Review: The Spinster's Secret by Emily Larkin
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 05 28, 2013
The story takes place several months after the Battle of Waterloo.Edward Kane arrives at Creed Hall, the dark and dreary childhood home of his friend, Toby. Wrapped in guilt, he has come to return his friend's effects. Where Edward had been horribly wounded in the battle and expected to die, it was Toby who had, in fact, never come home.Also in residence at Creed Hall is Matilda Chapple, niece to Sir Arthur Strickland and cousin to Edward's friend. Orphaned at nineteen, Mattie came to live with her uncle and, though she is grateful for his charity, she longs to escape the cold, uncaring manor house.To escape, Mattie needs money; to make money, she pens the scandalous, fictional, and immensely popular confessions of "Cherie", a worldly courtesan. But in the early 19th century, decent women do not read such things and they, certainly, don't write them. So if her uncle ever finds out, Mattie knows he'll disown her and throw her out.When circumstances reveal that "Cherie" lives nearby, Sir Arthur is determined to find her out and remove her from his village. And Edward agrees to help, not knowing that the woman he is coming to care for is the object of his search.~*~*~One gets a feel for the end of the Georgian era in The Spinster's Secret. Evocative of Austen, life is structured and behaviors are strictly controlled. Young women were constantly reminded of their place and the expectations of them.Mattie, as so many heroines of the era, flies in the face of these expectations - to a point. She is always dependent on the goodwill of her sternly religious uncle. Her blossoming physical relationship with Edward, not to mention her writings, were cause for removal from the family.This is simply a lovely story. A woman, believing herself plain and destined for spinsterhood, finds love and acceptance from - and for - a man so disfigured that he believes no one could ever look fondly on him again.I marveled at Larkin's choice of main characters. These are not the 'beautiful people' one expects to find in a romance novel. They are physically and emotionally scarred, which only makes their story that much sweeter.~*~*~Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary electronic copy of this book from the publisher [...]. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.