The Lines Between Us by Rebecca D’Harlingue

The Lines Between Us: A Novel by Rebecca D’Harlingue

Release: September 8th 2020
Format: Paperback
Publisher: She Writes Press
Source: Suzyapproved Book Tours
Find it at: Goodreads, Amazon, Kindle, B&N

In seventeenth century a young girl flees Madrid in fear for her life. Three centuries later and a continent away, a woman comes across old papers long hidden away. And in them , she discovers the reason for the flight so long ago.

In 1661 Madrid, Ana is still grieving the loss of her husband. At the same time, her sixteen year old niece Juliana, suddenly vanishes. Ana desperately searches the girl’s room and comes across a diary. She Journeys to southern Spain in search of Juliana. After a futile search in Seville, she comes to Juliana’s final entries. After discovering the horrifying reason for the girl’s flight, Ana abandons her search. Juliana seems to have been a victim of an assault and pregnant . For fear of her life, she had to escape to Seville and later to Mexico city where she remained in a convent for the rest of her life.

In 1992 Rachel, a Spanish-language professor in Missouri, goes through her recently deceased mother’s things And she finds a packet containing an old diary and several letters. Although the packet is addressed to the daughter Rachel is expecting, she opens the packet and learns of her family background and her connection back to Juliana and Ana. finally, this leads her to investigate her ancestry.

About the Author:

Rebecca D’Harlingue has studied Spanish literature, worked as a hospital administrator, and taught English as a Second Language to adults form all over the world. The discovery of family papers prompted her to explore the effect of family secrets, and of the ways we attempt to reveal ourselves.

Rebecca’s debut novel, The Lines Between Us, was inspired by her study of Spanish literature, and the discovery of secret family papers. The novel was a finalist in the Best New Fiction category in both the International Book Awards and the Best Book Awards.

D’Harlingue lives in Oakland, California with her husband, Arthur.

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The Lines Between Us Review:

I love books revolving surrounding generations of a family, and “The Lines Between Us” is a beautiful historical novel that warmed my heart.

To begin with, I loved the various emotions I felt while reading the book. Part of the story feels like a suspense novel with the disappearance of Juliana. Part of it feels like a detailed historical novel where we learn of the events in Spain. And another part felt like a beautiful family saga. The author included many elements in the story, which made me enjoy it.

Similarly, I also love the way the author changes the style of writing. She shifts the past and present perspectives and toggles between various generations from chapter to chapter. Moreover, some of the chapters are in epistolary format, which gives the book a wonderful personal touch.

Moreover, the characters are realistic, flawed, and beautiful. I loved Ana’s storyline as she searches for Juliana and Juliana’s tale of what happened to her. Rachel’s storyline was a bit weak compared to Ana and Juliana, as nothing significant occurs for the most part. However, I enjoyed how the author seamlessly connected all of them, especially towards the end. Some of the highlights of the tale were when Juliana receives Ana’s letter and the relationship between Juliana and Mercedes. I also loved the scenes in Tlaxcala and Jalapa and the various emotions the characters go through. I thought these were the highlights of the story, and the author beautifully executed it.

Overall, “The Lines Between Us” is a beautiful story to pick up if you love historical fiction revolving around multiple generations of a family.