Larkswood - Tapa dura

4 stars - When Louisa Hamilton is sent to Larkswood, her family home, to convalesce she meets her grandfather Edward, home from decades in India. She soon realises the house holds the key to the mystery that shattered her family. (DAILY EXPRESS)

This impressive debut captures the period beautifully, but also delivers a gripping mystery that'll keep you hooked until the end (CANDIS)

If there's a beautiful old house on a book's cover, I want a family saga of richness and breadth, a mystery that runs through that family like a San Andreas fault, captivating characters and gorgeous atmosphere. And this has it all .... Scrumptious storytelling. (Kate Saunders SAGA MAGAZINE)

An enjoyable family saga with tones of a darker Downtown Abbey (WE LOVE THIS BOOK)

A very readable family drama with enough mystery to keep you hooked (Jaine Blackman OXFORD TIMES)

Larkswood is a mystery stretching back over three generations (GOOD HOUSEKEEPING)

Her son, Sam Mendes, may be better known, but Valerie Mendes has written her first adult novel at the age of 74. Larkswood is a mystery stretching back over three generations. (GOOD HOUSEKEEPING)

I have reread LARKSWOOD and wanted to say I enjoyed it even more the second time than the first. I was genuinely touched by it. By the end you really care about them all. The characters are terrifically well drawn, especially Edward, and it has a powerful atmosphere that lingers long after it ends. You should be tremendously proud of it. It's a really wonderful achievement. (Sam Mendes, CBE)

This impressive debut captures the period beautifully, but also delivers a gripping mystery that'll keep you hooked to the end. (CANDIS MAGAZINE)