Mariana

By Susanna Kearsley

'I've loved every one of Susanna's books! She has bedrock research and a butterfly's delicate touch with characters―sure recipe for historical fiction that sucks you in and won't let go!' DIANA GABALDON, bestselling author of Outlander

The first time Julia Beckett saw Greywethers she was only five, but she knew that it was her house. And now that she’s at last become its owner, she suspects that she was drawn there for a reason. As if Greywethers were a portal between worlds, she finds herself transported into seventeenth-century England, becoming Mariana, a young woman struggling against danger and treachery, and battling a forbidden love.

Each time Julia travels back, she becomes more enthralled with the past...until she realizes Mariana’s life is threatening to eclipse her own, and she must find a way to lay the past to rest or lose the chance for happiness in her own time.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Allison & Busby
• Release date: Jul 1, 2009
• ISBN: 9780749007737

Susanna Kearsley

New York Times, USA TODAY, and Globe and Mail bestselling author Susanna Kearsley is a former museum curator who loves restoring the lost voices of real people to the page, often in twin-stranded stories that interweave present and past. Her award-winning novels are published in translation in more than twenty-five countries. She lives near Toronto. Visit her at SusannaKearsley.com or follow her on Twitter @SusannaKearsley.

Reviews for Mariana

[eire2011 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Every time I pick up Susanna's books, I find it hard to put down and I'm eager to finish tasks so I can find out what next is going on. This book is yet another one of those wonderfully addicting stories. It's about the concept of star crossed lovers, reincarnation, mystery, the quirkiness of small town life and how sometimes what you were looking for was right there all along. I nearly jumped up and down in excitement when Julia finally realized that her true love had given her various hints as to his feelings without trying to be so pushy. I love the concept of souls finding each other and eventually being together to live happily. My only complaint is that I was rather sad to see the story end and wanted to go to the nearest bookstore to see what love story is next up Susanna's sleeve. I can't wait to read all of her books!!

[cfk_3 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The reason I've given this novel a 4.5 rating is because the conclusion really through me--never saw it coming. Julia first saw the house as a 5 year old on a family trip and called it her own. She stumbled across it twice more, buying it before buying it at age 30, thereby opening the door to a past filled with painful memories.

[beamis12 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The one thing I like about this author is that she is so consistent. One knows exactly what one is going to get when one reads her novels. Engaging characters, an old house somewhere in England, an entertaining time romp through history and a heart warming love story. In Mariana, the old house is in Exley, we go back to the time of Charles II and the devastating toll of the plague, the love story had me fooled into the very end. There is just something so comforting about her books.

[janarose1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Julia, a children's illustrator, stumbles across an old farmhouse she knows instantly that it belongs to her. She impulsively purchases the house and immediately moves in. However, she begins to experience a different life, the life of Mariana, a woman from the 17th century. Although the experiences are frightening, she quickly becomes obsessed and does everything she can to continue experiencing these time slips.This book was very well written. It was an engaging story and the characters were fresh and unique. My only criticism is that the book ended abruptly with everything just falling into place. The author reminds me a bit of Barbara Erskine and I can't wait to read more from her.

[jolerie · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Such a great buildup of plot and character only to be let down by a mediocre ending leaving the reader going....thats it?

[m_sims · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I'd give this book 100 stars if it were an option. I haven't found a book that has touched me so since reading Katherine and Green Darkness by Anya Seton. Mariana is utterly captivating! I read this in one sitting, went to bed, and got up to re-read it. I wish there had been an epilogue but I guess I just didn't want it to end:)

[nu5bibliophile · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It was such a delightful read. I loved how "destiny" and "reincarnation" was played out into this novel. Can't wait to read more of Ms. Kearsley's books.

