The Lady's Maid

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One of the men, despite being smitten, leads another girl on for almost the entire book and although there are suggestions that it's to protect her honour, this is suspect and doesn't quite ring true given the circumstances. Another flaw is that several times when the principle characters are at rock bottom, rescuers suddenly appear out of nowhere. Dilly Court grew up in North-east London and began her career in television, writing scripts for commercials. The first portrayal was enough to make me worry the author shared the views of that period, but then as the story unfolds, a much more nuanced view comes into play.

It begins in the night on a hill where a Romany woman awaits the birth of her daughter’s illegitimate child for whom she has arranged a home. The child of a noblewoman born out of wedlock is also in her care after she found the mother already in labor by the river. Another enjoyable read from Dilly Court set in the mid 19th century, however, I found it full of unbelievable occurrences.

Kate, on the other hand, takes charge of every circumstance with her practical hard working personality, overcoming every obstacle except her sense of place. Still, rather than being bitter toward her childhood friend, Kate does her best to help Josie come safely through whatever wild plan she’s dragged Kate into. The cover may have some limited signs of wear but the pages are clean, intact and the spine remains undamaged.

Two female babies denied their birth mothers and brought up in very different, yet side by side circumstances. To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average.A lot of drama and twists of fate before the happy ending coupled with an unexpected turn-around in circumstances. While some might protest the love story for Kate and Harry (a man whose wealth comes from trade), including Kate, there are enough historical accounts to show that love did defeat the class and wealth barriers, especially among those who earned their wealth. One was of Romany heritage and one from higher social standing but circumstances swapped their upbringing.

I especially appreciated the clear presentation of the way different strata of society lived, demonstrated both in description and simple comments about how only the wealthy have the luxury of not knowing how much coin they possess. By using the Web site, you confirm that you have read, understood, and agreed to be bound by the Terms and Conditions. The story begins with an awkward friendship between a spoiled, manipulative lady and her lifelong friend who begins the book as a beleaguered housemaid. One major plot flaw is that it is never really clear why either of the men fall in love with their respective women. From the start, the story regarding two babies born on the same day and delivered by the same woman seemed a bit unlikely.

This was a good "guilty pleasure" historical romance, as tasty and insubstantial as a box of chocolates. She is married with two grown-up children and four grandchildren, and now lives in Dorset on the beautiful Jurassic Coast with her husband. In this novel, they just seem to happen upon each other, in the wrong part of the country and for no apparent reason other than that it needs to happen to continue the story. The Romany grandmother finds a safe home for this girl as well, both children growing up believing themselves legitimate.