An abandoned baby and a body set a family on a collision course with danger and the truth. And years later, another woman, Sylvie, will search for answers about her own life and collide with this past.

This was a marvelous gothic-suspense novel. If you love Kate Morton, like I do, you will love this well-written, lyrical mystery.

Review published on Goodreads, 28 April 2021:

THE DAUGHTERS OF FOXCOTE MANOR ticked all my favorite reading boxes: Gothic vibes, family secrets, atmospheric setting, interesting characters, etc. It's an engrossing novel with a strong sense of place, well-developed characters, and a plot that kept me turning pages. I loved Rita, although I wasn't as enamored of Sylvie. Still, they're both relatable, sympathetic characters whose voices kept me engaged in the story. While I guessed some of the book's plot twists, there were others that surprised me. Overall, then, I found this novel to be a compelling, satisfying read.

Thank you to G. P. Putnam's Sons and NetGalley for the gifted ebook of The Daughters of Foxcote Manor! All opinions in this review are my own.

SYNOPSIS

First, a baby is found in the woods and a family decides to keep it. A few days later, a dead body is found in the same woods. Years later, Sylvie feels drawn to the woods but can't figure out why.

REVIEW

I love this thriller! I feel like it can be difficult to write a satisfying thriller, but Eve Chase expertly tied up all the loose ends into a conclusion that will not disappoint! I really like that the connections between the two timelines were scattered throughout the novel so it kept the mystery alive. I can't wait to read more of Eve Chase's books!

As much as I wanted to be wowed by this one, I just wasn't. It was an easy enough read, but I found it hard to care about the characters, and hard to distinguish between who was telling the story (since they switched both character and time period regularly). All in all it was just, okay.

This book has stayed with me since finishing it. Absolutely beautiful, gorgeous writing, poignant observations of nature and the world, and above all a story about love. The love we assume for our families at birth, the love we find along the way, and what we do to preserve and protect those that we love.
The end absolutely did me in, in the best possible way. The characters having the opportunity to reunite, reignite their love for each other, what a blessing- for them and for us. Without it, I’d still be wildly impressed with the story, but it uplifted the conclusion enough to make you feel good about reading an ultimately heavy novel.

Fast paced and great read! I really enjoyed this book and couldn’t put it down. Loved the dual timeline and different points of view. It was fast paced and exciting. The ending was great! Overall this was a great book.! I loved it!

What a wonderful read. I started this on a rainy weekend, thinking I could take my time and enjoy the fire and my cider. After a couple of chapters, I was hooked. There was no marking my place and walking away. I read it in one sitting, reading far into the night to finish, and WOW! Just WOW!
Eve Chase's world building is superior to many of the authors on my dedicated TBR list. I'm not sure why I've not read any of her titles before. Her descriptions of the manor and the forest are evocative, they make these background sites come alive and become characters in the story. The characters themselves are so well defined, you'd recognize them on the street. Their stories and their reactions are true to life....mostly. The stories start as separate timelines and not connected, then Ms Chase shows us their history and we see how the past has become the present with so many steps in between. From page 1, their stories unfold through the eyes of the central characters of Rita and Sylvie, mother and daughter and Hera, daughter of the Manor. A wonderful book that I will reread soon as I raced through it this time and I'm sure I missed subtle hints of what is to come.
I really don't know how to recommend this book except to say.....read it, it's so worth your precious reading time.

The Daughters of Foxcote Manor
By Eve Chase

This is an absolutely beautiful and breathtaking read from Eve Chase. This was an emotional and compelling read that I enjoyed reading.

The Daughters of Foxcote Manor follows the Harrington family as they discover an abandoned child in their country summer home. In this atmospheric and haunting mystery read, you will be enveloped in the deep story line, dual time period, full of family secrets you are bound to get lost in. I also love that the manor itself is a character in this story and definitely adds to the mysterious element of the story line. Do pick this up for a wonderful read - the build up alone is what kept my fingers turning those pages.

Eve Chase really wrote a phenomenal book that drew me in to the secrets, the drama, the mystery with a fantastic dual time line story and incredible characters. I highly recommend this read.

Where to begin...that is always the hardest part of writing a review for a book that I adored! I seriously must say that I loved everything about this book, the characters, the build up and then the execution of the ending! WOW just WOW! Eve Chase is fastly becoming on of my favorite writers! I love how Eve Chase provides such a spooky story in such an amazing fashion. I love how this makes me question so much. I highly recommend The Daughters of Foxcote Manor.

