I picked it up and a day and a half later, I set it down. At first, I wasn't sure what I was getting myself into, but 20 pages in and I was completely hooked.

Since I haven't read anything else by Tracy Chevallier, I wasn't sure I would enjoy her writing. I was happy to discover she has a natural knack for character development, I found her to be a very honest author, unafraid to describe what "we" are really feeling inside. Exposing the vulnerability of human nature with her intertwining stories of love, hate, religion, persecution, adultery and redemption.

The pace of the novel starts off a little slowly, there is a lot to get through to grasp all the characters and their roles. Halfway muddling through the French dialog was a little difficult at first, but well worth the effort. And as the story progressed, became more intense and began revealing the secrets shared by the two main characters, the chapters became shorter and shorter, the structure of the chapters began to change, which increased the pace set early on.

My only wish is that there had been more follow through with a few revelations that Ella (our main character from the modern age) discovered about her ancestors. (specifically the painter Nicolas Tournier...Who was this cat after all? Tracy never says for sure)

And I wish there had been more between Ella and Susanne her cousin from Switzerland; they shared the family secret but their relationship ended too quickly for me. And later with Ella and Elizabeth her cousin from France. They shared a kindred spirit, but Tracy left me desiring more of the relationships. Ella's feelings toward Elizabeth were contradictory with the way the story ended. At first she doesn't know if she wants to relate to her, but in the end she's spending quality time with Elizabeth but no reconsiliation has been made for her original emotions regarding Elizabeth and the Tournier family history.

Also, there was no explanation as to who's teeth they discovered under the chimney at La Baume du Monsieur, Tracy discusses it briefly in regards to Hannah (the grandmother from the 1500's) and her belief that "the home is safe, the hearth will protect us...", it was a little confusing because it was never fully explained. And lastly, did they burry Marie near Deborah? She wanted to see her again. Did she finally rest near her?

The only reason I can criticize these things is because I enjoyed the book so much, I wish there had been more to it. I was left wanting more...Is there any better compliment to an author?