Veena’s review of Dearly Beloved by Mary Jo Putney
Historical Romance published by Zebra Books 01 Jul 19
Ms. Putney has been a long-time favorite author. This story is quite thought provoking and left me with very mixed feelings. The first paragraph is extremely dark and almost distasteful and seems an aberration as the story picks up in a very different place. Of course, she cleverly ties the present to that episode as the story unfolds.
We fast forward to a cold, snowy night and a dying woman in search of shelter, which she finds in a small cottage. Thanks to the care she receives, the woman recovers and tells her hostess, a young single mother, tales about her life in London as a courtesan. Diana, who is looking for some zing in her life, decides to pursue a life as a courtesan. At her first outing she immediately catches the eye of the reclusive Gervase, and so begins a relationship.
Even as Diana tries to keep her young son isolated, Gervase soon breaches the boundaries that she places between her personal and professional life and, against all odds, becomes friends with her epileptic son. Gervase’s spying activities for his country and on his new girlfriend and Napoleonic plots create a nice touch of excitement to the background of Diana and Gervase’s romance. There is a good trail of breadcrumbs for readers to start seeing the threads fall into place, even as Diana continues to resist exclusivity.
The author raises many difficult subjects in this story: rape, epilepsy, and womens’ role in regency England as she weaves a deft tale together, but some of the elements of the plot did not feel real to me.
Grade: C+
Summary:
LOVE MUST FIND A WAY . . .
A sheltered life in the countryside has left Diana Lindsay restless to see the wider world, for both herself and the son she is raising alone. She cannot marry, but perhaps as a courtesan she will find love and protection despite her painful past. Gathering her courage, she moves to London—and finds herself the city’s most desired woman, as admired for her charm as for her beauty. But it is one man who captivates her—handsome, haunted, and harboring a secret as deep as her own . . .Bound by the sins of his youth, Gervase Brandelin, the Viscount St. Aubyn, has spent his adulthood seeking redemption through service to England. Now a spymaster, he can allow nothing to distract him from his duty. But when he meets Diana, his burdens seem to lift. Though she can never truly be his alone, their genuine love fills him with hope, until a treacherous deceit—and a deadly enemy—threatens to tear them
apart forever . . .
Read an excerpt.
