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 she and her sister spent many happy summers until that last, fateful year.
Soon after arriving, Anne is asked to serve as sick-room 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 determination to avoid romance challenged, can she discover the real killer–and protect her heart–before it’s too late?
Acclaimed Regency author Julie Klassen marries the best of historical romance and mystery in a novel full of English village charm, intrigue, and love.
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Summary
3.5 stars Review by Rebecca
" . . . . someone in Painswick could use your help, though I hesitate to name the person, for fear it will put you off coming here."
Stifled by her stepmother's near constant romantic machinations, Anne Loveday takes advantage of an invitation to visit one of her mother's dearest friends in Painswick. Upon arrival she realizes that Miss Lotty's invitation carries a strong suggestion to utilize her bedside nursing skills to benefit an esteemed member of the local community, with whom her family, her sister in particular, had formed a less than positive impression.
Arriving at Painswick Court, Anne not only encounters a myriad of curious circumstances but fears that someone close within the household wishes deadly harm upon her patient. Establishing an informal friendship with one of the doctors in attendance, Anne enjoys sharing treatments and remedies from years of experience assisting her own father, yet Anne often gets the sense that even Dr. Finch is harboring secrets.
Shadowy figures, ill-tempered family members, and inexplicable accidents all combine to create an aura of mystery between every page of this entrancing historical romance.
I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book from Baker Publishing through Interviews and Reviews