The Angel Tree

A tale of family secrets and forgotten pasts from the international number one bestselling author of the Seven Sisters series, Lucinda Riley.

*The Angel Tree by Lucinda Riley is a compelling mystery of family secrets and forgotten pasts from the author of The Seven Sisters./b>Thirty years have passed since Greta left Marchmont Hall, a grand and beautiful house nestled in the hills of rural Monmouthshire. But when she returns to the Hall for Christmas, at the invitation of her old friend David Marchmont, she has no recollection of her past association with it - the result of a tragic accident that has blanked out more than two decades of her life. Then, during a walk through the wintry landscape, she stumbles across a grave in the woods, and the weathered inscription on the headstone tells her that a little boy is buried here . . . The poignant discovery strikes a chord in Greta's mind and soon ignites a quest to rediscover her lost memories. With David's help, she begins to piece together the fragments of not only her own story, but that of her daughter, Cheska, who was the tragic victim of circumstances beyond her control. And, most definitely, not the angel she appeared to be . . .b>*First published as Not Quite an Angel under the name Lucinda Edmonds, now extensively rewritten/b>

The Angel Tree packs a real psychological punch, exploring the fall-out from troubled childhoods and how events in the past impact on not just our perception of the world but on how we handle our relationships with other people. Riley takes us into the heart of a cross-generational struggle, filling the pages with fascinating characters and dynamic locations, and springing surprises at every juncture. Sweeping, absorbing, beautifully written and utterly compelling, this is a saga to sit back and savour on long winter nights

Préface
A tale of family secrets and forgotten pasts from bestselling author Lucinda Riley.

Auteur

Lucinda Riley was born in 1965 in Ireland and, after an early career as an actress in film, theatre and television, wrote her first novel aged twenty-four. Her books have been translated into thirty-seven languages and continue to strike an emotional chord with cultures all around the world. The Seven Sisters series specifically has become a global phenomenon, creating its own genre.

Her books have been nominated for numerous awards, including the Italian Bancarella Prize, the Lovely Books Award in Germany, and the Romantic Novel of the Year Award. In 2020 she received the Dutch Platinum Award for sales over 300,000 copies for a single novel in one year - a prize last won by J. K. Rowling for Harry Potter.

In collaboration with her son Harry Whittaker, she also devised and wrote a series of books for children called The Guardian Angels.

Though she brought up her four children mostly in Norfolk in England, in 2015 she fulfilled her dream of buying a remote farmhouse in West Cork, Ireland, which she always felt was her spiritual home, and indeed this was where her last five books were written.

Lucinda was diagnosed with cancer in 2017 and died on 11 June 2021, surrounded by her family.

Texte du rabat

Thirty years have passed since Greta left Marchmont Hall, a grand and beautiful house nestled in the hills of rural Monmouthshire. But when she returns to the Hall for Christmas, at the invitation of her old friend David Marchmont, she has no recollection of her past association with it - the result of a dreadful accident that has blanked out more than two decades of her life. Then, during a walk through the wintry landscape, she stumbles across a grave in the woods, and the weathered inscription on the headstone tells her that a little boy is buried there.

With David's help, Greta embarks on a quest to rediscover her lost memories, and begins to piece together the fragments of not only her own story, but also that of her daughter, Cheska, the tragic victim of circumstances beyond her control. And, most definitely, not the angel she appeared to be . . .

A story of love and loss from bestselling author Lucinda Riley - first published under the name Lucinda Edmonds, now extensively rewritten

Résumé

The Angel Tree is a powerful story of family mysteries and forgotten pasts, from Lucinda Riley, international bestselling author of the Seven Sisters series.

Thirty years have passed since Greta left Marchmont Hall, a grand and beautiful house nestled in the hills of rural Wales. But after a tragic accident, more than two decades of her life have vanished from memory. When she returns to the Hall for Christmas, she has no recollection of her past there.

Then, during a walk through the wintry landscape, Greta stumbles across a grave in the woods. Though the inscription is weathered, the headstone still tells her: a little boy is buried here.

The discovery strikes a chord in Greta's mind, igniting a quest to recover her lost memories. A quest that will take her deeper into her own life, and that of her daughter . . .

'Sweeping, absorbing, beautifully written and utterly compelling' Lancashire Evening Post

A version of this story has previously been published under the title Not Quite an Angel, under the name Lucinda Edmonds now extensively rewritten as The Angel Tree.