Village opinions and romance!

-

Someone to Cherish (Westcott #8) by Mary Balogh            

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


Major Harry Westcott was once the Earl of Riverdale until he and his family fell apart when they discovered their father had in fact married their mother bigamously. That left Harry and his sisters as illegitimate offspring. Imagine the shock and distress. Harry was no longer the Earl, no longer able to support his mother and sisters. Their place in society was gone. The life they knew was in tatters. Stripped of title, lands and funds this was the Great Disaster. Previous novels in the series give us the background to events up to now.
Harry, anguished and lost, joined the army, off to the Peninsula to fight Bonaparte. Thanks to Avery Archer the Duke of Netherby—his guardian, and his half sister Anna’s husband, he didn’t end up taking the king’s shilling. Avery purchased a commission for him with the same regiment he’d signed up for.
After fighting his way across the continent, Harry was badly wounded at Waterloo. He eventually came back to England, a wreck suffering from the memories of all he’d seen and endured. He now lives on one of Anna’s properties and his former childhood home—Hinsford Manor in Hampshire.
Within the village of Hinsford lives a widow, Lydia Tavernor, wife and ‘helpmeet’ of the former dedicated and charismatic vicar. A young woman who throughout her time has been overwhelmed by the men in her life. Lydia shocked her brothers and father by refusing to move home with them. Instead she bought a small house in the village at the end of Harry’s driveway. The two meet at a local dinner. The innocent action of Harry escorting the seemingly bland Lydia home leads to a situation!
Lydia is rather a fascinating woman hiding who she really is in plain sight. Still waters run deep!
Meanwhile the Westcott women have decided that Harry needs a wife and are planning to bring him to London to celebrate his thirtieth birthday and introduce him to potential partners. And if Harry doesn’t come to London they have a Plan B.
Harry’s mother just wants him to find someone he can ‘cherish.’
A gentle story that takes two people with secrets and ghosts and gives them another chance, albeit it  in a rather unusual way.

A Berkley Group ARC via NetGalley 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Things aren’t as they seem!

-
Image
A Murderous Tryst  (Beatrice Hyde-Care Mystery #11) by Lynn Messina    ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Oh my! Bea certainly has a lot to contend with. Bea’s rattled! The Duke has been missing from their bed for a night. When a distraught Bea come downstairs the next morning she finds her beloved husband Damien clasped in the arms of a glamorous female. A female who turns out to be Kesgrave’s first mistress, Mrs. Penelope Taylor! What?! Of course Bea’s heart sinks and she falls back on her painful memories of Aunt Vera’s responses to such a situation. Bea is both shaken and traumatised, but determined not to show it.  It seems Penny has been accused of murder. Actually  Penny’s desperately trying to avoid Newgate.    As a former mistress Penny does the unthinkable thing in society’s eyes. She asks for help from Bea. Bea’s response is just as shocking. She says yes. Kesgrave is as usual inscrutable. Of course this is the beginning of a harebrained chase, complications between Bea  and Amien,  and an investiga
Read more

Women in war—Internment by the Japanese 1942-45.

-
Image
Sisters Under the Rising Sun  by Heather Morris    ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ A fitting tribute to the women interred by the Japanese in Indonesia and Malaya during 1942 until liberation in 1945. Amongst the internees are a group of Australian Army nurses who were not given recognition by the Japanese as members of the armed forces and therefore not prisoners of war according to the Conventions of war.  Sister Vivian Bullwinkle is the only survivor of the massacre of a group of soldiers and nurses on Radji Beach, Bangka Island near Sumatra  in 1942, after the sinking of  HMS Vyner Brooke. There are a number of civilian prisoners in the camps like Norah Chambers and her sister Ena.  Combined, the story of these women interred under terrible conditions, their struggles and achievements are monumental.  Their gifts to their fellows beyond speech. Music plays an important part in uplifting the prisoners’ spirits. It’s truly a privilege to read about their plight, their vows to each other, and their braver
Read more

The Three Muscateers—three widows, three sets of different circumstances

-
Image
The Widows' Wine Club  by Julia Jarman    ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Different enough to be interesting but I kept losing which character was which. I almost feel I need to read it again to follow who’s who. I do know that three women came together to form a support group, going to the pub for lunch etc. Better than the local widow’s group in the church hall.  All three had recently lost their husbands and now had to find a way to face their new lives. Viv Halliday is a knowledgeable gardener. Zelda Fielding is setting herself up with internet dates and searching the web for her unknown father. Janet had a controlling husband who it turned out was having affairs, and their son is just as controlling. How their lives unfold is the new challenge. A Boldwood Books ARC via NetGalley.                                               Many thanks to the author and publisher.
Read more