I thought Alex Hay's debut novel, The Housekeepers (#1,188) got off to a great start, but for me, it bogged down in the middle and never really regained its momentum. The monstrous house on Park Lane in London is a major character in this novel, which no one but its builder seemed to love. Many suffered within its walls, and for a number of the characters, that's enough motivation to strip it down to its bare bones.
How that plays out is the crux of this novel. Did I admire or even sympathize very much with the wronged staff and family? Not really. I couldn't even quite grasp the motivations of some of them, so that precluded my emotional buy-in to the novel.
An interesting glimpse into a bygone time and lifestyle, but this book would never make my list of favorites.
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