[msjessie · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This was very, very good. I was surprised by the level of my reaction to this: I was invested near immediately never wanted to put it down and was sad to finish reading the last page. I don't read a lot of "time slip" historical fiction (read: any before this), but if they're like Mariana that rule might need to change. ASAP. First up on that list: every other such book by this author. I was very impressed with both parts of the narrative and the strength of the voice shown throughout the novel. Though Mariana is a bit lengthy at near 375 pages, this suspenseful and affecting tale never bores. For a detailed, immersive read but not one that is exactly an action-packed historical, that is saying something indeed.The strength of the book largely lies in the eponymous character Mariana - both in her 1660's body/life of Mariana and as more modern Julia Beckett. That's not to say that the rest of the characters aren't interesting and diverse; they are but it is Mariana herself who makes the novel special. Though the two POV's present are both first-person and both largely the same in tone and voice despite the centuries between them, both Julia and Mariana are fully dimensional, rounded characters who provide a rich, full narrative to dive into. She's charming and detailed as a narrator: Exbury, both past and present versions, definitely carried the feel of an old, full-of-history English village. Though there is quite a lot of focus on the romance angle of the novel, I wasn't turned off or frustrated; Mariana's and Richard's courtship is actually quite charming and I found myself rooting for de Mornay and the spirited commoner.This paragraph might get a bit SPOILERy so be warned and stay away if you don't want to know! Seriously, people. There's a mystery at the heart of the novel, but it's not the most involving or mystifying. Even the secondary subplot of treason lacks the emotional pull of the characters themselves; this is truly a character-driven novel. Even some of the surprises lacked the oomph that could be expected -(Johnnie! D: John?!) because I was so keyed in on the main characters of Mariana/Julia and Richard/?? themselves. I have to side with Julia in that the past has a lot of allure here in this version, and her attraction to Richard it is very understandable. Love, destiny and fate all play a key parts in the meanderig plot, and the characters but it doesn't feel forced or hackneyed. Mariana comes off with a sweet but not saccharine aftertaste. I did think the camouflaging of Richard's soul was well done - only the hints of Shakespeare really made me sure. Mariana is an engrossing and rewarding, lengthy read - fans of time-slip historicals will love and even new-to-the-subgrenre people will find a lot to enjoy about this alternate 1660's and modern of reincarnated love. Susanna Kearsley is an impressive and detailed storyteller - I look forward to reading more of her books very soon. This is one that went above and beyond any and all expectations I had before starting.

[carlyrose · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I'm so torn. On the one hand, great characters, absorbing and lyrical story. But the twist in the ending just doesn't sit well with me. I actually had pegged Iain as the love interest in the beginning. Yet as another reviewer noted, Julia had built a relationship with Geoff in a way she hadn't with Iain. And so I kind of don't buy the sudden transfer of her affections because she realizes who Richard actually was--along with the personality seeming wrong.

[aelizabethj · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Fantastic. I have been gorging on Susanna Kearsley novels and this one doesn't disappoint. Like the others, it deals with time slippage and past lives, but yet again it's done so seamlessly. Fabulous read, love.

[creighley_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A period romance that includes ghosts and time travel...HMMMM....As much as the entire book/story was a stretch, the ending was even more so! Not my cup of tea!

[erins826 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I absolutely love Susanna Kearsley's writing. Her narrative and description are beautiful and captivating. The progression of the story is realistically written and the switches between the two time periods are natural and charming. Each has believable dialogue and setting. I LOVED Richard and Mariana. I wish there had been even more flashes from their time together. Their interactions were some of the best I've read, romantic without being cheesy or silly. In general, I am not crazy about stories involving reincarnation, but this one was sweet, heartbreaking, and almost seemingly possible. The delivery of the topic was spot on, the characters were all lovable, and the plot was incredibly engaging. It was a very difficult book to put down and almost impossible to stop thinking about even after finishing it. I liked the ending, but my only complaint is not having enough resolution with the characters and their present story.

