Celebrate Lit / April 20, 2019

The Governess of Penwythe Hall

About the Book

Book: The Governess of Penwythe Hall

Author: Sarah Ladd

Genre: Historical Romance

Release Date: April 16, 2019

In the first of a new series from beloved Regency romance author, Sarah Ladd, Delia, a governess to five recently orphaned children, would risk anything to protect them . . . even her heart.

Cornwall was in her blood, and Delia feared she’d never escape its hold.

Cornwall, England, 1811

Blamed for her husband’s death, Cordelia Greythorne fled Cornwall and accepted a governess position to begin a new life. Years later her employer’s unexpected death and his last request to watch over his five children force her to reevaluate. She can’t abandon the children now that they’ve lost both parents, but their new guardian lives at the timeworn Penwythe Hall . . . back on the Cornish coast, she tries desperately to forget.

Jac Trethewey is determined to revive Penwythe Hall’s once-flourishing apple orchards, and he’ll stop at nothing to see his struggling estate profitable again. He hasn’t heard from his brother in years, so when his nieces, nephews, and their governess arrive unannounced at Penwythe Hall, he battles both grief of this brother’s death and bewilderment over this sudden responsibility. Jac’s priorities shift as the children take up residence in the ancient halls, but their secretive governess—and the mystery shrouding her past—proves to be a disruption to his carefully laid plans.

Rich with family secrets, lingering danger, and the captivating allure of new love, this first book in the Cornwall Novels series introduces us to the Twethewey family and their search for peace, justice, and love on the Cornish coast.

Click here to purchase your copy.

My Thoughts on The Governess of Penwythe Hall:

I loved it! Seriously. This is a great read. I have read by this author before so I was going in knowing that I would like it. I loved the hints of mystery and the end is a great mystery/ almost murder sequence too.

As a woman who loves children, even those I haven’t given birth to, I can relate to why Cordelia does not want to leave her young charges after they have lost both their parents. She knows going back to the lands near her husbands family is dangerous for her but she is willing to take the chance. Little does she know that they will stop at nothing to get what they want.

Cordelia has family in the area still. A brother and an ill sister. Things are going well with the children’s uncle and she’s finding herself falling in love which of course she won’t let herself act on any of that.

But then the boys’ tutor is fired. Their contracts state that they can’t be fired so that is a bit shady to her and she’s sad to see him go. She thought him her only friend. But then more comes to light. The solicitor in charge of the children’s fortune has run off with it. When the tutor comes back only to leave again and is followed showing that he’s lied to her she just doesn’t know who to believe.

Add in her brother in law showing up uninvited and not being very nice and things just keep going from bad to worse. When she’s summoned by her brother to go home to attend her dying sister she promises the children she’ll come back. But will she be able to keep that promise? And will all of the children even be alive and whole when she does get back? Will her in-laws really kill a child? What depths will they sink to to get what they want?

Cannot recommend this book enough. I loved it. It read quickly and I did not want to put it down.

I have voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from Celebrate Lit. All views expressed are only my honest opinion. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. All opinions expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the FTC regulations.

About the Author

Sarah E. Ladd received the 2011 Genesis Award in historical romance for The Heiress of Winterwood. She is a graduate of Ball State University and has more than ten years of marketing experience. Sarah lives in Indiana with her amazing family and spunky golden retriever. Visit her online at SarahLadd.com; Facebook: SarahLaddAuthor; Twitter: @SarahLaddAuthor.

More About The Governess of Penwythe Hall

5 things to know about Cornwall, England:

Throughout its early history, Cornwall’s inhabitants called the country Kernow.
Early inhabitants largely spoke their own language known as “Cornish,” which became nearly extinct in the 1800s
The country has a long and rugged coastline and there were frequent shipwrecks.
Fishing was a major industry, with herring, mackerel, and sardines being common catches.
In 1870, novelist and poet Thomas Hardy called Cornwall “the region of dream and mystery.”

Imagine yourself in The Governess of Penwythe Hall with these pictures of 19^th Century life in Cornwall

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/gallery/2016/may/19/everyday-life-in-cornwall-captured-in-the-19th-century-in-pictures

Sources:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/empire_seapower/cornish_nation_01.shtml

https://www.maritimeheritage.org/ports/Cornwall.html

http://www.cornwallgoodseafoodguide.org.uk/cornish-fishing/history-of-the-cornish-fishing-industry.php