Victoria (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781951580070)

In the house that had been in his family for generations, Grand-dad had raised sisters Laura and Fawn after their parents were killed in an auto accident. Believing that her beautiful older sister Laura was stealing her true love, Fawn left home at age nineteen. Over the next eighteen years, Fawn's unsuccessful marriage resulted in two kids--Andy, eleven, and eight year-old Susan. Fawn had stayed away all these years, but felt obligated to return when Grand-dad passed away. It turned out that Laura had also married and had three girls, Jill, Erin and Kara, before her husband was killed in a boating accident. The kids, especially Susan and Kara, hit it off immediately. While out exploring, Andy, Susan and Kara found an interesting old trunk in the trash-pile, found a way to pry it open, and discovered inside it a gorgeous old French walking doll. Laura soon worked out that the found doll, bearing the nametag 'Millicent', was a virtual twin to Victoria, the antique doll that was the most valued part of the doll collection at the Antique Village that she managed. Why had Grand-dad insisted that such a valuable doll be discarded? Laura decided to take Millicent to the Antique Village, but then changed her mind and was driving back home when she collided with a truck and ran off the road. Laura survived, but was left in a deep coma. The policeman returned Millicent to the family at The Mansion, as locals called the house. Roger Hamilton, the driver of the truck that Laura had hit, was bothered by what he had seen prior to the accident, and tried to get close to the family to warn them. The family, especially Erin and Martha, who had been the housekeeper for decades, began to uncover parts of the history of the house and the dolls. Victoria, Grand-Dads sister, had died during a fall from the third-floor balcony. That explained why a gate was in place to prevent anyone from going to the third floor. First Erin, then Martha were killed. Could the doll Millicent somehow have been responsible for the deaths? Martha had known. Roger knew and wanted to help avoid further tragedy. And Laura, in a coma, began to have out-of-body experiences that showed her the REAL family history. Was Millicent out to kill the entire family?