The Cautious Maiden, book 4 of the Everstone Chronicles
Whitaker House, October
2016
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Violet Hawthorne is beyond mortified when her brother Ezra
turns their deceased parents' New England country inn into a brothel to
accommodate the nearby lumberjacks but when Violet's own reputation is
compromised, the inn becomes the least of her worries. In an effort to salvage
her good name, Violet is forced into an engagement with a taciturn acquaintance,
Vance Everstone.
As she prepares for a society wedding, Violet learns that her brother had
staked her hand in marriage in a heated poker game with the unsavory Rowen
Steele, and Ezra had lost. Now Rowen is determined to cash in on his IOU.
With danger stalking her and a new fiancé who hides both his emotion and his
past, Violet must decide who to trust, and who to leave behind.
My review:
I read
The Bound Heart, book 2 in the series, just before
this one. Technically out of order, I’m glad I did, as this book carries on
with the rogue, Vance Everstone’s, story. We left him wounded after his
brother-in-law attempted to seek misguided revenge, and murdered Vance’s
brother. Such devastation caused a complete spiritual change, which can be
understandable with what Vance witnessed. While the books stand alone and
feature different characters, they are all tied together and I would recommend
reading at least The Bound Heart with this book.
Starting with a shocking attack, Crandall dives right in to
contrast Violet’s depraved sibling with the former rake, Vance, who steps right
into gentle heroism with great aplomb. Vance’s reformation comes with a new
ability to see past his own carnal desires, and find his soul mate. The problem
comes when he has to convince her of his true intentions despite her brother’s
interference, and without scaring her off, especially since a good man who
loves her might make a better choice. Vance tries to sacrifice his love for
her, but his nature of getting what he wants resurfaces. Fortunately for
Violet, Vance’s altruism and reconditioned heart works in time to prevent
another tragedy.
The Cautious Maiden is historical romance with a little
sauce, some pretty passionate kissing and devastating swoon-worthy heroism. As
a history lover, I appreciated the details of this era of late nineteenth
century New England, but would also have enjoyed some more sense of the
exciting accomplishments taking place in medicine and technology and world
events to more firmly set the Victorian feel. The story could have been plopped
into any era, but that was okay with the richly drawn characters. Book 3,
The Captive Imposter, is reviewed on this site.