Top positive review
5.0 out of 5 starsWonderful Story !!!
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 6, 2018
Rosalind stared out at the headstones in the quiet cemetery. Lord Harold Branson, Earl of Templeton, had fallen down the stairs of a brothel due to excessive drunkenness and he broke his neck. She had married him only a few short months ago! Her friend, Olivia Finchley, Duchess of Breckenridge, came up behind her to ask if she was okay. Thinking that Rosalind was crying in grief, she was shocked when Rosalind told her she was glad he was dead, he had been cruel and now she was free. Olivia then admitted that she had never liked the man either but had thought Rosalind loved him. They slowly walked back to the guests.
Rosalind felt someone roughly grab her arm. Harold’s cousin Bart, now the new Earl, insisted he needed to talk to her despite having guests. She disliked him for his disrespectful leering at her while her husband was still alive. But she followed him rather than make a scene. He happily told her that all of her money had been spent by Harold and she was destitute. He had a plan, though – she would marry HIM instead. She flatly refused and said she would return to her parents. That amused Bart since he had already discussed this with them and they agreed she should marry him. After all, her mother blamed her for not keeping her husband interested enough to stay home! She ran out of the room into the library to allow herself to cry for the first time.
As she was about to leave, Rosalind heard a noise. William Elliot, Viscount of Southam, was standing there. She had longed for his affections when they were younger, but she knew he cared for Olivia. William said he had been in the room looking for a good brandy when she ran in and cried. He didn’t want to interrupt, so he stayed quiet. They were both embarrassed. Before she could explain, Oliva arrived and William left.
When her year of mourning was up, Bart told her they would marry. So she ran away. Two highwaymen tried to rob her, but she had nothing of value. So they kidnapped her for ransom, despite her protests that no one would care. The highwayman was actually Alfred, William’s brother who had lost money in a scheme. When William wouldn’t bail him out yet again, he robbed coaches to get the money he needed. But hiding her in a cabin on his brother’s estate, Alfred realized she really didn’t have any money and he didn’t know what to do. So he sent Richard to fetch his brother. William was furious and took her back to his estate to talk. William wanted to make things right for her if she could tell him what she wanted? For now, she could stay at his estate. But what then? She had nowhere to go and no money. Things were getting more and more complicated!
This was a wonderful story that I really enjoyed. The characters were developed well, even if many of them were not all that respectable! The story line was good, giving the reader hope that William and Rosalind might find a future together. But her mistrust of men might hold her back! And she still hasn’t told William the truth of her disgusting marriage and her cousin’s manipulation. What will she do? Grab a copy of the book and see how it all turns out!
