. Once settled in the chateau she starts to research the history and makes some amazing discoveries. In the late 1700s Pierre and Catherine Aubert flee from the court at Versailles as the revolution starts to take hold but even in their chateau deep in the Alps will they and their children be safe?

A great story that I couldn't put down and normally with these sort of books I much prefer the historic aspect but this one was so well written I enjoyed both time periods equally and was really disappointed when I had finished it.....a book that stays with you after you have finished it.

A fascinating dual timeline novel. Really enjoyed this one.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

Lu is swept along by her four closest friends - including her husband - when they hatch a pretty audacious plan to pool their resources and retire as a group to a chateau in the south of France. Unsure that she really wants to do this, she cant scupper the dreams of the other four, and the decision is taken out of her hands when her husband has a heart attack and the Alpes Maritimes becomes the perfect place for him to recuperate and get fit to prevent it happening again.

They move to the Chateau L'Aubert nestled in a fold of land in the foothills of the alps and in sight of the Med. It is perfect and Lu's misgivings gradually fall away until she finds herself a niche in the community. Part of that comes from her research into the history of the chateau and the family that once lived in it, up until it fell into public hands during the reign of terror following the initial stages of the French Revolution.

Meanwhile, we learn about those French nobility through the eyes of Pierre Aubert, courtier, his young wife Catherine and their maid Claudette. With them we live at Versailles, flee for our lives and settle in the chateau, hoping against hope that the revolution can't find them there.

As delightful as the story is, I felt I was reading a first draft manuscript, before any editing or sorting out of the plot had begun, just the bare bones of the story with the gaps left waiting to be filled in. The tone was like reading a children's book but with talk of heads on pikes and the word 'fuck' being used, it most definitely is not a pre-teen novel. And yet there isn't enough in it to be a full adult book. There isn't enough story, too many 'some months after' type phrases, jumping forwards because there was nothing to say about the intervening years in the historical part; weeks vanishing in the contemporary as if nothing at all of interest had happened, followed by a frantic list of what had - well, why weren't we shown and not just told?

The whole point of the book, the research into the family Aubert - it happens, but we don't really see how, beyond Lu looking at some French books and a lot of Googling. Where's the writer's in-depth knowledge on this topic? There's no convincing detail, as if looking up the past is as easy as looking in a random history book and consulting Google. Church records were read, but what church records, what did they say? In what form were they? How much detail was there contained in these records?

And the great secret is revealed the wrong way round - no spoilers but it the truth shouldn't have been revealed in the historic narrative because we know the secret long before Lu discovers it so the tension is ruined.

The the writing itself wasn't great. There were so many repetitions that I do wonder if an editor has seen it, or maybe the writer ignored her editor...? And it isn't as if the repetitions are there for effect and cleverness - it isn't a sophisticated book. Grammar was all over the place, and the file itself had the annoying habit of leaving a space in the middle of a word, or not at all between two words. Not the author's fault, but made reading it harder than it should have been. Dialogue was often stilted or so childish in nature it was frustrating, "I was feeling unsettled. Phil said to me one day, 'You look unsettled." is the kind of construction that riddles this novel.

All in all, this needs the attention of a good editor to whip it into shape, the fill in the gaps,, recreate the secret so it works, to add depth to it and refine the dull, obvious dialogue. Disappointing.

I lost myself in the pages of this book! I became so involved in the history and I thought the two timelines were perfect. The writing was very descriptive and I felt as if I were living in the pages.
Many thanks to HQ Digital and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

The Secret of the Chateau by Kathleen McGurl
Source: NetGalley and HQ Digital
Rating: 4½/5 stars

Lu and her husband have been friends with the same trio for many, many years and as the group has begun to age, each has also begun to think about their respective future. One night, after entirely too much wine and conversation, the group collectively decides to sell everything they can’t live without and buy a wonderful new home, big enough for all of them and their grown children, in the heart of France.

Of the group, Lu is the most hesitant, yet she sees how truly happy everyone else is with the plan so resolves to make her way and make the best of the monumental change in her life. Upon reaching France, Lu finds settling in to be more difficult than she imagined. As her friends begin to find their way, find new hobbies, and new interests, Lu struggles to find her place. That all changes when Lu and her son find an unexpected mystery in the great tower. As one thing leads to another, Lu finds herself wrapped in research and taken back several centuries to the late 18th century. Lu’s discoveries will not only solve the mystery of the tower, but it will also lay to rest many questions related to local history and legend.

Lu’s research takes her back to the time of the original owners, Pierre and Catherine Aubert. The Aubert’s, once welcomed and loved members of the French court, found it necessary in the wake of revolution to escape to their home in the French Alps. While their escape is initially successful, Pierre and Catherine are members of the aristocracy and the revolution is raging on. Though they both hope they are far enough from Paris to remain undetected, each knows their escape and existence could be discovered at any moment. As Catherine goes about her days hoping for a return to the splendor and grandeur of Paris, Pierre secretly works out plans for their escape from France should the need arise.

Though their lives aren’t perfect, Pierre and Catherine do find some measure of peace in their chateau. Catherine bears their children and manages the house while Pierre maintains the laborers and lands attached to the chateau. For a time, the two are blissfully happy, but all good things must come to an end and before Catherine can even wrap her head around the danger, Pierre is ordering her to safety in the face of invasion.

Back in the present, Lu becomes somewhat engrossed in her research and what she uncovers is disturbing. The fate of the Aubert’s and their descendants has largely been lost to history, but Lu is like a dog with a bone and she refuses to give up on her task. As she works, she discovers great and terrible secrets as well as parts of the chateau and surrounding property that have been forgotten in the interceding centuries. What Lu brings to light doesn’t just inform she and her housemates, but the community as a whole.

The Bottom Line: I quite liked this read and while I usually gravitate toward the historical side of these types of books, this time I found myself more completely enjoying the present. Lu and her friends and their various activities really bring the setting to life in this book and I found that to be the most enjoyable bits of reading. That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy the bits in the past because I most certainly did. The crashing together of the past and the present is always one of my favorite genres and in this instance, I was not let down. This is a hard thing for an author to do properly and if it isn’t done properly, the whole read is a failure. The blending here is excellent, and the transitions are smooth. In all, a fine read.

I wasn’t sure how much I would enjoy this book when I began reading it but after a few chapters I was hooked. I loved going back and forth between the present day and the French Revolution and learning of thinks between the two sides of the story. The historical content was interesting and detailed and the characters through were endearing and allow you to become invested in their lives. I am looking forwards to discovering other books written by this author. Thank you netgalley.

Found this book captivating and hard to put down - wanted to devour it in as little time as possible, and would've finished it in one sitting if pesky sleep hadn't made itself a pest. The descriptions are beautiful and make it so easy to imagine the scenes, and the historical parts were rich and felt alive with tension, opulence, and drama.
Did feel a bit that Lu was too much a foil to get to the story of Catherine - it isn't until the 40-50% mark that Lu, though it's mentioned she loves history, decides to actively look into the history of the chateau. Felt a bit like the author dallied with the 'now' parts until the halfway mark just so she could sprinkle in the Versailles and 1790 scenes up to that point.
Still, it is a delightful, captivating book that I enjoyed reading and that kept me enthralled

Thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. I liked the easy movement between past and present and all of the characters were very believable. This is a book that is very easy to read, in a good way, and I was engrossed immediately and finished it quickly due to not being able to put it down.

I found myself a bit lost at times as the chapters alternated between past and present.. As a history buff myself i was impressed with the authors research into the French Revolution, It makes you wan't to visit a french chateau. Looking forward to another novel by Kathleen McGurl