The Girl In The Gatehouse

 The Girl In The Gatehouse
Julie Klassen 2011
Bethany House Publishers

Summary:

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?

Personal Review:

 The book took 80 pages to become mildly interesting. Too long in my opinion.   While the summary sounds very interesting it's less mysterious than that. I can not feel bad for the main character because she is too full of self pity. Throughout the book she is constantly complaining about her ruin. I do not sympathize with those who don't get over it. I assume that Matthew is supposed to be a Bryonic hero. This does not have that effect. the book had many "jump cuts" that were poorly executed. Instead of a smooth transfer from one chapter to another it is rough and poorly done. I mean she would end the chapter with an unfinished conversation or a meeting but then she just drops it. The chapters could even be weeks apart but she never tells you that until almost halfway through the chapter. This is supposed to be romantic but it's not. I mean Matthew makes Mr. Rochester look like a romantic. And that's saying a lot. And while it was better by the end I still found it 391 pages almost too long. Many Improvements could have been made.

Grade: ++
Book to Read This Week:  Hello, Gorgeous: Becoming Barbra Streisand by William J. Mann

 - See You Next Tuesday, MaggieG. (Not This Tuesday this week but next week.)

P.S. Sorry I broke my Tuesday policy but I finished so I thought, "What the heck"