title: House of Secrets
author: Hankin, Elaine
description: Follow Chantal from a farmhouse in the Dordogne, to a garret in Montmartre, to a chambre d'hôte in Pierrefonds as she pursues her quest for the truth. Twenty-one year old Chantal Lawrence is astonished to learn that she has inherited a fortune from her French mother, Madeleine, who died under unexplained circumstances seventeen years earlier. After years of having the mystery swept under the carpet, Chantal wants to know how her mother came to such an untimely end. Her curiosity is fuelled when she comes upon a bundle of old letters from someone called Vèronique. Who is Vèronique? What is her connection with Madeleine? Chantal embarks on a quest to unravel the truth but it seems that Vèronique's friend, Paulette Auteuil, is the only person willing to throw light on the mystery. When Paulette is left for dead by an unidentified attacker, Chantal finds herself fleeing for her life across the Dordogne countryside.