The Butterfly Box - Hardcover

Montefiore, Santa

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0340769521 ISBN 13: 9780340769522

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton, 2002

Synopsis

Federica Campione adores her father. No matter that Ramon spends months away from their home in Chile; as soon as he's back, his daughter only has eyes for him. When he gives her a magical box from Peru she believes he will always be there for her. Devastated when her parents' marriage falls apart, Federica is forced to set up home in Cornwall with her mother - the butterfly box is the only part of her beloved father she can take with her to sustain her during painful times. Embraced by the eccentric Appleby family, she falls for their son Sam, who barely notices her until it is too late. As she grows to womanhood, Federica attempts to recapture that long-forgotten sense of security in the arms of the debonair Torquil Jensen. From the sanctuary of a seemingly perfect marriage, she embarks on a painful journey of self-discovery. It takes Federica years of heartbreak to learn the true lesson of the butterfly box.

About this title

Review

Santa Montefiore's involving and dramatic novel The Butterfly Box opens in Vina del Mar, Chile, in the sweltering summer of 1982. Frederica is six years old and adores her father Ramon. He is a charismatic, good-looking adventurer who is due home after a long sojourn abroad. Frederica struggles to contain her excitement. Her mother, Helena, travelled with the glamorous Ramon Campione in the heady early days of their relationship; Ramon, a writer and photographer, travels the world and has sacrificed his family for his work. Over the years of growing disillusionment with their relationship, Helena endures his long absences waiting with the children in Chile. On his return, Ramon brings Frederica a gift: a magical box containing coruscating crystals in the form of a beautiful butterfly. According to legend, the butterfly once belonged to an Inca princess. Helena abandons her husband and returns to Cornwall with the children, and the Butterfly Box is now Frederica's sole connection with her past and her father. In Cornwall, Frederica grows up and falls in love with Sam Appleby and, later, the saturnine and charming Torquil Jensen. The lacerating relationship that follows forces her into a punishing voyage of self-discovery during which she learns the true lesson of the Butterfly Box.

Her first novel Meet Me Under the Ombu Tree established Santa Montefiore as a writer of elegance and craftsmanship working within the popular form of the romantic novel. So many novels in the genre are written in leaden-footed prose that it's a genuine revelation to find a writer as gifted as this. The Butterfly Box is couched in language that is always affecting, always truthful--even when saga conventions kick in. Few tales of love and loss exert such an emotional pull as this one. --Barry Forshaw

Review

Absorbing. (Vogue)

Thoroughly readable . . . with old-fashioned romance (Evening Standard)

Refreshing . . . imagination, charm and delicacy. Santa is the new Rosamunde Pilcher. Delightfully written. (Daily Mail)

[An] escapist, passionate romance (Dorset Evening Echo)

This is a good, old-fashioned saga with all the classic ingredients. Federica has genuine pathos and charm, and those qualities permeate the whole book . . . engaging and charming. (Penny Vincenzi, Mail on Sunday)

Edition details

• Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0340769521
• ISBN 13: 9780340769522
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 576