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pinkfloydian's review
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
georgiewhoissarahdrew's review
3.0
3.5 stars for not being a run-of-the-mill HR
Only on the face of it is this a light-hearted Christmas story. Jack & Celia's dance to an HEA is fluffy enough, but the sub-plots become increasingly grim. They're good sub-plots, though, with depth and feeling - and, IMO, rather more interesting than the main plot.
Jack's sister, Elizabeth (a Miss Bingley of a character) finds life cold and lonely after throwing over her fiancé. She is eventually grateful to marry a widower for whom she will be only a second-best love. It's a bitter-sweet little story, and I'd love to read a continuation of it into their marriage.
More bitter still is Jack's mother, the Duchess of Arnsford, married off to a man she can neither love nor respect, who has poured her love into the estate. Nominally, it's Jack she wants to get married off - in reality, she's looking for a suitable bride for her creation, the estate (much like Lady Broome, in Heyer's [b:Cousin Kate|311189|Cousin Kate|Georgette Heyer|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1320418207s/311189.jpg|2230129]). Farr does this curdled love well. It's emotionally much deeper than the ostensibly main story line.
The heart of the book for me, though, is the relationship between the Duchess and her maid, Gertrude Hubbard. The Duchess is dying, dying painfully and stoically; no one knows but Hubbard, who offers the sort of silent support that's all the Duchess can allow herself to take. At one point, she realises that she and Hubbard have been together almost all their lives, and that Hubbard is her most intimate friend - though she would never put it that way. I get that the Duchess is supposed to be "the baddie" in this story, but Farr is too good at giving us her (admittedly slightly warped) PoV. I ended up caring for and crying over the passionate Duchess far more than for the superficial MCs.
So, no, not the jaunty little HR I was expecting. But good.
Only on the face of it is this a light-hearted Christmas story. Jack & Celia's dance to an HEA is fluffy enough, but the sub-plots become increasingly grim. They're good sub-plots, though, with depth and feeling - and, IMO, rather more interesting than the main plot.
More bitter still is Jack's mother, the Duchess of Arnsford, married off to a man she can neither love nor respect, who has poured her love into the estate. Nominally, it's Jack she wants to get married off - in reality, she's looking for a suitable bride for her creation, the estate (much like Lady Broome, in Heyer's [b:Cousin Kate|311189|Cousin Kate|Georgette Heyer|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1320418207s/311189.jpg|2230129]). Farr does this curdled love well. It's emotionally much deeper than the ostensibly main story line.
The heart of the book for me, though, is the relationship between the Duchess and her maid, Gertrude Hubbard. The Duchess is dying, dying painfully and stoically; no one knows but Hubbard, who offers the sort of silent support that's all the Duchess can allow herself to take. At one point, she realises that she and Hubbard have been together almost all their lives, and that Hubbard is her most intimate friend - though she would never put it that way. I get that the Duchess is supposed to be "the baddie" in this story, but Farr is too good at giving us her (admittedly slightly warped) PoV. I ended up caring for and crying over the passionate Duchess far more than for the superficial MCs.
So, no, not the jaunty little HR I was expecting. But good.
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