THE MASK OF THE ENCHANTRESS

by Victoria Holt ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 25, 1980

Vintage Holt--a brace of look-alikes, sanguinary blots on the escutcheon of 19th-century English gentry, and rousing backdrops (both an English castle and a volcanic isle in Australia). Who is the mysterious child Suewellyn Campion? She's cared for by a stern elderly couple in an English village, but she's visited once a month by lovely, enigmatic Miss Anabel--who sometimes brings along her ""friend"" Joel. Anabel and Joel turn out to be Suewellyn's parents, of course: they became passionate lovers while Joel (of Mateland Castle) was still wed to Anabel's gentle cousin Jessamy. But now, Joel having killed his disagreeable brother David, the guilt-ridden lovers must drop all proprieties and flee to Australia, taking little Suewellyn with them. And despite occasional grumbles from their neighborhood volcano (and some exotic native rituals), the family is happy through the years in Australia--until the now-dead Jessamy's daughter Susannah (a mirror image of her half-sister Suewellyn!) appears, ostensibly just to visit her father. But before Susannah's real motives can surface, the volcano gets a chance to do its much-foreshadowed stuff: Suewellyn's parents and Susannah are killed. So now Suewellyn, bereft, decides to head for England, pose as Susannah, and try to inherit some of Mateland Castle. . . not knowing that her late Uncle David's illegitimate son Garth has already rubbed out one of David's legitimate heirs. And Suewellyn's masquerade fools almost everyone, though she puzzles villagers with her kindness (Susannah was a nasty). But what of evil Garth, who sees right through the imposture? Never fear: David's third son--Malcolm the Nice--will straighten matters out after confessions, a fatal shooting, and a judicious fire. Good Holt--just the thing for her celebratory twentieth (all in print) with Doubleday.

Pub Date: July 25, 1980

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Doubleday

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 1980

Categories: FICTION