Awarded a 5* review from Readers’ Favourite. December 2023.
Julia Bell has a beautiful way of slowing the pace of the story enough to give rhythm to everyday life, while also giving it an urgency that draws the reader onto the next page.
Reviewed by Phumeza Ndzambo
Also awarded an Honourable Mention from The Historical Fiction Company 2024 (Austen Category)

When Antheia loses her parents at the age of seventeen, she must leave her childhood home and travel to Lancashire to live with her maternal uncle and family. Arriving at Sedgwick Abbey, she meets her new relatives and discovers she might not fit in with the lifestyle of a noble family. Her uncle doesn’t seem to be interested in her and her younger cousin, Felix, treats her with contempt.

However, she cannot ignore the wild beauty of that part of England. While exploring, she discovers a derelict cemetery and a mysterious sarcophagus that seems to have a profound effect on her, causing feelings of utter sadness and despair.
Meeting her elder cousin William, and his American friend Joel, changes her life forever. In William she finds a friend and in Joel the sparks of first love.

Family whispers about her grandmother’s disappearance many years before, intrigues Antheia, especially since there’s a suspicion she might have been murdered. Antheia endeavours to make Sedgwick Abbey her home, even though the man she’s falling in love with must travel to America to join the Union Army. While she waits for Joel’s return, she’s determined to follow the clues and discover the secret that lies heavily within the Abbey, completely unaware she’s putting her own life in danger.