Fans of Regency fiction will enjoy this story set near Oxford, England in 1851, at the time of the Great Exhibition. The focus is on Cadence Bainbridge, a sought after dressmaker for both the middle class and gentry. She's an independent business woman with a sickly mother and a busy shop to run, with no time for love, but through various circumstances is forced to choose between two men: one secretive, and one sinister. Honesty is very important to Cadence, however, and seeks the truth from both.
The author does a wonderful job describing the scenes of shop, town and manor home, along with the beautiful clothes of the period. You could almost hear the rustle of the silk and feel the scratchy wool. This is more of a romance though than an historical fiction account of the Great Exhibition. Issues of prejudice, gossip, justice and mercy are explored. I loved the character of Dr. Neal and how gently he dealt with people, especially Cadence's mother and "the least of these".
The book could easily have been much longer, with all the many story threads running through it. Sometimes it felt a bit shallow for that reason, but overall, it was well written and a satisfying read. I'm looking forward to reading more by this author. It reads easily as a stand alone, without reading the first book of the series, although some of the characters do overlap both.
[Thank you to the author for the complimentary book! This review is my honest, unsolicited opinion.]
The author does a wonderful job describing the scenes of shop, town and manor home, along with the beautiful clothes of the period. You could almost hear the rustle of the silk and feel the scratchy wool. This is more of a romance though than an historical fiction account of the Great Exhibition. Issues of prejudice, gossip, justice and mercy are explored. I loved the character of Dr. Neal and how gently he dealt with people, especially Cadence's mother and "the least of these".
The book could easily have been much longer, with all the many story threads running through it. Sometimes it felt a bit shallow for that reason, but overall, it was well written and a satisfying read. I'm looking forward to reading more by this author. It reads easily as a stand alone, without reading the first book of the series, although some of the characters do overlap both.
[Thank you to the author for the complimentary book! This review is my honest, unsolicited opinion.]
