Mariah Aubrey is cast out of her family home and banished to an abandoned gatehouse on the outskirts of a distant relative's estate. Dixon, nanny to Mariah when she was little and long time friend, goes with her to the gatehouse. The two of them made do with what they have until sickness takes the money they had a little faster then they had planned on. Mariah falls back on the only thing she can think of. She starts publishing her secret novels under the name of 'Lady A' in a time where being a woman and an author was shameful. After the 'incident' that happened leaving her cast out, the writing would not help her reinstate any pride.
Meanwhile, other characters and their secrets start emerging and tangling themselves up in Mariah and her magnetic ways. Mariah's distant relative dies and her step son (who never liked her) is all over the place looking for something he believes his stepmother is hiding and trying to squeeze whatever money he can from her estate. In the process he rents out the manor to a Captain Bryant. A rich navel officer that is trying to prove his worth in a turned- up - nose society and win the hand of the woman he has loved for several years. Not being found good enough before, he does everything he can to contradict that judgement. But, he doesn't plan on Mariah. Will he reach the social status he so desires? Or will he realize he's chasing a bird that can make him sing but miss out on the one that make him fly?
There are so many characters in this book. It is easy to love most of them, and easy to hate a couple. Julie Klassen does an excellent job of making you feel like a kid watching a great epic romantic film. You get mad at judgements made, you feel sad for the injustices that are done, and you feel hopeful with the forgiveness that is given. A touching story to say the least, it has been some time since I have gotten so engrossed in a story like this. The Girl in the Gatehouse was a book that I not only enjoyed reading all the way through, but was a little disheartened when it was done.
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About The Author:
(taken from her site)
A little about me...
I am a fiction editor and novelist who loves all things Jane—Jane Eyre and Jane Austen. I have been writing since childhood, butLady of Milkweed Manor was my first novel. It was a finalist for a Christy Award and won second place in the Inspirational Reader's Choice Awards. My second novel, The Apothecary's Daughter, was a finalist in the ACFW Book of the Year awards. My third, The Silent Governess, won a 2010 Christy Award and was also a finalist in the Minnesota Book Awards, ForeWord Reviews Book of the Year Awards, and the RITA Awards.
I graduated from the University of Illinois and enjoy travel, research, BBC period dramas, long hikes, short naps, and coffee with friends. My husband and I have two sons and live near St. Paul, Minnesota.
Read more about Julie and see other books that she has written by clicking here and visiting her website.
I received this product for the purpose of review from Bethany House. The opinions in this post are 100% my own and my differ from yours. This is not a paid post.
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