This is one that definitely lives up to all the hype. It does take a bit to get into and there are multiple POV's and it also goes back and forth between past and present but once you get used to that it is a great book. It is a well written story and I really enjoyed how the author tied everything together in the end. There were some surprising revelations that I did not see coming and some that I did but that didn't make them any less enjoyable to read about. The setting provided a mysterious and spooky element to the book and the characters were all fascinating in their own way. I will definitely be adding more books by Eve Chase to my list to read.

Wowza, what a read! This book was so well written, but completely and utterly unputdownable! Realistic and unique! Lots of twists and turns, chills, thrills, and shocks, but ones that you find in life not so out there you must suspend beliefs! I highly, highly, highly recommend this book to those looking for a well written, amazing character developed, and overall riveting read! Word of advice, clear schedule and start well before bedtime, as this one will keep you flipping pages until you finish!
Will buzz around platforms and use lower Amazon reviewer number on release date!

Chase braids narrators and plotlines across generations masterfully, layering each story one over the other until the final product reveals itself.

So many thanks to Netgalley & GP Putnam's Sons for the chance to read this book!

The Daughters of Foxcote Manor sealed the deal for me, Eve Chase has without a doubt become one of my go-to authors. Yet again, I'm eagerly enjoying all of the books set in giant houses with mysterious pasts, especially those set in England. This book made me so ready for a big cup of tea and a dip in temperature!

After finishing up Black Rabbit Hall not too long ago, I was jumping for joy when I was able to score Eve Chase's latest release through Netgalley. While this story started a little slow and took me some time to get the hang of the varying narrators, I was certain this would be an exceptional story up to par with all of Eve Chase's previous works. After I got the rhythm of the story figured out, I was hooked! The past and present perspectives were both equally interesting and kept me on my toes. The cliffhangers at the end of the chapters kept me anxiously reading and grateful to pick the book back up every time I was forced to take a break.

One of the things that stood out to me in this story was the longing I was able to feel through Rita, one of the three main characters. Eve Chase was able to capture the maternal instincts of this character perfectly. There have been many times in my own life when I've wanted to adopt a child who was facing difficulties or a lack of proper parental care. The urge to love and mother someone's unfortunate child had been almost too great to bear. I was able to experience this anguish through Rita as if it was happening to me.

I also was impressed with how each perspective tied together in the end of this story. I was unsure how the dots might connect as I was reading, but as I got closer to the end, my mind was absolutely blown. Despite the hardships the characters faced, making this story have a predominately melancholy feel, I was delighted with how things turned out. This ended up being a beautiful tale of family, love, and allowed readers to experience how even the saddest of situations can have great outcomes.

As always with Eve Chase's books, I'm giving this my highest recommendation!

This one just wasn't for me, and I didn't finish. It's well written, but I wasn't able connect with the characters and the plot.

I thought this would be more Gothic.

You know, crumbly old manor house, dead body in the woods, same author as Black Rabbit Hall...But the story is much more trashy soap opera than gothic horror.

Thus thematically, this book was not my favorite. The basic premise is also nothing we haven’t seen before.

That said, what sets up as a fairly nasty, emotionally icky story actually turns out to be a sweet and happy one in the end. It’s satisfying and the ending you want, yet also rooted in a level of coincidence that badly strains belief.

The book also suffers from the same problem that plagues many dual timeline novels In that the second timeline is much weaker than the first. The earlier timeline focusing on Big Rita and the Harrington family is far more enjoyable and endearing than the second, where we’re forced to endlessly listen to Sylvie the doormat incessantly kowtow to her irresponsible, foolish teenage daughter.

The plot of the earlier timeline saves this book from being a complete disappointment, but the weak second timeline, total lack of atmosphere, and series of improbable coincidences in the solve left me largely let down. Fans of Chase’s earlier neo-Gothic gem Black Rabbit Hall will want to steer clear.

From my blog: Always With A Book:

This is the third book I've read by Eve Chase and I just love her books. They are completely atmospheric and engaging and hook me right from the start.

