The Sapphire Child

Trotter’s new book is an intoxicating blend of the last days of the Raj and World War II. Stella and Andrew have grown up together in the sunset of British rule over India. As adults the two friends follow different paths, with Andrew leaving to join the war effort, while Stella stays behind in India to nurse a broken heart when she is betrayed by the man she thought she loved. When the two old friends eventually reunite, life has changed them almost beyond recognition. Will they ever be able to overcome their pasts and rekindle the friendship they once shared?

Chai tea anyone? You’ll need it if you’re hunkering down with Janet MacLeod Trotter’s ‘The Sapphire Child’ to be published December 08, 2020. You are about to embark on a 524-page evocative journey back to Rawalpindi in the foothills of the Himalayas and discover what life was like in colonial India.

Set against the sweeping grandeur of the Himalayas in Northern India in 1933, Trotter shares the story of childhood friends, Stella Dubois and Andrew Lomax. Andrew’s father and stepmother own the vibrant Raj Hotel in Rawalpindi and Stella is the daughter of the hotel manager. Strain is put on their friendship when Andrew, expelled from school, leaves India to join his overbearing mother in Scotland. Over the next few years, the two see little of each other as life keeps them busy. When WW2 breaks out, Andrew joins the army and Stella, having suffered recent betrayal, joins the Women’s Auxiliary Corps. Embittered with life, the two unexpectedly meet in India and receive the answers they each need to move on with their life. Has their friendship withstood the test of time? Has war changed them too much to rekindle their friendship? Can they put scandal and heartbreak behind them?

I absolutely loved the backdrop of colonial India! It reminded me of the 2015-2106 British drama, Indian Summers, with Julie Walters. Trotter’s impeccable research made for such a fantastic read. She wrote to all the senses; I could almost feel the heat and humidity, smell the pungent spices, hear the throngs and see the architecture and décor of the British Raj that flavoured the final years of their rule in India. A true smorgasbord for the senses.

Paramount to Trotter’s success is her access to the treasure trove of old diaries, letters, photos and home movies of her grandparents. Having left Edinburgh to live and work in Northern India she was able to draw on their intrepid travels between 1920 – 1950. Her encompassing story is full of twists and turns, unexpected events and colourful, unique characters. Trotter masterfully brings to life colonial India and the ex-pat experiences.

Central to the theme of this historical family drama is forbidden love, the devastation of heartbreak, the power of family and the importance of getting to the truth instead of making assumptions.

My heart is full and I’m feeling uplifted after such a purely indulgent experience.

1933 the scene is set against the majestic Himalayas in Northern India. This is a story of Stella Dubois and Andrew Lomax, childhood friends. Andrew's father and stepmother own the Raj Hotel in Rawalpindi and Stella's father is the hotel manager. As an unfortunate event occurred at Andrew's school, he is expelled and sent to Scotland to live with his mother. Not seeing each other for several years, they unexpectedly meet in India as WWII breaks out..but life has changed them both. Are their childhood ties enough create a new relationship or will there be heartbreak ahead? A novel set in the colonial times of India you become absorbed with the history. There is much to take in within this 524 page book. Not only the story itself, but India at the end of the British Raj, the sights, the sounds, Ms. Trotter has masterfully set in your mind's eye. Ms. Trotter creates the very essence of India itself during a time when British colonialism was at its peak. My thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Historical fiction bookstagram, I’ve got a new one for you 💫

The sapphire child is a novel that spans across the ocean between Scotland and India; within a family who have ancestors on both continents.

India 1933: a young Andrew Lomax is expelled from school and sent back to his father and stepmother in northern India. He imagines that he will enter a local school where he can help out in the family owned hotel alongside of his childhood friend Stella. Unfortunately that expulsion gives his mother back in Scotland the courage to make demands that he come live with her for the summer.

His mother is needy and manipulative with her son and somehow convinces him to stay with her by feeding him lies about his father. Andy unsure of what to believe and desperate for his mother to like him, clings to mistruths and lies about the father and stepmother who have raised him.

This story is a long one.. at 500 pages you cannot help but he immersed into Andy’s world. And at the same time fall in love with the kind-hearted Stella who falls in and out of Andy’s life as it goes along.

