I just finished reading The Black Opal by Victoria Holt. This novel was Holt's last before her death in 1993. Oddly enough, this is the first novel I've ever read by this very prolific author. Eleanor Alice Burford Hibbert wrote under the pseudonyms of Victoria Holt, Jean Plaidy and Philippa Carr, just to name a few.
The Black Opal follows the story of Carmel, an outsider in her own home, from the time of her birth to adulthood as she struggles to find a her place in the world and discover the answer to a mystery from her past. To do so, our heroine travels from 19th Century England to Australia and back again. I wouldn't give this book a glowing recommendation. The novel has many plot twists along the way, and I especially enjoyed the part of the tale set in Australia. Truthfully, though, I found the characters a little flat and a lot of the dialogue stiff and very repetitive.
The Black Opal is one of those books you don't spend a lot of time thinking about - you simply let the words wash over you and enjoy the diversion for a while. For that reason, I suppose it is good summer reading. I took it on a recent camping trip and it served to pass the time.
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