The Secret of Ravelston Review

Author Sergio Silveira brings us his YA historical fiction,

The Secret of Ravelston

As a young and well-to-do British lady of 1805, Jane Freemont's fate was solely decided by others. But her spirit was that of of a fearless sleuth, determined to discover the fate of a poor young woman who had vanished. 

If you enjoy the genres of English manners (Pride and Prejudice) and English mysteries (Miss Marple), you will enjoy the Secret of Ravelston. It attempts to put together both. It also has much satire of aristocratic, well-to-do, individuals, who spend most of their idle lives attempting to amuse themselves, and being served by countless human beings they don't see as real people.

~From The Author~

Jane Freemont is a British young lady with a very big problem.  She is modern girl...but she lives in early 19th Century.  Jane has a critical, inquiring mind that is always ready to state her honest opinions--no matter whom she may inconvenience.  This causes the young gentlemen to run away from her--for men can surely welcome a women's criticism much more than they do. But that's our loss.

Jane's older brother, and only living relative, has sent her to live far away in the north, where he believes her critical and inquiring mind will no longer create problems for him. But, as Jane arrives in beautiful Ravelston, she becomes determined to discover the fate of another, yet much less privileged, young woman who has mysteriously vanished. In Ravelston no one seems to care about what happened to Mary Hale, who was seen as unimportant because she was poor. 

Jane will risk everything, even her future, to find out the truth. 

Remember, powerful love, when not accepted in oneself, 

is one of the cruelest things there is. 

~MY REVIEW~

Sergio Silveira is a promising self published author. Often, self published authors are over looked and I am glad I had the chance to read The Secret of Ravelston. Historical fictions are not something I usually pick up, but this story had an unusual premise that sparked my interest. 

I rather enjoyed the historical setting of this novel and it will definitely compel me to read more like it. 

Sergio's writing style is original and very fitting for the time period he is aiming to portray. 

I really loved the mystery aspect of this story, and it was this that really drew me in. However, the mystery itself was a little slow to develop and I found my self practically begging the pages to shed light on what Jane was experiencing. The story did deliver, but not until the end of the novel. 

The ending itself was fantastic. The secret of the town and the twist it brought with it was worth the wait.

Sergio has a great way with imagery and succeeded in bringing the town of Ravelston to life. 

Jane is a wonderful main character and her atypical behavior for a lady of her time was most enjoyable. 

She was intensely determined to keep digging, even when the odds were against her. Her attitude and drive really kept the story going. 

I do wish Lord Andrew's character was a bit more prominent through out the story. He is, after all, the key to the mystery and I felt his character warranted more face time. 

Sergio has managed to bring some humour into the drama and suspense, which at times really lightened the mood. The banter of the Lords and Ladies was comical and gave some great insight into the social structure of the 1800's. 

Overall, The Secret of Ravelston was a delightful read and I would recommend it to historical fiction fans.

The Secret of Ravelston is available for purchase 

Amazon / Barnes and Noble