[lindymc · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I don't normally read anything with a ghost, or a reincarnation theme, but I really enjoyed this novel. The characters, both 20th century, and 17th century, were both interesting and likeable. Julia Beckett buys an old house, that she feels strongly attracted to, and finds herself frequently transported back to the 17th century as Mariana. The love story involving Mariana cannot be completely resolved until 300 years later, when Julia must "close the circle".

[bubblebathbooks · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Bubblebathbooks.net (aka Bubby and Sissy) review of Mariana by Susannah Kearsley--Bubby says this spellbinding tale of romance and reincarnation is hands down one of the best books she's read in a long time. She loved this book for so many reasons, one of which is the descriptions of the lovely English countryside. She wondered who Mariana's 17th century love Richard De Mornay had been reincarnated as--Was it the Geoff, Lord of the Manor from up the hill? Was it the bartender's assistant? I shall never tell. You'll have to read the book to find out! Sissy loved this sweeping romance and says it was one of those "don't talk to me until I'm finished with this book" books - where your teenage boys are standing around looking hungry and you just tell them to go make themselves a quesadilla. Both enjoyed the supporting characters--"gifted" aunt Freda, brother Tom, barmaid Vivien, and others. Read full review at bubblebathbooks.net

[sylviac_43 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this. It reminded me of Barbara Michaels' books, both in style and content. After buying an Elizabethan farmhouse, a woman starts to relive the memories of a previous occupant. I preferred the modern part of the story to the historical part, but they blended together well. I will definitely look for more by this author.

[bonniemarjorie · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

When I first read the summary for Mariana, I was intrigued. The book had a slow start at first but was still interesting enough to keep me reading. Overall, it was a great story and I'm glad I took the time to read it. Bit of a twist ending too!

[lkernagh · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

My first Kearsley read and definitely not my last. A contemporary/historical fiction read with a time travel and ghostly spirits angle to it. A romance story without being one of those annoyingly sweaty reads. This story is more about the mystery of unlocking the past and discovering the secrets waiting to be exposed. Julia works for me as a lead character/heroine. There is a sensible balance to her thoughts and behaviors. She is not some flighty heroine who ruses headlong into situations as if she had left her mind and reason elsewhere, even though there is a rather sexy Lord of the manor and a fantastically described manor house to distract her. There is wonderful dreamlike quality to the story that made this more of a relaxing read, even with its suspenseful moments. As for the ending, no spoilers but I do want to mention that I found the ending to be wonderfully crafted and a bit of a surprise for me. Overall, a very satisfying read for me and Kearsley now joins my list of rainy day authors when I just want to curl up under a blanket with a good book. If you enjoy modern Gothic novels like I do, with a wonderful spin to them, you will probably enjoy reading this one.

[romonko · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I was looking forward to reading this book even though I knew at the outset that it's not in a genre I normally read. I thought it would be different enough and interesting enough to make it palatable. Unfortunately, it didn't. I was disappointed. The writing is actually quite juvenile in spots. It was unbelievable too. I realize that time travel is an interesting and intriguing concept, but I didn't find that the main character was real in either time frame. And the ending is just so abrupt and didn't resolve anything. I can't recommend this book.

[tjsjohanna_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Although the story hinges on the idea of reincarnation, the general feel of the book was historical fiction with a modern frame story. Ultimately I felt like I didn't get enough of either story to really get invested in the characters. Entertaining but it didn't hit that sweet spot for me.

[readinggeek451 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Julia is drawn to the house the first time she sees it, as a young child. When she stumbles across it again as an adult, she promptly buys it. As she is settling in, she begins to have flashbacks of another young woman who lived in there shortly after the English Civil War.A light, enjoyable romance, with parallel stories in the present and the past.

