By Victoria Holt
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Pub. Date: March 5, 2013
ISBN: 978-1402277436
ASIN: B00A2XV6ZS
Pages: 416
Review:
Victoria Holt (aka Eleanor Alice Burford Hibbert) passed away in 1993, but her countless novels, including the ones written under the aliases Philippa Carr, Jean Plaidy, and a few others, are still being reprinted for a new generation of readers. I've never read any of her books before, but my grandma use to read all of the Victoria Holt and Jean Plaidy books, so I naturally became interested in reading The India Fan when I saw it was being released this year. I kindly asked the publisher if I could review the book and they nicely sent me a free copy in exchange for my honest review.
Originally published in 1988, The India Fan is narrated from the point-of-view of Drusilla Delany, who has had the majority of her life somehow connected to the higher class Framling family, starting when the young Fabian Framling kidnapped her when she was a baby for two weeks. She doesn't remember the situation, but she has heard many stories about it. Drusilla befriends the Framling's daughter, Lavinia, where she learns of the family's curse, an India Fan.
Lavinia is the opposite of Drusilla, as she is shallow and wild, resulting in them getting into some trouble while they're attending a finishing school in France, where the selfish Lavinia becomes pregnant. Drusilla stays by her side all through the pregnancy and helps Lavinia give the child up for adoption.
Later, Lavinia gets married and has more children. Drusilla goes to live with them as the children's governess. Eventually, the Framlings relocate to Delhi, India, where an uprising is about to occur.
By looking at the covers of the author's other novels, I honestly thought the books were strictly romance, but The India Fan has much more than that as it has murder, obsession and mystery. I can see why the author has continued to be popular long after death as she has a wonderful way of using descriptions that made me feel like I was right there in England, France and India. The main character, Drusilla, is instantly likeable, but I didn't like her spoiled friend, Lavinia. I wished I had read a Victoria Holt novel years ago, but I'm glad I picked The India Fan as my first as it is an intriguing tale. I'm surprised that the book, or any of the author's other works, have never been turned into a movie or a mini-series. Overall, I more than enjoyed reading The India Fan and I recommend other readers to check it out.
I've read a lot of her straight historicals as Jean Plaidy and she has been either hit or miss with me. Some of her writing can be dry as dust but other books have kept me turning the pages. Might have to give this one a try :)
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