Lucy Ailling loves
her job. She works for Sid, one of the most respected antique dealers
in Chicago. Most of her work centers on keeping Sid's inventory and
meeting customers, but Lucy has a side line. From her earliest
childhood, she has lost herself in books feeling that they are more
her friends than the people she knows. Now she finds old editions and
sells them from Sid's shop. The problem is that some of the editions
may not have the provenance she provides.
At the opening of
the story, Lucy meets James, a promising young attorney. They become
romantically involved, and through James, Lucy meets his grandmother,
Helen. When Lucy's sideline begins to unravel, Helen hires her to be
her companion on a trip to England where Helen must deal with her own
secrets. Visiting some of the sites famous for the Bronte novels and
the places where the Bronte sisters lived, a friendship is born and
both ladies realize that they must redeem past mistakes.
The book is filled
with sensual descriptions. If you want to experience England through
the senses, you'll enjoy this book. I found the Lucy's character
somewhat bland. She's very focused on her conman father and the gift
he gave her for the love of books, but he gave her other gifts as
well, and Lucy isn't very good at distinguishing helpful from
disruptive. James is a good foil for Lucy, He's kind and loving, but
I didn't feel that his personality added much to the story except to
put Lucy in touch with his grandmother. Sid, while being a good role
model, seems to leave Lucy too much to her own devices thereby
setting the stage for the problems that follow.
I enjoyed the book
because I love literature and because it was refreshing to read a
romance that didn't require numerous bedroom scenes.
I reviewed this book
for Thomas Nelson.
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