What I've Read This Week . . .
Brightsea by Jane Gillespie -- Sequel to Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility
This book revisits the Steele sisters from Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility. Remember them, the nieces of the kindly Mrs. Jenkins, whose daughter is married to Elinor and Marianne's relative. Lucy Steele was secretly engaged to Edward Ferrars but switched her allegiance to Robert when she learned he was to inherit and Edward to be a poor clergyman. It's not nine years lady and Lucy's sister Nancy is 40 years old and still silly, wanting in sense and on the lookout for a husband. Lucy is more disagreeable than ever with the cares and concerns of a profligate husband and a young family. Nancy bounces around from relative to relative ringing up massive debts until finally, Mr. Palmer decides he's had enough of her and recommends her to an acquaintance of his as a companion for a young lady just out of the school room. Nancy is reluctant to take employment (the horror!) but decides a house with servants and money to spend in a town by the sea outweighs the negative connotations of being a paid companion. Instead of the lively and gay young lady Nancy is expecting, Louisa is sober and bookish, she doesn't know how to dance and wants to learn Latin! While Louisa is busy studying Latin with the handsome young clergyman, Nancy spends money and flirts with the other visitors to Brightsea, in particular, a Mr. Forgan. Louisa begins to enjoy Brightsea society and the attentions of Mr. Forgan but her grandmother's old nurse warns her that Mr. Forgan is not what he should be and Louisa must decide what to do about Mr. Forgan. Lucy and her children pay a visit to needle Nancy and help move the action along and all concludes as it should. I read this book before but didn't remember until I had started reading. It didn't hold my interest very easily. The plot was rather slow moving until the end when it wrapped up in a quick summary of what happens next. Nancy is still disagreeable and Louisa is kind of a bland heroine. If you're looking for romance, or even as much romance as Jane Austen, this book isn't for you. The romance is quiet and blooms slowly and we're told what happens rather than seeing the action. If you loved to hate the Steele sisters and wonder what happens to them, then you'll enjoy this quick and imaginative sequel.
A Country Flirtation by Valerie King -- Regency Romance
After turning down 8 offers of marriage because she could not love the gentleman, Miss Constance Pamblerley is now nine and twenty and a confirmed spinster. She isn't bothered by that though and is happy being the mistress of Lady Brook Cottage and the surrounding estate. She has her hands full caring for her invalid mother and four younger sisters and soon she has two more charges on her hands when a treacherous bend in the road causes a young man to wreck his curricle in Lady Brook's yard. The young man can not recall his identity and is under doctor's orders to remain at Lady Brook until he does. Constance's younger sisters dote on "Mr. Albion" or "Alby" as they call him and Constance fears they are in danger of falling in love with a penniless man, which will not do. Constance has little time to consider whether Alby is faking his illness because soon, Alby's (real name Charles Kidmarsh) guardian, Lord Ramsdell comes crashing his curricle into Lady Brook's yard. Lord Ramsdell's accident causes a broken arm and a fever and Constance spends most of her time nursing the Viscount. When Lord Ramsdell awakens from his fever, he falls instantly in love with his nurse and she soon follows. They become close confidants and friends as well as flirting and kissing partners. Constance tells herself that it's only a summer country flirtation and that it doesn't mean anything but her heart has other ideas. Meanwhile, Alby/Charles thrives under the Pamberley sisters' care. He grows from a coddled boy into a man with chores and vigorous exercise. He also falls in love with the youngest sister, Augusta, and she helps him gather the courage to face his future. This is a silly, lighthearted romance. The characters continually behave out-of-bounds for that time period and the whole plot is unrealistic. I liked Charles and his coming-of-age story but I felt that Lord Ramsedell, whose name isn't revealed until Chapter 12, wasn't fleshed out enough to be a proper hero. I admired Constance in the way she managed her estate and took care of her sisters and mother, but this Cinderella story was a bit too much of a fairy tale for me. Hopeless romantics rejoice because this book is for you; hardcore historians, not so much.
Changing Seasons by Jessie Watson -- Regency Romance
When Charlotte Middleton discovers that her fiance and best friend Rupert Frost has been keeping company with a lightskirt, Charlotte is angry and embarrassed enough to break off the engagement. She and Rupert exchange heated words and threats they don't mean. In a fit of pique, Rupert enlists in the army and Charlotte marries a dull local man. Nine years later, with the wars over, Rupert has begun to think about how lonely he is. His correspondence with the uncle of a fallen comrade leads Rupert to the small English country village of Edenshade, where Charlotte resides. Charlotte is now a widow of means, happy performing charitable works and socializing with the neighbors. Rupert's return stirs up old feelings and she isn't sure she's ready to confront them or whether Rupert's attentions mean anything more than friendship. As the seasons change, Rupert, Charlotte and the people of Edenshade are consumed with the summer flower show/content, the biggest event in the area. The spring and summer bring new friends and new romances and the idea of marriage to mind. This is a nice, quiet story in the manner of Jane Austen. The small town locals are quirky and charming and Rupert quickly becomes part of life in Edenshade. While Rupert and Charlotte are kind of bland characters, I appreciate their quiet romance and their close friendship without all the adjectives in the dictionary describing their feelings. Much of the novel is taken up with gardening and the flower show. There are a lot of characters, which I found hard to keep track of but I liked meeting them and seeing life in this small town as an insider rather than an outsider. This is a nice novel for Jane Austen fanatics who prefer stories about country families to heady romance.
