Three years after being widowed, Lady Therese Osbaldestone finally settles into her dower property of Hartington Manor in the village of Little Moseley in Hampshire. She is in two minds as to whether life in the small village will generate sufficient interest to keep her amused over the months when she is not in London or visiting friends around the country. But she will see.It's December, 1810, and Therese is looking forward to her usual Christmas with her family at Winslow Abbey, her youngest daughter, Celia's home. But then a carriage rolls up and disgorges Celia's three oldest children. Their father has contracted mumps, and their mother has sent the three-Jamie, George, and Lottie-to spend this Christmas with their grandmama in Little Moseley.
Therese has never had to manage small children, not even her own. She assumes the children will keep themselves amused, but quickly learns that what amuses three inquisitive, curious, and confident youngsters isn't compatible with village peace. Just when it seems she will have to set her mind to inventing something, she and the children learn that with only twelve days to go before Christmas, the village flock of geese has vanished. Every household in the village is now missing the centerpiece of their Christmas feast. But how could an entire flock go missing without the slightest trace? The children are as mystified and as curious as Therese-and she seizes on the mystery as the perfect distraction for the three children as well as herself. But while searching for the geese, she and her three helpers stumble on two locals who, it is clear, are in dire need of assistance in sorting out their lives.
Never one to shy from a little matchmaking, Therese undertakes to guide Miss Eugenia Fitzgibbon into the arms of the determinedly reclusive Lord Longfellow. To her considerable surprise, she discovers that her grandchildren have inherited skills and talents from both her late husband as well as herself. And with all the customary village events held in the lead up to Christmas, she and her three helpers have opportunities galore in which to subtly nudge and steer. Yet while their matchmaking appears to be succeeding, neither they nor anyone else have found so much as a feather from the village's geese. Larceny is ruled out; a flock of that size could not have been taken from the area without someone noticing. So where could the birds be? And with the days passing and Christmas inexorably approaching, will they find the blasted birds in time?
Fun Christmas story starring the wonderful Lady Osbaldestone, Grande Dame of Regency society. She has been one of my favorite characters throughout the Cynster books, and it's always an experience when she shows up. As the story opens, Lady Osbaldestone is debating settling down in her widowhood at her dower property in the small village of Little Moseley. She's not sure there will be enough to keep her busy, but at the moment she is well-occupied. Three of her grandchildren are staying with her while their father is ill and they have her life turned topsy-turvy.
I loved the opening as the children explain the brouhaha they have caused to the church. They are obviously intelligent children with a lot of curiosity. I loved seeing Lady O try to keep a straight face as she deals with them and the vicar. She realized that she is going to have her hands full keeping them out of trouble. When the vicar mentions that the village's flock of geese has mysteriously disappeared, she gets the idea of involving them in the search. It will also give her a chance to get reacquainted with the residents of the village. I loved the call on Eugenia, who is in charge of their estate until her brother comes of age. She is frustrated with the antics of him and his friends while they are visiting from Oxford. I laughed out loud when those young men encountered Lady O.
Lady O also calls on another neighbor, the reclusive Lord Longfellow. Christian is a former soldier who is hiding away, as he received injuries that have caused facial scarring a feels that he isn't fit for society. Lady O gains access to Christian in a rather unorthodox way, but it is effective. She also settles on two goals for herself: bring Christian out of hiding so he can live again, and see if she can guide Eugenia and Christian together. Just the kind of challenge she loves!
I loved both Eugenia and Christian. She is kind and compassionate, but she also has spirit. Christian is a good man who believes that his future is now pretty bleak. He doesn't want to endure pity, so he locks himself away instead. Christian and Eugenia already know each other as neighbors but haven't seen each other in awhile. Sparks fly between them from the moment they meet again. I loved the encounter about the gate, Eugenia's conspiracy with Lady O, followed by the whole decorating gig.
Because Lady O is such a force, she generally gets her way. I loved her use of a small dinner party to ease Christian further out of his shell. The actions of those who attended warmed my heart with their matter-of-fact acceptance of Christian as he is. Each of them also does their part to pull him back into village life. Christian quickly finds himself getting more involved, no matter how he tries to avoid it.
I liked seeing the relationship develop between Christian and Eugenia. While she aches for his pain, pity isn't what she feels around him. Christian first tries pushing her away, but she won't be pushed. It also takes some additional prodding from a pint-sized matchmaker, which was fun to see. There are some hair-raising moments at the end when Christian discovers that he's not as useless as he thought he was. Both he and Eugenia realize the truth of their feelings for each other.
II loved following the mystery of the missing geese. All three children really got into the spirit of trying to find out what happened to them. I enjoyed the way it gave me the opportunity to meet various people in the village and experience a little of their daily lives. As Christmas nears and the village is without the geese for their Christmas dinners, the searchers become more determined. I loved seeing the way things came together to solve the mystery just in time.
I am looking forward to a yearly tradition of Christmas stories about Lady O and her adventures.
No comments:
Post a Comment