[oregonwmn_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

As a five year-old, Julia Beckett sees a country house and declares it "her house". Several years later, Julia finds her way back to the house known as Greywethers. Soon, she is transported back in time for brief moments and finds she was Mariana in a past life. Mariana also lived at Greywethers and Julia is able to experience life as Mariana did.The story is very intriguing and has kept me up late at night reading it the past two nights. I liked the characters and the fact that i didn't know exactly where the story was going. I would recommend this book. There is romance in this book, but it isn't the type of book where the main story is the romance. I will definitely pick up more of Ms. Kearsley's books in the future.

[cathyskye · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

First Line: I first saw the house in the summer of my fifth birthday.I've discovered over the years that some houses have the power of speech. When I first moved to Phoenix, I walked to work every morning and passed a slightly down-at-heels 1950s ranch house. Nothing about it would draw anyone's attention, but for some reason each time I walked by, I got gooseflesh-- and the feeling that the house was sad. A year later I happened to be watching the evening news and found out that police had shut down a house of prostitution specializing in S&M... in that same sad little ranch house.At the age of five Julia Beckett had a house speak to her, and twenty-five years later she finds the house once again. Flush with an inheritance from an aunt, Julia buys Greywethers, a sixteenth-century farmhouse in Wiltshire. She moves in and finds the villagers very friendly and helpful-- so much so that she finds it difficult to get to work illustrating a book of fairy tales. Bit by bit, Julia learns the rudimentary history of Greywethers and the young woman, Mariana, who lived there three hundred years ago. It seems that Mariana has been waiting for her.I've read two books recently that I would label romantic suspense. It's a genre that I seldom touch because the romance usually takes precedence over everything else in the story. That's definitely not the case here. Mariana is a fun read. Julia is an engaging character living in a fascinating house. Both time lines-- Julia's modern day time and Mariana's-- grabbed my attention equally. Normally one time line tends to be stronger than the other, but Kearsley avoids that completely, and the plot is not formulaic; it had more than one surprise for me.If you're in the mood for a fast, entertaining read that has a fascinating old house, a mystery that spans the centuries, and a light touch of romance, Mariana could be just the book for you.

[ladymacbeth1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Outlander meets Wuthering Heights in Mariana. With the requisite HEA ending, Mariana is a historical romance. There's sufficient bits of accurate 17th century history within for the purists amongst us. The story takes place, in part, during the Restoration period (following the English Civil War). Charles II is on the throne.However, as a time-travel romance, equal parts take place in more current times - I'd say 10 to 20 years ago. It's an interesting twist on time-travel, though. I don't want to say more, but the plot (to me at least) was very original.I highly recommend it for lovers of historical romance, especially those stories outside the typical formula. I also recommend it to historical fiction purists as long as they don't mind a romance sub-theme.

[bgknighton · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Julia Beckett has long felt drawn to the country house, Greyweather. When fate allows her to buy it she leaps at the chance. There Mariana calls to her from the past to make things right.

[headinherbooks_27 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It was such a delightful read. I loved how "destiny" and "reincarnation" was played out into this novel. Can't wait to read more of Ms. Kearsley's books.

[n.w.moors-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Julia Beckett has been fascinated with a house in a small village in Wiltshire since she was a girl. When events work out so she can buy the place, she's thrilled and settles right into village life. It doesn't hurt that a handsome and rich neighbor is attracted to her. However, strange events keep pulling Julia into the house's past in the time of the English Civil War.This was a typical Kearsley novel, beautifully written with some time travel and romance. The story is gothic in tone, with paranormal type events moving the plot along. I'm not sure if a reader new to Kearsley's style would have anticipated the twist at the end, but it seemed a bit obvious. Still, a good solid read from an always enjoyable author.

[booklovers2 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This was a hard one for me to get thru- I started it several times, then put it aside and finally plowed through it. This was an audio book. The narrator, although I ended up giving her a thumbs up in performance - It took a lot of perseverance on my part to get to the point that I could pay attention and get into it. Too whispery sounding, trying too hard to be mysterious turned me off initially. I think reading it may have been easier. That all said - I kept with it because I liked the concept of the plot and storyline, and ended up enjoying it but it somehow fell short, so I don't know if I would recommend it. However - Its surprising because I usually love this authors work.  

