The Secret Rooms: A Castle Filled with Intrigue, a Plotting Duchess and a Mysterious Death

I bought this book last year for a friend who raved about it so I decided to try it for myself.Not sure why but I had expected a historical novel which was completely wrong. What you get is a fascinating piece of research. The book starts with the 9th Duke of Rutland dying in a small suite of servant rooms in his enormous castle then those rooms being closed for 60 years on the order of his son. The book follows the progress of Catherine Bailey, the author, as she discovers the mystery by accident and tries to find out the hidden truths.With such intrigue, this book should never be boring and it never is! Even her style of writing seems to develop throughout the book to keep the reader hooked in, for example, the first section is written to include lots of witness in the style of a tv documentary. The narrative then changes to first person and we become the author as she digs in the various archives. The whole book is presented in a series of relatively short chapters which make it very accessible and allows time to digest the information.There is a feeling of being part of the research process as info is found then put to one side only to be brought back at a later stage when it becomes relevant. I found myself becoming completely involved with the authors excitement as she finds truths which were unimaginable at the start of her work. There is a small section where, I think, the book goes too heavily into the military strategy but, other than that, it is an amazing account of a family's internal struggles.History should always be considered as merely an interpretation of events and here that theory is shown. By removing records, John manages to change the reporting of events which leads to a much wider consideration about how much more of historical reporting has been effected in this way.

Having visited Belvoir Castle many times (well worth a visit) I found this book really brought the castle to life and painted a tangible picture of the aristocracy there and elsewhere around the turn of the 19th/20th century. Whilst revealing and exposing the 'darker' and hideously selfish side of English tradition, hierarchy and politics at this time, it sadly didn't prove to be so shocking, but more despicable. Having recently published my grandfather's memoirs from WWI ('Wal's War' - available from blurb.com - which also includes letters between him and his mother to and from the Front, vastly different to those between John and Violet!!) - those of a shy, humble and unassuming, ordinary man (a postal worker) - the contrast between his experiences and those of the aristocrats 'serving' in the war is stark and shameful. And yet, I found myself deliciously drawn into the mediocrity of daily life for those so privileged through inheritance. I could really feel the excitement Catherine Bailey must have felt as she cleverly pulled together the implications from the various pieces of the puzzle - many of them missing completely. What is so amazing is the vast number of diaries kept and letters that were written back and forth and so incredible that such history has been preserved over centuries it would seem. What is sad (or perhaps a relief for some!) is that all of our 21st century correspondence - emails and postings made on the internet - will vanish into the ether over time and we will never be able to readily put our hands on such valuable, day to day records in a hundred years from now. I have given this a 4 rather than a 5 rating only because I felt slightly let down at the end with the final weak-mindedness that explains why things had happened the way they had - and deeply disappointed, as John Manners himself so rightly felt. Couldn't put the book down though and highly recommend it for a good read.

The title of this book is a misnomer. It should have been called "The Secret Letters" as the "Secret Rooms" in question were neither secret nor held any great secrets of particular note. Certainly, the "secrets" the writer discovered were most probably replicated in one form or another in most of the aristocratic families in the land.I have given it four stars as it is extremely well-written and researched. It centres on the life of the 9th Duke of Rutland - a man whom the writer describes as "sensitive" but who colluded with his family in avoiding the real horrors of the First World War and for the rest of his life was serially unfaithful to his wife. His decision at the end of his life to excise from the family archives the letters which showed him in a less than favourable light smacks more of self-regard than sensitivity or guilt as the writer would have us believe.The book does, however, capture a period in the nation's history where great wealth and privilege still held sway over the lives of the rest of the population. The lives of the Aristocracy were dominated by protecting that wealth and privilege at all costs. They lacked neither morals nor scruples in defending it. Whilst the fathers and sons of their servants and feudal tenants, urged to "go and do their bit" by the old Duke, perished in the mire of the First World War trenches, for most of the war his son languished at home carrying on his privileged existence and courting the girl he was to marry. That old Great War marching song "The Bells of Hell Go Ting-A-Ling-A-Ling For Me But Not For You..." was never more apt.If John, Duke of Rutland, was an unhappy man at the end of his life, the reader is left with little sympathy and a feeling that, sadly, the contents of the book did not live up to the blurb on the cover or the promise of the first few pages. A good read nevertheless.

This is a well-written book that looks down many dead ends of researching a fascinating subject. The author was certainly dogged in her determination to complete her task, well done. I enjoyed reading this book very much and have avoided giving any detail of the contents or subject matter in order that, if you want, you can glean what is available publicly. A thoroughly good read.

This book is a real find, it is a true story, yet it is written in the manner of a thriller. How many factual books about late 19th and early 20th Century aristocratic dealings can truly claim to be a page turner? Not many, but Catherine Bailey has certainly written one here. The plot concerns John, Duke of Rutland and his rather, shall we shay scheming Mother, Violet. Frankly, she must have been an awful woman who, as we see, would stop at nothing to achieve her aims.During the course of the book we learn about her response to the tragic death of the Heir to the title (John was the "spare"). At this point John is really the hero who is cruelly treated. We then move on to the Great War, where his death would result in the estate falling outside of the immediate Manners family, something Violet determines to avoid at all costs. It is during this period that, gradually, John changes from being a vicitm to a more complicit participant in events. To say more would give away the twist at the end; and that really sums this book up, a factual story with a sting in the tail.I recommend it to anyone even if you only have a passing interest in the period.