The Art of Devotion by Samantha Bruce-Benjamin

Have we all not wished to keep forever the one person we love the most?

The secluded beaches of a sun-drenched Mediterranean island are the perfect playground for young Sebastian and Adora. Emotionally adrift from their mother, Adora shelters her sensitive older brother from the cruelties of the world. Sophie does not question her children’s intense need for one another until it’s too late. Her beloved son’s affections belong to Adora, and when he drowns in the sea, she has no one else to blame.

Still heartbroken years later, Adora fills her emptiness with Genevieve, the precocious young daughter of her husband’s business associate and his jealous wife, Miranda. Thrilled to be invited into the beautiful and enigmatic Adora’s world, the child idolizes her during their summers together. Yet, as the years progress, Genevieve begins to suspect their charmed existence is nothing more than a carefully crafted illusion. Soon, she too is ensnared in a web of lies. [via Barnes & Noble]

I love period novels like this -this one mostly takes place between 1919-38. But what I mostly enjoyed about it was how the narrative is told between all four women (Sophie, Adora, Genevieve, and Miranda), giving you the story through their perspective made this quite the experience. Riddled with secrets, deceit, intrigue, jealousy and betrayal you can't help but to love/hate these women. Just when I thought I had it all figured out ... yea, I didn't. This happened more than once. It really had me on my toes and no matter how much I tried to figure the whole thing out it just did not happen.

Ms. Bruce-Benjamin's writing is beautiful even lyrical at times. She is an expert at dropping subtle hints that leave you wanting more.. making you devour her novel voraciously.

All in all, there is definitely someone or maybe an aspect of this novel that we can relate to. For we have all (at some point in our lives) loved, been lied to, felt happiness, experienced disappointment or even lost someone dear to us. Highly addictive and one that I can definitely recommend.


This book was provided for review by Pocket Books.