The Maid of Fairbourne Hall
-
- $9.99
-
- $9.99
Publisher Description
Regency Romance and Mystery from Bestselling Author Julie Klassen
Pampered Margaret Macy flees London in disguise to escape pressure to marry a dishonorable man. With no money and nowhere else to go, she takes a position as a housemaid in the home of Nathaniel Upchurch, a suitor she once rejected in hopes of winning his dashing brother. Praying no one will recognize her, Margaret fumbles through the first real work of her life. If she can last until her next birthday, she will gain an inheritance from a spinster aunt--and sweet independence. But can she remain hidden as a servant even when prying eyes visit Fairbourne Hall?
Observing both brothers as an "invisible" servant, Margaret learns she may have misjudged Nathaniel. Is it too late to rekindle his admiration? And when one of the family is nearly killed, Margaret alone discovers who was responsible. Should she come forward, even at the risk of her reputation and perhaps her life? And can she avoid an obvious trap meant to force her from hiding?
On her journey from wellborn lady to servant to uncertain future, Margaret must learn to look past appearances and find the true meaning of "serve one another in love."
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Christy winner Klassen (The Girl in the Gatehouse) mines another gem of a story from the rich Regency vein. Margaret Macy, who is soon to inherit a fortune that will allow her to be independent, flees the home of her stepfather rather than be forced to marry his odious fortune-hunting nephew. Margaret literally becomes the poor little rich girl as she is forced to take a job as a housemaid, disguising herself as Nora Garret to work in the home of Nathaniel Upchurch, whose marriage proposal she had rejected, hoping to snare his dashing older brother Lewis instead. In a tale of disguise and transformation with echoes of The Prince and the Pauper and perhaps a dash of Shakespearean heroine, Margaret's character and judgment are enriched as she works for a living and it wouldn't be a Regency romance without a suitable suitor for her. The upstairs-downstairs dynamic of the upper and serving classes puts meat on the story's bones. The reliable Klassen has produced a well-realized genre winner in which Christian elements are subtle and historically appropriate.