What makes a family and the childhood friendship that simmers in love throughout it all is what holds your attention in this beautiful novel. I didn’t even realize it was a second book of a series. I must go back now and read the first one as it’ll give me more of the background story about the Lomax family ❤️

A beautifully crafted novel dealing with the India of the Raj and how events between two friends from childhood change when Andrew is expelled from school and sent home to his father and step-mother who own two hotels, but run one called the Raj Hotel in the foot hills of the Himalays. Here his childhood friend Stella Lomax, daughter of the manager of the other hotel becomes involved in sorting out his problems. His estranged, but manipulative mother demands to have him sent back to Scotland, where she has lived since his birth and that sets in motion a series of events culminating in his staying behind when Stella returns to India. Then as the Second World War begins Andrew joins up and Stella who is feeling useless at home joins the Women's Auxillary Corps to help the war effort. As Andrew takes a break before heading to Burma to fight the Japenese he encounters his childhood friend and this sets in motion a series of events. The reader is brought into the world of wartime and India and the writing brings alive those times. This is a great read and having learnt that it is the second book in the series I now intend to read the first. A well desrved 5 star rating for this novel.

My rating:

Plot: 4 out of 5 stars
Writing: 4 out of 5 stars
Character development: 4 out of 5 stars
Overall: 4 out of 5 stars

Recommended for readers of:

Women’s Fiction
Historical Fiction

Review:

The book is beautifully written and poignant. The scenery is depicted vividly; it’s not hard to imagine that you are actually there. The book starts a little bit slow but once you are past this, it really captures you and doesn’t let go until the end. The characters are well developed and although I didn’t like all of them, their actions were explained in detail this made them realistic. The historical background set in northern India during the 1930s and WII provided an interesting insight into colonial India during this time.

Overall:

This is a well written book, with fascinating characters. The landscape and events are vividly depicted It feels a little like going on a journey back in time. The plot flows well and is easy to follow. This is a great book to escape with for a while.

Review copy provided by NetGalley at no cost to me

The Sapphire Child by Janet MacLeod Trotter is Book 2 in The Raj Hotel Series and will be published with Lake Union Publishing on December 8th 2020. Having read, and thoroughly enjoyed, The Emerald Affair, Book 1 in this series, I was delighted to be returning to India and to the gorgeous and atmospheric imagery that Janet MacLeod Trotter writes about so well. I wrote in December 2019 that The Emerald Affair was ‘a sweeping tale, taking the reader on a journey from Scotland to India’ and The Sapphire Child continues in the same fashion as the reader is taken on a wonderful voyage across oceans as the world faces the horror and turmoil of the Second World War.

Tom and Esmie now run two hotels in Northern India, The Raj-in-the-Hills Hotel, Gulmarg and The Raj Hotel, Rawalpindi. Their relationship has been put through the mill but they have come out stronger together than ever. Tom’s estranged wife, Lydia is now back living in Scotland following on from her very troublesome and damaging behaviour of the past. Their son Andrew remained with his father and boards at a very reputable school. Although Tom and Esmie have their secrets, life is content. Tom has chosen to keep his past from Andrew, lightly skipping over questions when raised. But Andrew is now getting older and at thirteen he is starting to question. Stella is an Anglo-Indian with a passion for India. At twenty years of age she sees the world in a very positive light and, although her family are employed by Tom and Esmie, she has never felt in any way inferior , accepted completely as a very important part of the greater Raj Hotel family.

Stella has a very close friendship with Andrew. They have always been able to talk to each other, to playfully joke and have fun. Stella treats Andrew as an equal, something he very much appreciates as he embarks on his teenage years. Following a shocking incident at school, Andrew returns to Scotland with Stella as his chaperone. His mother, Lydia, treats Stella with total disrespect and, with a few poisonous words about his past, she encourages Andrew to remain with her. Stella returns to India, heartbroken that she has had to leave Andrew behind but also excited at the prospect of possible love on the horizon.

As war breaks out, the lives of all change dramatically and the peace at The Raj becomes a thing of the past. Tom and Esmie are distraught without Andrew by their sides and when they hear he joins up, they fear for his safety.

With all the finer details depicted with great clarity, Janet MacLeod Trotter brings the reader into the trenches of warfare as the world is upturned and people’s lives are changed forever. Andrew and Stella embark on very different paths yet there is always a very tentative connection between them as the years of war roll on. Reading this series , and any of Janet MacLeod Trotter’s books, is a very immersive affair where all the senses are tantalised. The smells, the tastes, the colour of the Indian landscape come alive on the pages as love, grief, anger and fear play out before the reader. Every single character in this book is depicted beautifully giving the reader a real sense of their personalities. I would genuinely love to see this series come truly alive on screen as it really would be a treat and a joy to watch (she hopes!)

