The Housemaid's Daughter - bookrastinating.com

Paperback, 416 pages

Published Jan. 13, 2015 by St. Martin's Griffin.

ISBN:: 978-1-250-05446-3

"When Cathleen Harrington leaves her home in Ireland in 1919 to travel to South Africa, she knows that she does not love the man she is to marry there --her fiance Edward, whom she has not seen for five years. Isolated and estranged in a small town in the harsh Karoo desert, her only real companions are her diary and her housemaid, and later the housemaid's daughter, Ada. When Ada is born, Cathleen recognizes in her someone she can love and respond to in a way that she cannot with her own family. Under Cathleen's tutelage, Ada grows into an accomplished pianist and a reader who cannot resist turning the pages of the diary, discovering the secrets Cathleen sought to hide. As they grow closer, Ada sees new possibilities in front of her--a new horizon. But in one night, everything changes, and Cathleen comes home from a trip to find …

"When Cathleen Harrington leaves her home in Ireland in 1919 to travel to South Africa, she knows that she does not love the man she is to marry there --her fiance Edward, whom she has not seen for five years. Isolated and estranged in a small town in the harsh Karoo desert, her only real companions are her diary and her housemaid, and later the housemaid's daughter, Ada. When Ada is born, Cathleen recognizes in her someone she can love and respond to in a way that she cannot with her own family. Under Cathleen's tutelage, Ada grows into an accomplished pianist and a reader who cannot resist turning the pages of the diary, discovering the secrets Cathleen sought to hide. As they grow closer, Ada sees new possibilities in front of her--a new horizon. But in one night, everything changes, and Cathleen comes home from a trip to find that Ada has disappeared, scorned by her own community. Cathleen must make a choice: should she conform to society, or search for the girl who has become closer to her than her own daughter? Set against the backdrop of a beautiful, yet divided land, The Housemaid's Daughter is a startling and thought-provoking novel that intricately portrays the drama and heartbreak of two women who rise above cruelty to find love, hope, and redemption"--

7 editions

Kadomi reviewed The housemaid's daughter by Barbara Mutch

Review of "The housemaid's daughter" on 'Goodreads'

2 stars

My new rule of thumb is that if I am not reeled in or at least hooked a little bit 20% in, then I'll stop. This one's for my discard pile. It's probably alright, but a South African 'The Help' it is not. It is far too bland for that. I don't even need to continue reading to get the hint what the big disaster will be that makes Ada run away. It was just bland and boring. I decided that I don't want to waste my time reading what a South African white lady thinks life as a black housemaid was like.