An English family settles in a stately home in Castlemaine, Australia and conducts tours all dressed in appropriate period costume for the public. Nearby lives widowed, Nina Donovan and her young son, Tom. Nina's initial reaction towards the Templetons is negative. I thought it should have stayed that way. Recently Bette and I were talking about the skill need by an author when writing about unlikable character. I have to say I felt that with this Monica McInerney book. With the exception of Gracie, all of the Templetons were selfish and manipulative and they didn’t care who they hurt along the way to achieving their own ends. I failed to understand why Nina had such a fascination with them and was drawn into their lives. From when the reader first meets Gracie as a child, Gracie is a breath of fresh air. She was probably the main reason I kept reading this long novel, which seemed like it could have been much shorter. I sympathised with Nina Donovan, mother of young Tom for a time but even lost sympathy for her along the way. It is Gracie and Tom who carry this story and hold the reader’s attention and I found the parts relating their stories most interesting. I usually like Monica Mc Inerney’s books but this is not my favourite, largely due to the characters. Other people may react differently than I did though.I probably wouldn't have kept reading except it was Monica McInerney, so I knew I would get something out of it. Templeton Hall houses the Templeton family and is open to the public for tours and glimpses into colonial life in Victoria, Australia. Nina and her son Tom neighbour this property and become entwined with the lives of the Templetons throughout the years. If this book was a third shorter I would have enjoyed it more. Terribly repetitive and melodramatic, many of the 'heated conversations' in the book could have been culled or shortened so things weren't repeated over and over. As I neared the end, I began questioning each scene - how does this 'value add' to the story.... got a bit bored by it all as it kept dragging on and on, like this review!
What do You think about En Casa De Los Templeton (2012)?
Loved it! And I want to read everything Monica McInerney has ever written...
—Elliesmommy
Another fantastic read, beautifully told by the delightful Monica McInerney!
—nadica