The Sapphire Child is a captivating and sumptuous novel, remarkably researched with wonderful and vivid descriptions of an India of yesteryear. It’s a chunky read at over 500 pages so be prepared to lose yourself in the nostalgia of times gone by. Historical fiction that will sweep you away, this is a perfect read to escape the winter blues.

The Raj Hotel #2

1930's Nothern India childhood friends Stella and Andrew have grown up together in the orbit of the majestic Raj Hotel. Stella has always had a soft spot for Andrew but she dreams of meeting a soulmate from outside her close knit community. But scandal shatters Stella and Andrew's friendship. As WWII looms, Andrew joins the army to fight for his freedom. Stella is reeling from her terrible betrayal so she throws herself into the war effort, volunteering for the Women's Auxiliary Corps.

I did not know that this was the second book in the Raj Hotel series. Set in Nothern India the book is descriptively written as we faced the horrors that war can bring. This is quite a long read with just over 500 pages. But it's enjoyable from beginning to end. I would have preferred to have read the first book in this series. The book covers friendships love and war.

I would like to thank #NetGalley, #AmazonPublishingGroupUK and the author #JanetMacLeodTrotter for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

#Janet MacLeod Trotter ,# NetGally
Beautiful crafted novel. 500 pages so its a long read.
Sapphire Child in 1933 the sceen is set in Northern India . Story of Stella Dabois and Andrew Lomax friends as Children. Beautifuly crafted novel. I recomed this read.

This the story is split in two countries India & Scotland.

I hadn't really read anything about India what happened in the Second War II so it was interesting to read about that. They fought hard and the Japanese never made through India.

Andrew is living with his Father and Stepmother in India while in Scotland his Mother lives there, things happen that it is decided to go and stay in Scotland for a holiday this is where circumstances happen to change things for Andrew.

Stella works for Andrew's parents and splits her time between the two hotels they own. Andrew and Stella are friends even though there is 8 years between them Stella being the elder.

I found this a every enjoyable book and would recommend you read the book before and this one.

India 1933: Stella Dubois and Andrew Lomax grew up together playing at the Raj Hotel in Rawalpindi. Stella’s father Charlie Dubois is the manager of the hotel and Andrew’s father Tom Lomax is the owner. When Andrew gets into trouble at school, his mother Lydia insists he visits her in Scotland and Stella is given the opportunity to go with him. They will need a chaperone to accompany them aboard the ship, Miss Moria Jessop is employed by the Tom Lomax to keep an eye on the teenagers and she’s not your typical paid companion.

Lydia Lomax is Andrews’s mother, she’s nasty to Stella from the moment she arrives in Scotland, and she considers her nothing more than a servant. Stella’s holiday in Scotland comes to an end and she returns to India without Andrew, he decides to stay with his mother and go to a new school. Andrew has a very complicated relationship with his parents and his stepmother. His parents separated when he was only a baby; with one living in India and the other living in Scotland it was always going to be difficult. Due to rumors, hear say and Andrew not being told the entire truth it makes the situation worse, it’s a heavy burden for the young man to carry and he's very confused.

The Second World War begins, Andrew is sent to India and of course he wants to see his dad, Esmie and his best friend. Stella has joined the Women’s Auxiliary Corps as a secretary and Andrew is stationed near the Burma border to stop the fast moving Japanese army invading. Stella and Andrew meet again, despite the age difference, they still get on well and both feel confused about their changing feelings for each other?
The Sapphire Child is the second book in The Raj Hotel series and the first book is called The Emerald Affair. I really enjoyed reading about beautiful Colonial India; it’s a magical place, the countryside, people and customs. The Sapphire Child is a story about family, relationships, marriage, friendship and secrets. The connection between Andrew and Stella is an interesting one; they went from being childhood friends, during the war it changed and did they both feel the same? I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review; I really enjoyed reading The Sapphire Child and five stars from me.

The Sapphire Child by Janet MacLeod Trotter was just beautifully written throughout. This new book is the second book in The Raj Hotel series.
I love the way Janet writes. When I open all her books and start to read them, I always become apart of the story. I feel I am apart of The Sapphire Child. This new novel that spans across the ocean between Scotland and India; within a family who have ancestors on both continents and it's a long one. But don't let that put you off.....Before I knew it I was on the last few chapters

I highly recommend this series of book.

Big Thank you to NetGalley,Amazon Publishing Group UK and the author Janet MacLeod Trotter for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Sapphire Child is the second in Janet MacLeod Trotter’s Raj Hotel series, though can be enjoyed as a standalone if you haven’t read the first book, The Emerald Affair. The book features many of the characters from the first book but brings more focus on the next generation as they grow to adulthood and the Second World War approaches.

