Review - The Black Opal by VIctoria Holt

TITLE: The BLACK OPAL
AUTHOR: VICTORIA HOLT
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Page count 373
ISBN: 0-449-22271-3

Carmel March was a beautiful baby and as she grew up in Commonwood House she knew there were dark secrets and hostile feeling.s Her one bright spot was when Uncle Toby came to visit. The visits were magical and Toby made her feel as if she belong. Then one day everything changed and Carmel went with Uncle Toby who is the captain of a ship. It was wonderful and she could be the free spirit she was meant to be.
Soon she learned many secrets, such as she had a mother who was a gypsy and Uncle Toby was actually her father. They used Austrailia as a home base. There Toby had a wife and she loved Carmel. Again things changed and when Carmel wasold enough she returns to Commonwood as a young woman. There is haunting dreams, three men who fall in love with her and opals play a big part in Carmel's present, past and future. However one loss after another doesn't mean the end of Carmel instead it's beginning and she starts by solving the mystery of Commonwood.
This book has mystery, murder, intrigue, love, loss and it's one of the best books I have ever read. I connected with Carmel March and soon found myself rooting for her with every turn of the page.
I haven't read a book this down to earth that could make me care for the characters (all of the characters) in a long long time.
Victoria Holt has spun plot into gold and left us with a masterpiece of fiction.
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Pamela James