Piper Mills used to be a world class equestrian, headed for the Olympics until she had a bad fall from her horse, from which she never recovered emotionally. When her grandfather dies, her grandmother with Alzheimers quickly follows, leaving Piper all alone in the world with nothing but her bitterness. When Piper’s grandparent’s lawyer brings her a small charm left to her by her grandmother, Piper begins to wonder for the first time what sort of life her grandmother led, leading her down a mysterious path, trying to determine the cause of a falling out between her grandmother and her best friend when they were just young women.

This was a really enjoyable book. All of the characters were fantastically written and the plot itself was very interesting. The mystery was perfect. There was enough of it that I could deduce on my own, which I always enjoy. It wasn’t one of those crazy, convoluted mysteries that doesn’t make any sense, but something that could have actually happened in the place and time that Piper’s grandmother and her friends lived. Even though I got a lot of it on my own, the way that White filled in the details was fantastic. I also really liked that this novel dealt with things like depression, death, mourning, fear, racial tensions, and privilege.

This was a great, engaging read. It dealt with a lot of difficult topics without getting overly heavy and it was well-written and smart. Definitely a winner. ( )

The story begins when Piper's grandfather dies, and is visited by the family lawyer, who gives Piper an envelope that was to be given to her when her grandfather died. In the envelope is a key, that she has no idea which door it belongs to. She then remembers burying something of her grandmothers outside with her grandpa a long time ago, and when she goes and digs it up, thus begins the mystery of Annabel O'Hare. The mystery revolves around three good friends growing up in the early 1900's, Annabel, Lillian, and Josie.The story is done with three points of view, Lillian's, who is the only one of the three friends alive, Helen, Lillian's blind granddaughter, and Piper. The story is Piper's though, and how she comes to grow as the mystery unravels. One of the things I really can't stand in a book is a lot of filler, and this book had alittle to much. There was a bunch of little bits of writing about the flowers they grew, and the scents, etc. Some readers like stuff like that, I'm one that just wants the story to move along.

About a 75 pages in I completely disliked Piper. She was cold, and lacked any kind emotion. I'm so glad the mystery kept me reading because I would have quite reading it. As you read the story though, you realize this was done to show her growth as the story moves along. Piper lost her parents at a early age, and felt because of that she wouldn't be dealt another blow, so when she fell off her horse at a competion and was seriously hurt, she was bitter about it. She realizes that she never made the time to really get to know her grandmother, and what kind of person she was. Lillian was also hard to like, though I never grew to even like her, I still felt her character was written well. Part of the story also included Helen, and her brother Tucker. Half way through the book you can see a attraction between Piper and Tucker, but this is not a romance, and I'm glad the author kept it as such.

Final words, I was sure that I wasn't going to like this book, solely because of the dislike I had for some of the characters, but the writing was good, and the mystery definitely keeps you reading. ( )

While recuperating from a near-fatal fall from a horse, decorated equestrian Piper Mills discovers a secret room and some pages torn from an old scrapbook that point to a dark family secret in her grandmother's past. I found this novel to be a little slow moving in the middle, but I enjoyed the end quite a bit. ( )

The story is a compelling one. I was curious about the past that had left so many in such lasting pain. And I liked the characters for the most part. The insightful though blind Helen was my favorite with a strong-willed Lillian coming in at a close second. There were passages of great insight and beauty. And yet I didn't care for the book. It lacked subtlety and depth. It tended to be melodramatic. Despite this I think that a lot of people would really enjoy The Lost Hours. ( )

This is my first experience with Karen White, and I was quite pleased. I thought this was a touching story about regret, healing, and forgiveness, and a message about it never being too late for any of it. I liked Piper despite her malaise and stubbornness, because you could see the spark that was still hidden beneath it all. I think I felt a connection to her because I was quite close to my own grandmother. The family mystery here is one that keeps you guessing… I wasn’t convinced I had it figured out correctly until it was nearly time to reveal it in the story.

There were a few niggling things about this that would keep me from giving it 5 stars. One, I felt the Susan portion of the storyline was somewhat clumsy. I understand she was mentally ill, but I still couldn’t make the connection between what she did and what she found. Also, the timeline is a little funky in the beginning as it jumps forward in indeterminate amounts, and the point of view switches back and forth from “I” to “Piper”. But overall, I really enjoyed this story! ( )