The Lost Castle

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The Lost Castle
Kristy Cambron
Thomas Nelson

Launching a brand-new series, Kristy Cambron explores the collision of past and present as she discovers the ruins of a French castle, long lost to history.

A thirteenth century castle, Chateau de Doux Reves, has been forgotten for generations, left to ruin in a storybook forest nestled deep in France's picturesque Loire Valley. It survived a sacking in the French Revolution, was brought back to life and fashioned into a storybook chateau in the Gilded Age, and was eventually felled and deserted after a disastrous fire in the 1930s.

As Ellie Carver sits by her grandmother's bedside, she hears stories of a castle . . . of lost love and a hidden chapel that played host to a secret fight in the World War II French resistance. But her grandmother is quickly slipping into the locked-down world of Alzheimer's, and Ellie must act fast if she wants to uncover the truth of her family's history.

Sparked by the discovery of a long forgotten family heirloom, Ellie embarks on a journey to French wine country to uncover the mystery surrounding The Sleeping Beauty--the castle so named for Charles Perrault's beloved fairy tale--and unearth its secrets before they're finally silenced by time.

Set in three different time periods--the French Revolution, World War II, and present day--The Lost Castle is a story of loves won and lost, of battles waged, and an enchanted castle that inspired the epic fairy tales time left behind.

     Dual storylines are something you either love or hate, and I've felt both emotions depending on the book. They are, after all, tricky things to handle, and The Lost Castle isn't even a dual storyline: it contains three different plot threads and time periods that alternate with each other. While they all interweave together beautifully at the end, the format isn't without its issues: every time I'd get interested in one plot, it would switch over to another. That could be a little frustrating and hindered me from becoming attached to any of them. (That being said, even with all the time-jumping, I didn't find the book confusing) Strangely enough, I think my favorite section was the modern-day one with Ellie and Quinn, which is unusual given that I almost always like historical settings best. All three romances were sweet, and the book was very clean: I wouldn't have a problem handing it over to my younger teen self.

     It was a little difficult for me to connect with this book, but I think that is less of a reflection on the author's talent and more of a personal preference issue on my part. I really liked the dreamlike feel of the novel, which I thought was more pronounced in the modern day sections (which might be why I liked those best?). I'm very curious  to see what a second book in this series would look like, and I look forward to finding out.

I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

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