51 pages • 1 hour read
The House at Riverton
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Part 2Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Content Warning: This section of the guide contains descriptions of death by suicide, illness or death, child death, and gender discrimination.
Part 2, Chapter 9 Summary: “The Twelfth of July”
In 1999, filmmaker Ursula Ryan visits Grace at her nursing home with Keira Parker, an actress cast to play Grace in the film about Riverton. They discuss Grace’s character in the films and Keira drops a household photograph from 1916, which jolts Grace’s memory. These were annual photographs taken of the family and staff at Riverton.
In a flashback to July 12, 1916, the Riverton household mourns the deaths of Lord Ashbury and his son, Major Jonathan. The family solicitor reads the will. If Jemima gives birth to a son, he will inherit the estate; otherwise, the title will pass to the Major’s brother, Mr. Frederick. Overwhelmed, Jemima shows signs of early labor. As Grace helps her from the room, she notices the mantel clock has been stopped at the time of Lord Ashbury’s death, at Lady Violet’s command.
Part 2, Chapter 10 Summary: “The Fall of Icarus”
The 1916 flashback continues. Grace finds Hannah and Emmeline Hartford by the Icarus fountain, discussing the family’s future. Hannah tells Grace she looks just like her mother in a photograph in the house album, and Grace resolves to try to look at the album. Hannah reveals she has a copy of a letter from their brother in the war, David, which their father refuses to read.