Thirteen year old Andrew is the son of Tom Lomax and his estranged wife Lydia. At the beginning of the book, after an altercation which results in him leaving his school, he is excited to have the opportunity to travel to Scotland to spend the summer with his mother who he hasn’t seen since he was a baby. Escorting him on the voyage is his childhood friend Stella. She is equally as excited to be visiting Britain, a place she, like many Brits living in India at the time, considers home even though she’s never been there before. We follow these characters over the next few years both in Scotland and back in India at very important stages of their lives.

This is a book which will appeal to all the senses. The author depicts the heat of India so well and also the cold of Scotland. Although, it was also cold in India up in the hills where Tom and Lydia are snowed in over the winter months. It’s an aspect of India I don’t often consider, as it’s a country I always think of as being hot. The food in India in particular sounded delicious. I always enjoy a book that takes me away to another place and, although Ebbsmouth was certainly a more familiar setting, being not far from Edinburgh, I so enjoyed the trip to Raj India.

Family secrets are a big theme in this book and that’s what I enjoyed the most. It was clear to see the effect that these secrets had on young Andrew’s life. Sometimes the secrets had been kept with the best of intentions and sometimes for more devious reasons. As he gradually became aware of them, he really had to rethink a lot of what he thought he knew. Stella had some secrets of her own and my heart really went out to her and the predicament she found herself in.

Although not the main focus of the book, there is a rather lovely romance woven throughout the story too. As a reader, I was fairly sure I knew how this would pan out but it was lovely to see the characters come to this same realisation, a rather beautifully written heart-warming scene.

The historical aspect of the book is also deserving of a mention. As well as taking her readers to a different place, the author is excellent at transporting them to a different time too. This book takes place in the 1930s and 40s, a time when British rule in India and indeed throughout the Empire was rightly being questioned and beginning to reach its end.

The Sapphire Child is a book you can lose yourself in for many hours as you experience life in a different place and a different time. The author obviously has a passion for India as well as personal knowledge and this comes across clearly in her writing. Fans of historical fiction set in exotic climes with a side order of family secrets and love will enjoy this book. A very satisfying read, I do hope there might be another book in this series continuing to follow the lives of these characters.

This is the second book in the Raj Hotel Series but i wasn't lost not reading the first one. Stella Dubois works at the hotel her parents run plus at an addition hotel where the owners of both hotels live in the mountains of India. They have a son, Andrew Lomax that is younger than Stella but they are still friends. Andrew"s parents are divorced and his mother lives in Scotland. When she asks for Andrew to come to Scotland for summer vacation Stella is sent as well to be a chaperone. Their travel to Scotland will influence their future forever.
I loved this book for the history as well as the romance.

Thank you for the chance to read this book.

I had not read the other book in the series - but this did not detract from this book or spoil the story line at all.

I knew little about life in India - or in WW2 for that matter - and enjoyed reading about the 2 hotels and the different weather conditions and seasons. It was also interesting reading about life during the war and the conditions the soldiers had to fight through and the sights some of them saw through warfare with the Japanese.

I rarely write a synopsis of the storyline in these reviews as I would hate to provide a spoiler for those reading after me.
However I did feel slightly cheated at the end of this book. We were left knowing that Stella finally found love, and that she was finally reunited with her child - but not how her own family reacted to knowing that she had had that child who they thought belonged to another family.

All in all I enjoyed this book and again give thanks to the publisher and the author for the chance to read this novel

Always been a fan of historical fiction. Loved reading this book. A true journey into World War II fiction indeed. If you are up for a heartbreak, go for it.

Don't worry if you didn't read the first book-this family saga has a great setting and wonderful characters that will wrap you in. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. For fans of historical fiction.

Loved everything about this book, from the skilled descriptions of 1930s India to the depiction of the relationship between Stella and Andrew, childhood friends. As WWII intervenes, the lives of these 2 takes different directions and their journeys into adulthood take them on very different paths.

Unfortunately, I was not able to get into this book. I did not finish this book. Because I did not finish this, I will not be leaving a review on Goodreads for this book.

I enjoyed reading this book despite not reading the earlier one.. It was set in India and Scotland with a good storyline. The characters were all interesting and there was sadness and happiness. I did learn about the Indian culture and how they were involved in the War. I do recommend that this book is read.

I want to thank Netgalley and the author for gifting me the ebook. I really enjoyed this book and the story. The cover is really pretty also.