The Girl in the Gatehouse by Julie Klassen

An absolutely charming novel. The hinting of some horrible behavior as the reason Miss Mariah Aubrey must live in seclusion, is something not quite Jane Austin, but close. The story unfolds in delightful Regency aplomb, and as each character is developed (and each one is carefully crafted in much more than two dimensions), the reader is able to let go of modern worries and submerge in olden days glory, fashion, and manners.

The storyline is excellent. The characters are well balanced in development, therefore they interact believably. Some of the twists are obvious and a little bit mechanical, but for the most part this is a smooth moving charmer.

This sits right on top of 4 out of 5 stars.

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



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