[lindalgraham · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I loved this book. Perhaps because I’m a sucker for souls reunited, the paranormal (ghosts, in this case), and the history an old house can hold.It is beautifully written, the dialogue is well done, and the characters are likable, believable, and memorable. Contrary to some other readers, I loved the twist at the end. I don’t want to say too much, other than that Ms. Kearsley’s wrap-up was all that I had hoped for.I’m eager to read The Rose Garden, as soon as it’s available

[hollysing · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

In typical and endearing Kearsley style, Mariana combines time travel, romance and history. The setting is Greywethers, a 16th century English house. Book illustrator Julia Beckett purchases the Exbury farmhouse with an inheritance. She remembers seeing it as a five-year-old and it has been “her house” ever since. She enjoys her new life with friends Vivien, Iain and handsome manor owner Geoff de Mornay. Scenes in the Red Lion Pub come alive. After slipping back into the 17th century, Julia becomes entranced with Mariana, a former occupant of Greywethers. Julia must choose between Mariana’s love interest and her own contemporary life.Kearsley’s writing is beautiful and descriptive. I found the modern day characters less interesting than the time slip ones, but the movement back and forth between the two time periods is seamless. The ending has a creative twist which caught me completely by surprise. I greatly respect this author and enthusiastically await her next book.“You have to learn to look with more than your eyes…Try looking with your soul instead.”“The past can teach us, nurture us, but it cannot sustain us. The essence of life is change, and we must move ever forward or the soul will wither and die.”

[stewartry · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

As usual, I wandered into this Kindle book from Netgalley with little knowledge of what to expect; I knew there was a sort of time travel involved, and that GR friends enjoyed it, and I was optimistic. That's odd – I didn't make a single note or post a single real update as I read this? I think I was too busy devouring it. I was delighted. The language, the tone, the pacing – all reminded me of one of the fine gothics, Mary Stewart or Barbara Michaels – or of Hitchcock in a non-murderous mood. Rebecca, maybe – although neither Rebecca nor Hitchcock tended toward the unabashedly magical as did Mariana. It all begins with a family car trip when Julia Beckett was five years old; her father got lost, a cat ran across the road and almost got itself – and them – killed, and looking out the window at that moment Julia saw a little house which she immediately and unreasoningly identified as hers. Years later, as an adult and a working artist who has come into a bit of money, Julia stumbles across another cat – or is it? – and the same house, and still has that feeling of possessiveness, and this time she takes steps to make it true. Before long, strange things begin happening. Julia finds herself seeing through the eyes of – living the life of – a girl three centuries dead, Mariana. I have to say I was not completely enamored of the version of reincarnation en bloc as depicted here. And I didn't love the last-minute switcheroo; it didn't feel right at all. I thought all along that Julia belonged with Iain rather than Geoffrey, but the fact of it was that she was with Gregory, and they were becoming quite serious. For that to change so abruptly purely because of what happened in the past is going to cause some serious pain to Geoffrey, and require quite a bit of explanation. That aside, the two time periods were beautifully handled, as how Julia handled hopping back and forth between the two. Well, mostly. I was left with questions about what was happening to Julia in the present day while her consciousness was in the past; it seems a bit of a stretch that no one ever made note of or passed comment on her odd behavior. I loved the characters that peopled the book. They're great folks, dimensional and quirky, but not so quirky it becomes a sitcom. I was happy in Julia's vocation as an artist; it rang true, and yet didn't sting. The relationships in the book were well-built; I liked the surprise Julia's brother throws at her, as a sort of emphasis of both her distraction and the depth of the book's background. The only relationship I hesitate over is the one most affected by the denouement, as above; I wish there had been added detail or an epilogue or something like that. It was the only thing keeping this at four stars.