Reviews for Sepulchre

The average rating for Sepulchre based on 2 reviews is 4 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2019-01-06 00:00:00 Carcel Marc "Compelled by the act of an innocent girl in a graveyard in Paris, something is moving within the stone sepulchre. Long forgotten in the tangled and overgrown alleyways of the Domaine de la Cade, something is waking. To the casual observer it would appear no more than a trick of the light in the fading afternoon, but for a fleeting instant, the plaster statues appear to breathe, to move, to sigh. And the portraits on the cards that lie buried beneath the earth and stone, where the river runs dry, momentarily seem to be alive. Fleeting figures, impressions, shades, not yet more than that. A suggestion, an illusion, a promise. The refraction of light, the movement of air beneath the turn of the stone stair. The inescapable relationship between place and moment. For in truth, this story begins not with bones in a Parisian graveyard, but with a deck of cards. The Devil's Picture Book." Meredith Martin, under the guise of researching her book on the composer Achille-Claude Debussy, goes to France to see the places that Debussy lived and frequented, but she also has an alternative agenda to discover more about a family connection to a place called Domaine de la Cade. While in Paris, she would like to do some of the normal tourist things, like visit Shakespeare and Company on the Left Bank, but the thought of dealing with all the tourists at such a place is too daunting. My most recent experience with this was the Empire State Building in NY. I went in and stood in line, listening to the cacophony of excited people speaking in languages from all over the world, and, after a few minutes, left to go to the Strand Bookstore instead. It is hard to complain about tourists when I am a tourist myself, but alas, they are such intrusive, noisy people while on vacation. Almost as if being compelled by forces beyond her, Meredith ends up in a Tarot Card shop in Paris where a woman convinces her to have her cards read. The reading is, to say the least, interesting even, one might say, awkward with overtones of unnerving insights. "She brought out a large square of black silk and folded the cards up within it. 'There,' she said, pushing them across the table. "Another Tarot tradition. Many people believe you should never buy a deck of cards for yourself. That you should always wait for the right deck to be given to you as a gift.' Meredith shook her head. ' Laura, I can't possibly accept them. Besides, I wouldn't know what to do with them.' 'I believe you need them.' For a moment, their eyes met once more. 'But I don't want them.' If I accept them, there'll be no way back. 'The deck belongs to you.' Laura paused. 'And I think, deep down, you know it.'" Meredith may possess a healthy dose of skepticism, but those beliefs have been shaken. Her less used senses are tingling with speculations of things unseen, of forces that pluck the strings of fate with malevolent intent. In her research, the year 1891 keeps appearing, and that brings in the other side of the story. Like with her first book in the Languedoc series, Labyrinth, Kate Mosse tells two stories separated by time, but the two timelines are entwined by a mystery. In this case, 1891 and 2007 become separated by a very thin veneer, with villains on both sides of the timeline, intent on possessing what they should never have. In 1891, Victor Constant, Comte de Tourmaline, a very wealthy, syphilitic aristocrat is intent on enacting revenge on Anatole Vernier, whom he perceives as the man who stole his lover from him. Anatole's sister, Leonie, is also his target. What better way to create the maximum pain for Anatole than to seduce his sister. Leonie has been reading about the history of the Domaine de la Cade, where they are staying, and is discovering a past that is beset with strange occurrences revolving around a sepulchre and a deck of tarot cards. She has romantic views of the world and is certainly susceptible to the charms of a sauve, seemingly elegant man. In 2007, Julian Lawrence, now the owner of what is now the Hotel Domaine de la Cade, has also done extensive research on the history of the estate and wants the power that he knows the tarot deck will give him access to. Meredith and Leonie, in two different eras, will find themselves desperately trying to understand the mystifying clues that will help them to understand the dangers they face from the ethereal and the very real present. Can they figure out the clues to the puzzles before they run out of time? I read Labyrinth back in 2006 on a plane ride back from Milan, Italy. I had been dangerously close to running out of reading material when I spied the turquoise cover of Mosse's book in a spinner rack in the airport. By chance this turned out to be the perfect book to read on a long, boring flight back to the States. I am frequently baffled by how long it takes me to return to an author I enjoy, but here we are 12 years later, and finally I read the second book in the series. I've got the next two in the series, Citadel and The Burning Chambers, squirreled away on my shelves. I do sincerely hope it doesn't take me another 12 years to get to the next one in the series. The books all take place in the Languedoc region of France and have similar themes, but can be read as stand alone novels or out of order, so if one plot of one of the books appeals to you more than another, have no fears that you are breaking one of the cardinal sins of reading books in a series out of order. There is a television adaption of Labyrinth that was released in 2012, and there are current negotiations underway to do the same with Sepulchre. If you like a bit of gothic atmosphere with your timeline smashups, then you will not be disappointed. If you wish to see more of my most recent book and movie reviews, visit I also have a Facebook blogger page at:

Review # 2 was written on 2012-01-07 00:00:00 Liat Blumberger 4 stars to Sepulchre by Kate Mosse, the second in the "Languedoc" historical fiction (maybe a little fantasy) series. After I read the first book, I had to follow through on this one. And recently, I learned the third one was published a few years ago. I didn't know there was another... but I will definitely finish this series. It takes place in the French mountains, how could you not love it? The story is very complex, but very strong. The characters are memorable. The struggle between the past and the present drives this story. It is historical fiction, for a large part of it, so you have different time periods to focus on. But it's handled well. Add in some ghosts, a little fantasy, mystery and suspense over the 100 year gap between the two time periods, and you've got a good story. You will keep trying to guess all the connections and be happy when you find out. You should read at least the first two... and I'll let you know whether the last one is important or not, once I read it! The connection between the first two books is surprising, so I am curious how the third one fits in. It crosses a few genres without being too explicit in any specific one. For me, it's the characters and the plot which kept me focused. I'd recommend taking a chance on it, but look at other reviews. Some folks didn't care for it, finding it a bit messy and unfocused. Not me tho! And to them, I say: About Me For those new to me or my reviews... here's the scoop: I read A LOT. I write A LOT. And now I blog A LOT. First the book review goes on Goodreads, and then I send it on over to my WordPress blog at , where you'll also find TV & Film reviews, the revealing and introspective 365 Daily Challenge and lots of blogging about places I've visited all over the world. And you can find all my social media profiles to get the details on the who/what/when/where and my pictures. Leave a comment and let me know what you think. Vote in the poll and ratings. Thanks for stopping by. Note: All written content is my original creation and copyrighted to me, but the graphics and images were linked from other sites and belong to them. Many thanks to their original creators. [polldaddy poll=9729544] [polldaddy poll=9719251]