19 May 2020

#Historical Romance Book Review #The Lady and The Higwayman by #Sarah M. Eden


Summary: The Lady and The Higwayman (Proper Romance) by Sarah M. Eden


Elizabeth Black is the headmistress of a girls’ school and a well-respected author of “silver-fork” novels, stories written both for and about the upper-class ladies of Victorian society. But by night, she writes very different kinds of stories—the Penny Dreadfuls that are all the rage among the working-class men. Under the pseudonym Mr. King, Elizabeth has written about dashing heroes fighting supernatural threats and dangerous outlaws romancing helpless women. They contain all the adventure and mystery that her real life lacks.
 
Fletcher Walker began life as a street urchin, but is now the most successful author in the Penny Dreadful market, that is until Mr. King started taking all of his readers--and his profits. No one knows who King is, including Fletcher’s fellow members of the Dread Penny Society, a fraternity of authors dedicated to secretly fighting for the rights of the less-fortunate.
 
Determined to find the elusive Mr. King, Fletcher approaches Miss Black. As a fellow-author, she is well-known among the high-class writers; perhaps she could be persuaded to make some inquiries as to Mr. King’s whereabouts? Elizabeth agrees to help Fletcher, if only to insure her secret identity is never discovered. 
 
For the first time, Elizabeth experiences the thrill of a cat-and-mouse adventure reminiscent of one of her own novels as she tries to throw Fletcher off her scent. But the more time they spend together, the more she loses her heart. Its upper-class against working-class, author against author where readers, reputations, and romance are all on the line (copied from Goodreads).


My thoughts about The Lady and The Higwayman 

Grown-up street urchin Fletcher Walker and elusive Mr. King are competing for the extremely profitable penny dreadful market. They both write to fund help for poor children. Mr. King is actually school Principal Elizabeth Black who hides her identity because she is afraid to ruin her reputation. While drama intensifies Elizabeth and Fletcher have to work together to keep both the children and themselves out of danger.

The Lady and The Higwayman is installment #1 in the Proper Romance Victorian series by Sarah M. Eden published by Shadow Mountain Publishing. The setting of the plot is London 1865 when penny dreadful stories where cheap and very profitable serial literature published weekly at just one penny.

The focus is on Fletcher Walker and Elizabeth Black who are passionate about children’s education and are both funding their work by writing penny dreadful stories. While Fletcher is actively rescuing urchins off the streets, Elizabeth is running a very proper upscale middle class girls’ school.

Fletcher Walker has a good heart but undermines himself quite a lot because of his background. It is pleasing to see that he keeps his head held high when moving in up-scale circles and does not hold back from using his colorful language.

Elizabeth Black seems a caring and warm hearted person very careful about her reputation. Her character changes throughout the story and she becomes more assertive and courageous in keeping with the plot and the slightly new company she keeps.

In a story with such superb character building and some seriously unsavory personalities, it feels difficult to decide who my favorite character is, so I just have to say both Elizabeth and Fletcher. They both feel authentic, nice and warm hearted people trying to make a difference for children on the streets of Victorian London. The descriptions of the rescue operations of street urchins were my favorite part of this story.

The Lady and The Higwayman (Proper Romance Victorian) by Sarah M. Eden was excellent entertainment and a quick and easy read. The research was impressive and the writing captivating as I felt transferred to Victorian London 1865.  The Dickensian vibe I got from this multi layered and complex plot was very enjoyable. The dialogue felt authentic and interesting; particularly the funny bantering. The Lady and The Highwayman had a surprise ending I cannot stop thinking about, as it must have lead to some very interesting consequences.

 The relationship between Elizabeth and Fletcher starts off with banter. Behind the banter, mutual feelings are steadily increasing. It’s nice to see they grow closer through the plot and a romance gets room to develop in the midst of all the drama.

The Lady and The Higwayman (Proper Romance Victorian) by Sarah M. Eden was excellent entertainment. It was a quick and easy read with impressive research, great dialog and a surprise ending. The plot was new and refreshing and my favorite part was descriptions of street life in London 1865.

Fans of Sarah M. Eden will enjoy The Lady and The Higwayman (Proper Romance), as will readers of historical romance fiction. Similar authors to explore might be Esther Hatch and Anita Stansfield.

Thank you to Shadow Mountain Publishing and Edelweiss+/Above The Treeline for this digital review ebook which gave me the opportunity to share my honest review. All opinions are completely my own.

My rating: 5 stars / 5

Main reasons: Interesting plot, superb research, excellent crafting of characters, great writing and dialogue


Get your copy here:




Book Details (from Amazon):


Print Length: 384 pages
Publisher: Shadow Mountain (September 2, 2019)
Publication Date: September 2, 2019
ISBN: 1629726052 (ISBN13: 9781629726052)



About The Author



Sarah M. Eden is a USA Today Bestselling author of witty and charming historical romances, including Foreword Review’s 2019 INDIES Award finalists The Heart of a Vicar and The Lady and the Highwayman, and 2020 Holt Medallion finalist Healing Hearts. Combining her obsession with history and affinity for tender love stories, Sarah loves crafting witty characters and heartfelt romances set against rich historical backdrops. She holds a Bachelor's degree in research and happily spends hours perusing the reference shelves of her local library. Sarah lives with her husband, kids, and mischievous dog in the shadow of a snow-capped mountain she has never attempted to ski. https://www.sarahmeden.com/
Sarah is represented by Pam Pho at D4EO Literary Agency.​

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