Sepulcher by Kate Mosse

     A mix of historical fiction and mystery Kate Mosse's Sepulcher is an excellent read. The story consists of two parallel plots. One takes place in 19th century France where Leonie Vernier becomes involved in the fate of the mysterious Domaine de la Cade, her mother's hateful childhood home and the center of a mysterious power. The second plot takes place in modern day France as Meredith Martin is conducting research for a biography on famous composer Debussy while simultaneously trying to uncover the secret history of her biological family, who seem to have some sort of tie to the Domaine de la Cade.

Courtesy of Kate Mosse

     Personally, I found the 19th century plot line much more engaging than the present day one. The detailed descriptions of the period were richer and the setting somewhat darker. Each cliffhanger was pure torture as I wanted to just skip over the present day and find out what happened next. The present day story line seemed more of the cliche girl meets boy, girl likes boy, boy helps girl uncover a family mystery and they live happily ever after. I felt that the ending could have been stronger in the sense that a lot of information was thrown at the reader in the last few pages and I wish the family history after Leonie was more developed. However, I do think that the suspense that the book created was great and it was a good mix of the historical with the supernatural without entering the realm of the absurd. I definitely recommend this one.