A Lady at Willowgrove Hall by Sarah E. Ladd - Isn't the cover beautiful? The images on the first two novels in this series were gorgeous as well. The stories within the pages are lovely as well. Although this is a series, each one stands alone. The main characters in this one are Cecily Faire, a blacksmith's daughter; and Nathaniel Stanton, the steward of Willowgrove Hall. Both of them have secrets in their past, and the theme of the story is honesty and overcoming past mistakes or shame.
As a sixteen-year-old, Cecily attempts to elope with the heir to the estate her father is employed on. Her father catches her and immediately packs her off to a girls school (Rosemere, which was featured in the second novel of the series) and cuts off all contact to her twin sister. Cecily receives a good education, but no one knows her background or why she was at the school, and she hopes to keep it that way, especially when she receives the position of companion to Mrs Trent, the widow that owns Willowgrove Hall. Nathaniel's secret is that he is the illegitimate son of the late Mr Trent. He was raised as the son of the steward, and Mr Trent had provided an inheritance for him, but Mrs Trent is bitter and continues to take out her unhappiness on Nathaniel. Cecily and Nathaniel connect immediately upon her arrival at the estate, but both wish to keep their secrets hidden, and a relationship seems impossible. But Cecily genuinely likes her stern employer, and in her effort to comfort Mrs Trent when she suffers illness and seems near death, she learns some of the secrets of Willowgrove Hall and finds herself needing to be honest about who she really is as well. Will she have the courage to tell Nathaniel the truth, and if he knows of her shameful past, will he still be interested in her?
By the same author: The Headmistress of Rosemere and The Heiress of Winterwood
(Book #46 in the 52 Books in 52 Weeks Challenge)
As a sixteen-year-old, Cecily attempts to elope with the heir to the estate her father is employed on. Her father catches her and immediately packs her off to a girls school (Rosemere, which was featured in the second novel of the series) and cuts off all contact to her twin sister. Cecily receives a good education, but no one knows her background or why she was at the school, and she hopes to keep it that way, especially when she receives the position of companion to Mrs Trent, the widow that owns Willowgrove Hall. Nathaniel's secret is that he is the illegitimate son of the late Mr Trent. He was raised as the son of the steward, and Mr Trent had provided an inheritance for him, but Mrs Trent is bitter and continues to take out her unhappiness on Nathaniel. Cecily and Nathaniel connect immediately upon her arrival at the estate, but both wish to keep their secrets hidden, and a relationship seems impossible. But Cecily genuinely likes her stern employer, and in her effort to comfort Mrs Trent when she suffers illness and seems near death, she learns some of the secrets of Willowgrove Hall and finds herself needing to be honest about who she really is as well. Will she have the courage to tell Nathaniel the truth, and if he knows of her shameful past, will he still be interested in her?
By the same author: The Headmistress of Rosemere and The Heiress of Winterwood
(Book #46 in the 52 Books in 52 Weeks Challenge)
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