Snare of Serpents [Hardcover]

Victoria Holt (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 1990

Davina Glentyre is on trial for the murder of her father. All that was once familiar and dear is now shadowed by scandal and mistrust.

--This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Again demonstrating her mastery of the romance genre, the prolific Holt ( The Captive ) depicts another heroine in distress. Davina Glentyre's cozy world rapidly distintegrates when her father, a wealthy, straight-laced Edinburgh banker, marries her new governess, the previous instructor having been accused of stealing a valuable bracelet. When Glentyre dies under suspicious circumstances, Davina is arrested for murder. The jury of Scots brings in a verdict of "not proven," leaving Davina's reputation severely damaged. Though she changes her name, Davina lives in constant fear of recognition, and decides to rejoin her dismissed governess, whose innocence she never doubted. Traveling to South Africa to reopen a school in the town of Kimberley, the two women make the journey with diamond merchant Roger Lestrange and his bride. When the latter falls ill, more than Davina's reputation is in jeopardy. Although Holt's heroine possesses the usual weakness, namely a naivete that borders on a learning disability, she is appealing, and the story, mixing danger and sentiment, should please Holt's many fans.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

YA-- Love, intrigue, and adventure fill the pages of Holt's latest historical romance. Davina, a sweet 16 year old of proper Scottish lineage, finds her sheltered life out of control when a strange chain of events puts her on trial for her father's murder. After an ambiguous court verdict of "not proven," Davina tries to escape her troubled past and travels to South Africa to begin anew. However, she gets caught up in the outbreak of the Boer War, and a sequence of unnerving and mysterious events begins to threaten the normalcy of her life once again. Holt's well-drawn and varied characters add an extra dimension to the plot. Whether describing the picturesque countryside of Scotland or the beautiful cities of Cape Town and Kimberley, South Africa, Holt once again offers her fans a spellbinding tale full of beguiling characters. --Nancy Bard, Jefferson Sci-Tech, Alexandria, VA
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 672 pages
• Publisher: Doubleday; Lrg edition (August 1, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385416903
• ISBN-13: 978-0385416900
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,960,549 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another wonderful piece by Holt (4 1/2 stars)..., June 12, 2009

By 

CoffeeGurl - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: SNARE OF SERPENTS (Hardcover)

In this suspenseful tale set in Edinburgh, Davina Glentyre couldn't be happier. Her father, a well-to-do banker, is a widower and her governess is her best friend. But then things fall apart when her governess is dismissed for having supposedly committed theft. Things get all the worse when Davina's father falls for and marries the new governess. It all goes downhill from there. Mr. Glentyre is found dead. He's been poisoned. It could be no one other than his new wife, right? Wrong. Davina is accused of committing the crime. Her reputation is ruined when she gets the verdict of "not proven." This verdict is not the same as "innocent," of course, and so she is ostracized from all decent society. She reunites with her old governess, whom she's always trusted, and both travel to South Africa to reopen an old school, both with nothing but making a clean slate on their minds. Only things don't run as smoothly as they had hoped. Diamond merchant Roger Lestrange poses big danger for Davina. To make matters worse, her past is making an unwelcome comeback...

Snare of Serpents is everything a romantic suspense novel should be. It features the typical Victorian heroine: naïve and demure. It also contains a romantic hero with shades of grey. A dark and gothic atmosphere completes the formula. But what makes this novel different from the dime-a-dozen nonsense we get from today's authors is that this novel is original and well written. The Victorian era sounds genuine. You don't get the anachronisms you get from today's "historicals." There are also twists and turns, a well-woven storyline and good characterization. The ending is quite surprising. This one, like The Mistress of Mellyn, throws you off big time so that the resolution will most definitely shock you. I loved it. Snare of Serpents doesn't fall into the "classics" category. After all, it is only about nineteen years old and the title isn't quite popular, but it does have an old-fashioned feel to it that makes the novel appealing. Victoria Holt doesn't have quite the literary magic of Daphne du Maurier or the art for creating the perfect atmosphere like Mary Stewart, but her work is nevertheless wonderful. She is a revelation to me and I look forward to reading the rest of her backlist.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Great from Victoria Holt, June 24, 2000

By 

JESSIE CALLAWAY (Atlanta, Georgia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Snare of Serpents (Audio Cassette)

Victoria Holt once again sweeps her readers into the life of another heroine, Davina. Through the audio version it almost sounds as if Davina might be telling you her story yourself. She is suspected of murder in Scotland but it can't be proven so she goes to South Africa to escape gossip but the nightmare continues there until in the end everything turns out all right and she ends up with the man of her dreams.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An innocent girl on trial for murder, April 21, 2003

By 

A. Y. Smittle (Winchester, VA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Snare of Serpents (Hardcover)

The story takes place in post-Victorian Edinburgh. A bankers daughter begins (too late) to notice all is not perfect in her perfect household. Her mother dies. Her governess is let go under mysterious circumstances. And a bawdy new governess moves in to take her friend and her mothers place---and all other things. Her father is discovered dead from arsenic poisoning---and she is accused of murdering him. I was surprised at the end---I felt sure I knew who had killed the girls father----but I'm not good at guessing, I guess.
The characters are pretty well thought out---theres a voyage to South Africa and the terrain is detailed. But the most standout of this book is the main characters illusions that the perfect way of life can go on uninterrupted. She certainly left one snare of serpents for another, too. Very well written and interesting.