Friday, January 7, 2011

"The Girl In The Gatehouse" Book Review



This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
The Girl in the Gatehouse
Bethany House (January 1, 2011)
by
Julie Klassen



MY REVIEW:

I'm not sure what took me so long to discover Julie Klassen, but I am loving all of her books. "The Girl in the Gatehouse" was one of the most satisfying books I have read in a long time. The simplicity of the times, the beauty of the setting, the depth of the characters and the mystery of the circumstances weave together to make a magnificent tapestry that compose this book. I love the way Julie presents a situation - young woman wrapped in scandel gets sent away from her family to live alone with her former nanny - and then Julie starts to reveal bits of the details a little bit at a time. Slowly but surely the full picture comes into view and by then you love the characters so much that you want to give them the benefit of the doubt. This book was a pleasure to read and I loved it!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Julie says: My background is in advertising and marketing, but I am blessed with a dream job—working as an editor of Christian fiction. I have been writing since childhood, but Lady 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. I am currently writing one novel a year.

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.




ABOUT THE BOOK

Miss Mariah Aubrey, banished after a scandal, hides herself away in a long-abandoned gatehouse on the far edge of a distant relative's estate. There, she supports herself and her loyal servant the only way she knows how--by writing novels in secret.

Captain Matthew Bryant, returning to England successful and wealthy after the Napoleonic wars, leases an impressive estate from a cash-poor nobleman, determined to show the society beauty who once rejected him what a colossal mistake she made.

When he discovers an old gatehouse on the property, he is immediately intrigued by its striking young inhabitant and sets out to uncover her identity, and her past. But the more he learns about her, the more he realizes he must distance himself. Falling in love with an outcast would ruin his well-laid plans. The old gatehouse holds secrets of its own. Can Mariah and Captain Bryant uncover them before the cunning heir to the estate buries them forever?

If you would like to read the first chapter of The Girl in the Gatehouse, go HERE

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I absolutely loved this book! It was so well structured and I loved the way Julie kept Mariah's secret hidden, unleashing little snippets along the way. I don't read much because I am so picky about the books that I read. But I found The Girl in the Gatehouse one that I just couldn't put down. Thanks for a great read Julie. I look forward to future books.