Anya Seton once again delivers a fantastic novel, her level of historic research is not often matched. It is very rare that you find contemporary novels of this quality although there are contemporary novelists writing about historical era with the same passion and accuracy. ( )

Devil Water tells the story of Charles Radclyffe and his daughter by a secret marriage, Jenny. Charles is the youngest brother of James Radclyffe, the 3rd Earl of Derwentwater (I love saying and reading that name - I don’t know why). Shortly after Charles meets and becomes intimate with Jenny’s mother, Meg Snowden, James returns to England after living abroad with the Pretender, James Francis Edward Stuart. James adores his cousin James and longs for the day when James is formally recognized as the King of England. He quickly becomes Charles’ mentor effortlessly converted Charles as a Jacobitism. Jenny was conceived before James’ return. Her family on her mother’s side forced Charles into a marriage on fear of death. Despite this, he fell in love with Jenny the first time he saw her. It pained him more than he imagined when he was not allowed to be with his family.

It wasn’t until the failed Jacobite Rebellion of 1715 that Jenny reenters his life. While preparing for the rebellion, Charles convinces Meg, his secret bride, to allow him to raise her in a manner more befitting Jenny’s station as a Radclyffe. While imprisoned and waiting death for high treason, he convinces Elizabeth Lee, and old flame, to take Jenny in and raise her in London. She is well liked and well cared for in the Lee household. She is thankful for the them and is blessed with a friend in Evelyn Byrd, the daughter of William Byrd of Virginia. Still, Jenny never feels as though she belongs anywhere. Even when Charles returns to take her to the continent to live with his new family, Jenny feels like an outsider. The only person with whom she feels at home is Rob Wilson, a young man who helped her family in Northumberland. When Rob is transported to Virginia for a criminal act he committed in order to save her life, Jenny jumps at the chance to travel with Evelyn to the Colonies.

Until picking up this novel, I knew almost nothing about the Jacobites or the political climate in England that created that rift. The most compelling portions of this novel revolved around James Radclyffe and his participation in The Fifteen. His decision to take up his sword and fight when he felt certain it would mean his own demise was powerful. Although he sensed the weakness in his cousin, he fought for the Stuarts and for his faith. His dedication, loyalty, and faith in both God and man makes him a strong character. It is easy to understand how his wife could fall apart after his execution.

Jenny has a constant desire for a sense of home. A sense she only really had when she was a young girl in Northumberland. She finds some peace with Rob Wilson, but she is not complete without her father. This fight costs her dearly and the reader feels this as well. Because Rob and Charles are an ocean and an ideology apart, Jenny is never complete. Her romance with Rob never has the passion that was present another of Seton’s novels, The Winthrop Woman. This bothered me while reading the novel. It wasn’t until I sat down to write this review that it occurred to me that this distance between Rob and Jenny made sense. It’s not that the author could have made their relationship more compelling and did not. It’s that Jenny’s two halves could never be happily reconciled with one another.

Jenny is an unconventional heroine. She cannot escape her fate, but she faces life bravely and never loses her dignity. Perhaps this is the greatest gift she ever received from her father. I highly recommend this novel and plan to read all of Seton’s work.

http://literatehousewife.wordpress.co... ( )

A little tedious in the Jacobite sections, but the personal story makes up for it. Also, Anya Seton is very very thorough in her research. ( )

I am so pleased that this author's novels are being reprinted, I have thoroughly enjoyed each and every one of them, especially Katherine. This is a fascinating tale, based upon the Radcliffs of Derentwater (Devil Water), staunch catholics and loyal to the Stuart cause, and descended from Charles II via the wrong side of the blanket. Charles Radcliff, the younger brother has a secret marriage to a lower born woman who gives birth to the love of his life, his daughter Jenny.

The story takes you from the moors of Northumberland to the Jacobite rebellion of '15 to the tobacco farms of Virginia, and back again to London for a nail biting finish after the final Jacobite rebellion and the battle at Culloden. Seton has a wonderful way of setting her scenes so that you can almost feel you are right there with it. I also enjoyed her way of writing different dialects (the Northumbrians, and the Virginia "twangs"), which definitely enhance the reading experience.

All in all a higly entertaining read, and one I will pick up again and again over the years. It's not quite up to the same par as Katherine (that's a 10 star book in my rating) or the Winthrop Woman but definitely worth the time, especially for any lover of historical fiction. ( )

It's unfortunate that this title is no longer in print because it's easy to see why it was a best-seller. Anya Seton again brings the past to life in her story about the Radcliffe family during the Jacobite movement in England and Scotland. Brothers James and Charles participate in the rebellion, knowing that they risk their wealth, property, titles and even their lives in support of the exiled James Stuart, whom the Jacobites believe the rightful king of England. Eventually, with James Radcliffe having been executed and Charles himself in exile, the Radcliffes move to the background and the book focuses on Charles' daughter Jenny.

Seton's characters are not always likeable -- at one of the book's climaxes, Jenny's husband Rob Wilson seems to completely step out of character and I wanted to strangle him! -- but that doesn't stop the reader from becoming completely engrossed, sucked into this turbulent time in England's history. Before reading Devil Water, I had only the vaguest notion of what the Jacobites were about, and now I can't help but wonder how history would have been different had James Stuart managed to secure the English throne. ( )