The Square of Sevens
By Laura Shepherd-Robinson
Blurb
‘My father had spelt it out to me. Choice was a luxury I couldn’t afford. This is your story, Red. You must tell it well . . .’
A girl known only as Red, the daughter of a Cornish fortune-teller, travels with her father making a living predicting fortunes using the ancient method: the Square of Sevens. When her father suddenly dies, Red becomes the ward of a gentleman scholar.
Now raised as a lady amidst the Georgian splendour of Bath, her fortune-telling is a delight to high society. But she cannot ignore the questions that gnaw at her soul: who was her mother? How did she die? And who are the mysterious enemies her father was always terrified would find him?
The pursuit of these mysteries takes her from Cornwall and Bath to London and Devon, from the rough ribaldry of the Bartholomew Fair to the grand houses of two of the most powerful families in England. And while Red's quest brings her the possibility of great reward, it also leads into her grave danger . . .
Our Review
"People like to say they seek the truth. Sometimes they even mean it. The truth is they crave the soft , quilted comfort of a lie."
The Square of Sevens is the second book I have read by this author. I loved Daughters of Night, so I was very excited to read this book.
Red is seven-years-old when we first meet her. She has an unconventional childhood, living on the road with her fortune telling father, a self-professed cunning man. Red is used to people looking down on them and being fearful of their craft, even those who choose to have their fortune told.
'I am no gypsy,'father said, though I hold the Romani people in naught but the highest regard.
Neither am I a king, but merely the tenth man named George in a long line of cunning-men."
Red's gift has gotten them into a fair few scrapes, the latest of which led to her father being dunked in a millpond to test for witchcraft. Now her father is unwell and concerned for her future.
Red's father has always inisited that he has enemies searching for him. With no one else to turn to, Red's father entrusts her into the care of a man named Robert Antrobus.
Red is now known as Rachel Antrobus and is plunged into society circles in Bath. Rachel enjoys her new life but she can't help wondering about her father's mysterious enemies.
This book is so expertly plotted that I didn't guess any of the major twists..and I almost always guess them.
The Square of Sevens is expertly crafted and full of details that pull you into Red's world. I loved every interaction and encounter Red had and I loved that we knew she wasn't entirely a reliable narrator. I couldn't put this book down and I am still thinking about it now even though I finished it a few weeks ago.
"If you wanted a saint, then you should have read a different book."
Our Final Rating...
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