This book revisits the Steele sisters from Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility. Remember them, the nieces of the kindly Mrs. Jenkins, whose daughter is married to Elinor and Marianne's relative. Lucy Steele was secretly engaged to Edward Ferrars but switched her allegiance to Robert when she learned he was to inherit and Edward to be a poor clergyman. It's not nine years lady and Lucy's sister Nancy is 40 years old and still silly, wanting in sense and on the lookout for a husband. Lucy is more disagreeable than ever with the cares and concerns of a profligate husband and a young family. Nancy bounces around from relative to relative ringing up massive debts until finally, Mr. Palmer decides he's had enough of her and recommends her to an acquaintance of his as a companion for a young lady just out of the school room. Nancy is reluctant to take employment (the horror!) but decides a house with servants and money to spend in a town by the sea outweighs the negative connotations of being a paid companion. Instead of the lively and gay young lady Nancy is expecting, Louisa is sober and bookish, she doesn't know how to dance and wants to learn Latin! While Louisa is busy studying Latin with the handsome young clergyman, Nancy spends money and flirts with the other visitors to Brightsea, in particular, a Mr. Forgan. Louisa begins to enjoy Brightsea society and the attentions of Mr. Forgan but her grandmother's old nurse warns her that Mr. Forgan is not what he should be and Louisa must decide what to do about Mr. Forgan. Lucy and her children pay a visit to needle Nancy and help move the action along and all concludes as it should. I read this book before but didn't remember until I had started reading. It didn't hold my interest very easily. The plot was rather slow moving until the end when it wrapped up in a quick summary of what happens next. Nancy is still disagreeable and Louisa is kind of a bland heroine. If you're looking for romance, or even as much romance as Jane Austen, this book isn't for you. The romance is quiet and blooms slowly and we're told what happens rather than seeing the action. If you loved to hate the Steele sisters and wonder what happens to them, then you'll enjoy this quick and imaginative sequel.
A Country Flirtation by Valerie King -- Regency Romance After turning down 8 offers of marriage because she could not love the gentleman, Miss Constance Pamblerley is now nine and twenty and a confirmed spinster. She isn't bothered by that though and is happy being the mistress of Lady Brook Cottage and the surrounding estate. She has her hands full caring for her invalid mother and four younger sisters and soon she has two more charges on her hands when a treacherous bend in the road causes a young man to wreck his curricle in Lady Brook's yard. The young man can not recall his identity and is under doctor's orders to remain at Lady Brook until he does. Constance's younger sisters dote on "Mr. Albion" or "Alby" as they call him and Constance fears they are in danger of falling in love with a penniless man, which will not do. Constance has little time to consider whether Alby is faking his illness because soon, Alby's (real name Charles Kidmarsh) guardian, Lord Ramsdell comes crashing his curricle into Lady Brook's yard. Lord Ramsdell's accident causes a broken arm and a fever and Constance spends most of her time nursing the Viscount. When Lord Ramsdell awakens from his fever, he falls instantly in love with his nurse and she soon follows. They become close confidants and friends as well as flirting and kissing partners. Constance tells herself that it's only a summer country flirtation and that it doesn't mean anything but her heart has other ideas. Meanwhile, Alby/Charles thrives under the Pamberley sisters' care. He grows from a coddled boy into a man with chores and vigorous exercise. He also falls in love with the youngest sister, Augusta, and she helps him gather the courage to face his future. This is a silly, lighthearted romance. The characters continually behave out-of-bounds for that time period and the whole plot is unrealistic. I liked Charles and his coming-of-age story but I felt that Lord Ramsedell, whose name isn't revealed until Chapter 12, wasn't fleshed out enough to be a proper hero. I admired Constance in the way she managed her estate and took care of her sisters and mother, but this Cinderella story was a bit too much of a fairy tale for me. Hopeless romantics rejoice because this book is for you; hardcore historians, not so much.
Changing Seasons by Jessie Watson -- Regency RomanceWhen Charlotte Middleton discovers that her fiance and best friend Rupert Frost has been keeping company with a lightskirt, Charlotte is angry and embarrassed enough to break off the engagement. She and Rupert exchange heated words and threats they don't mean. In a fit of pique, Rupert enlists in the army and Charlotte marries a dull local man. Nine years later, with the wars over, Rupert has begun to think about how lonely he is. His correspondence with the uncle of a fallen comrade leads Rupert to the small English country village of Edenshade, where Charlotte resides. Charlotte is now a widow of means, happy performing charitable works and socializing with the neighbors. Rupert's return stirs up old feelings and she isn't sure she's ready to confront them or whether Rupert's attentions mean anything more than friendship. As the seasons change, Rupert, Charlotte and the people of Edenshade are consumed with the summer flower show/content, the biggest event in the area. The spring and summer bring new friends and new romances and the idea of marriage to mind. This is a nice, quiet story in the manner of Jane Austen. The small town locals are quirky and charming and Rupert quickly becomes part of life in Edenshade. While Rupert and Charlotte are kind of bland characters, I appreciate their quiet romance and their close friendship without all the adjectives in the dictionary describing their feelings. Much of the novel is taken up with gardening and the flower show. There are a lot of characters, which I found hard to keep track of but I liked meeting them and seeing life in this small town as an insider rather than an outsider. This is a nice novel for Jane Austen fanatics who prefer stories about country families to heady romance.
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