It’s a real pleasure today to be helping launch the blog tour for The Forgotten Palace by Alexandra Walsh and to share my publication day review. Published today (12th April) by Boldwood Books, it’s now available for kindle (free via Kindle Unlimited), in paperback, and as an audiobook. My thanks to Rachel at Rachel’s Random Resources for the invitation and support, and to the publishers for my advance reading copy (provided via netgalley).
As if Boldwood didn’t already have enough authors whose books I automatically add to my reading list, they will keep signing more! This certainly isn’t Alexandra’s debut, just her first book published by Boldwood, and I’ve wanted to try her books (she was previously published by Sapere) for quite a while – if you’d like to take a look at her impressive backlist you’ll find her Amazon author page here. I’m reading and enjoying more and more historical fiction these days, and I’ve always been a particular fan of a well-wrought dual timeline. A little mystical touch too, and a touch of timeshift? Yes, that’s often very much something I like too. As soon as I spotted this book’s description (and saw that quite gorgeous cover), I really couldn’t resist…
In an underground labyrinth a lost soul wanders, waiting for revenge, waiting for love…
London 1900
Alice Webster has made the worst decision of her life. When her Aunt Agatha offers her the chance to go on a Grand Tour she jumps at the opportunity to get away from the glare of scandal. Heading off to see the world as the century turns, Alice begins to believe her broken heart can be healed, and a chance encounter on a train bound for Paris changes everything. When their journey takes them to a Cretan house thick with history, and the world-famous dig at Knossos, stories from the past begin to echo through Alice’s life.
London Present Day
Eloise De’Ath is meant to be a grieving widow. But if people knew the truth about her late husband, they’d understand why she can’t even pretend. Needing to escape, Eloise heads to Crete and the house her father-in-law Quinn left her, and slowly Quinn’s home begins to reveal its mysteries. In his office Eloise discovers his life’s work: the study of the Victorian excavation to find the Minotaur’s labyrinth. Fascinated by the diaries of a young woman from the dig, Eloise is drawn into Alice’s tale of lost love and her growing obsession with Ariadne, the princess of the labyrinth.
Three women divided by time but connected by the long-hidden secrets of the past. As their stories join in a golden thread, a terrible injustice might finally be undone…
A dual time story with a real difference, the lives of two women over a century apart, linked by their experiences and dreams of the Minotaur’s labyrinth at Knossos – and I really have to say I loved every moment.
The story opens in the present day, Eloise prepares for her husband’s funeral after his sudden death – we meet his three friends who were ever-present throughout her marriage, and witness her particularly spectacular exit from the ceremony before travelling to Crete, her father-in-law having left her a house that she can make her refuge. And then, in 1900, there’s Alice’s story – joining her aunt, family and entourage on a European Grand Tour to escape a difficult situation of her own making. Their itinerary is fluid, and a chance meeting takes them to Crete – where Alice joins the dig at the archaeological site at Knossos. It turns out that both women stay at the same house, where Eloise’s father-in-law had made it his life’s work to research Arthur Evans’ dig at the Knossos complex – but the women are also linked by the dark recurring dreams they both experience, rich with detail drawn from myth and legend.
The stories are very cleverly wrapped around each other – something I always enjoy rather more than alternation of chapters – and there’s more than a touch of real darkness as the full story of Eloise’s difficult marriage slowly emerges as her life moves forward. And we also discover the full and rather shameful story behind Alice’s departure, as she finds her own empowerment through the beginnings of a new relationship and the work she becomes part of at Knossos. And then there’s the recurring story of the Minotaur and his labyrinth, the women linked through the character of Ariadne and a really original interpretation of its reality.
The research that went into this book must have been tremendous – the detail about the Knossos dig and discoveries, the real individuals who were part of it brought to life through the story, and all the small historical details (down to the corsets and clothing) that brings the whole era vividly to life. I was fascinated too by the exploration of the Theosophy movement, the continuous flow of life, and the concept of the Akashic record – that might look a touch heavy, but it really works well to underpin the women’s experiences – and the reinterpretation of the familiar myth of the minotaur is extremely well handled.
The characterisation is excellent – I became fully involved in the lives of both women as they grew in strength and confidence, along with the well-drawn individuals who were part of their lives, and the relationships they developed (even a touch of romance) as the threads gradually drew together. The setting too is wonderfully drawn – Crete itself, and the enigmatic Sfragida House with its many secrets. And the way the story unfolds, with secrets slowly and shockingly revealed, both threads equally engaging, punctuated by the increasingly vivid and unsettling dreams, had me totally engrossed from the story’s beginning to its wholly satisfying end. Unlike anything I’ve read before, and very highly recommended – I’ll be looking forward to reading more from its extremely gifted author.
About the author
Alexandra Walsh is the bestselling author of dual timeline historical mysteries, previously published by Sapere. Her books range from the fifteenth century to the Victorian era and are inspired by the hidden voices of women that have been lost over the centuries. Formerly a journalist, writing for national newspapers, magazines and TV, her first book for Boldwood will be published in Spring 2023.
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