Whispers at Painswick Court
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4.5 • 4 Ratings
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
She expected her return to Painswick would bring memories of the past--not danger and romance.
Anne Loveday, a surgeon's daughter, is determined to live a single, useful life. To escape her matchmaking stepmother, she accepts an invitation from an old friend to return to Painswick, the place where she and her sister spent many happy summers until that last, fateful year.
Soon after arriving, Anne is asked to serve as sickroom nurse to Lady Celia, who forbade her nephew to marry Anne's sister years before. Pushing aside resentments, Anne moves into Painswick Court, a shadowy old house rumored to be haunted. Also in residence are Lady Celia's spinster daughter, her handsome adult nephews, and a secretive new lady's maid. Two local doctors visit regularly as well, one of whom admires Anne while concealing secrets of his own.
As an escalating series of mishaps befalls her patient, Anne realizes someone is trying to kill the woman. But who? When Anne finds herself a suspect and her resolution to avoid romance challenged, can she discover the real culprit--and protect her heart--before it's too late?
Agatha Christie meets Jane Austen in this compelling Regency-era novel laced with intrigue, love, and English village charm for fans of historical romance and whodunit mysteries.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Twenty-seven-year-old Anne Loveday, the heroine of this mixed-bag Regency-era romantic suspense novel from Klassen (A Sea View Christmas), would rather follow in her surgeon father's footsteps than marry, much to her pushy stepmother's chagrin. When Anne's invited to stay with a family friend in the town of Painswick, she jumps at the chance and is soon tasked by local physicians Dr. Marsland and Dr. Finch task with caring for Celia Fitzjohn, a woman with dropsy who lives at the grand estate of Painswick Court. As Anne settles into her nursing duties, she can't help but notice the shady dealings and hushed conversations taking place in the estate's dark corners, especially when Celia's nephews, Jasper Paine and Jude Dalby, come to stay. Even handsome Dr. Finch, of whom Anne is quickly growing fond, seems to have something to hide. As more and more "accidents" occur and endanger Celia's life, Anne draws on her faith to protect herself and her patient—which becomes increasingly difficult as the culprit works to frame her for the mishaps. While readers might struggle with the novel's somewhat sluggish first half, the tension mounts as the story progresses, setting the stage for a satisfying conclusion. Slow start aside, Klassen's fans will find this worth their while.