This is another haunting mystery with great gothic undertones. I think that is why I love Eve Chase's writing so much! This time around, the story is narrated by three characters in two time periods, which I have to say at first, felt a little jarring, but eventually link together in a way I did not see coming. I loved getting to know all these characters and as much as it was hard at first to keep track of where the story was at different points in the beginning, I quickly fell into the rhythm of it and became quite invested with what was going on with everyone and everything.

This book is such a multilayered story and one that is full of family secrets. I loved that it's not so much a whodunit, but rather it becomes a mystery of trying to figure out how everything connects to that one fateful summer. It really kept me glued to the pages as I looked to see what the connections might possibly be. And when you add in the setting - the creepy, remote house set deep in the woods, it's almost like you have another character to add to the mix.

I cannot recommend this book enough. There is just enough family drama and intrigue to keep you engaged and the tension slowly builds for quite an ending. I'm three for three with this author and cannot wait to see what she writes next!

What I Say.... Eve Chase!!! I love her books and you definitely have to be patient because she only puts one out about every 2-3 years. So I was beyond excited to get a review copy of The Daughters of Foxcote Manor.

Rita grew up with her grandmother, and is beyond excited to get a job as a nanny in London, with a glamorous mistress,, Jeannie, pregnant with her third child. Rita loves the children, but Jeannie is devastated when her baby is delivered stillborn. She never even got to see her, her husband, Walter decided it would be too painful, so she has no closure.

Walter decides that his wife and children need to be bundled off to the country for the summer, without him. He puts Rita in charge, and demands that she give him private reports on his wife's mental health - deciding whether she needs to be put away.

Rita doesn't want to spy on Jeannie, but Walter holds all the power, and the money, so she has to go along with it.

As the summer goes on, Rita has to contend with Jeannie's mood swings, Hera's insecurity and anger towards her mother, a family friend who comes to stay and won't leave, and a baby that was found on a fencepost covered in ants. Yep, you read that correctly. A foundling that Jeannie immediately begins to think of as her replacement baby, and pushes Rita to delay notifying the police.

Poor Rita, she is also dealing with a local boy that seems interested in her, but she's not sure how she feels about him. And she can't leave Jeannie in her current situation.

I won't give any spoilers, but this book is full of Eve Chase's twist and turns, and I absolutely loved, loved, loved the ending. Once I was done with this one, I went straight into Black Rabbit Hall and loved that too.

My only complaint is that I want her to write faster!!!! When I finished this book, the first thing I thought was now I probably have to wait until 2022 to see anything new

Current Goodreads Rating 4.10

This multi-generational saga provides a satisfying payoff for those patient enough to savor the slow burn of the build toward the story's climax. It's gorgeous, gothic, and atmospheric-- the kind of book that deserves to be paired with your favorite candles and some forest ASMR sounds to set the right mood as you read beneath the covers. Even better, there's a bit of something for everyone: mystery, romance, strong heroines, complex family ties, and a deliciously detestable villain. While I don't think Eve Chase will be for everyone due to her pacing and alternating timelines, fans of Kate Morton and the like will delight in her work. I certainly did.

Thanks to NetGalley & G.P. Putnam's Sons for providing an arc of the book in exchange for an honest review.

An old manor deep in the forest and a family full of secrets is the perfect recipe for a suspenseful five star read!

In 1970, Rita serves as nanny for the Harrington family and has been charged with caring not only for the two Harrington children Teddy and Hera, but also their grieving mother who is mourning the lost of her baby, as they spend the summer away from London in the deeply wooded home Foxcote Manor. As new characters enter the story, Rita isn't sure who to trust and how to handle covertly reporting back to Mr. Harrington on Mrs. Harrington's mental status. Then young Hera finds the tiniest baby abandoned in the woods and it isn't long until a body is discovered in the woods as well.

Some forty years later, Sylvie is in the midst of a divorce and trying to make peace with her daughter when Sylvie receives a call that her mother has been in an accident. Suddenly, Sylvie must deal with her own uncertain past while trying to reach through her mother's coma and help her daughter make some life changing decisions.

This book truly intrigued me and even surprised me several times throughout the pages. I enjoyed the two differing plots and watching them connect. It was definitely a 5 star read for me and I highly recommend it.

Okay where do I begin... I LOVED THIS BOOK. It really did hold my interest from beginning to end. I loved the way that everything pulled together and the character building was just amazing. There were parts where I felt like I knew where it was going but by the end I was just like 🤯🤯🤯 Absolutely spectacular book... in my opinion 🤪🤩