What I was expecting was Roseanna’s signature lovely, unhindered, bright writing style, her fully human, varied and interesting characters, her ever-twisting plot, and the skill with which she deftly drops little hints and clues and details that you'll hardly notice until you need them. And I was not disappointed in the least! She handles mysterious circumstances with such skill, and I hope this exceptionally layered mystery is the first of many more mystery-heavy novels from Roseanna. I for one will eat them all up in a moment, right alongside any of her other stellar historical tales. (...pardon how many times the word 'mystery' came up in that last paragraph... It's truly the best word for the situation!)
The locations in this one in particular are really vivid and memorable. It beautifully fits in with the way the islands act almost like their own characters in this story, and adds a wild element that magnified all the strange circumstances and events that pepper throughout the story. Matched with her always well-established sense of the time in yesteryear when her tale is set, these are some of the biggest reasons I come back to Roseanna time and time again, eager to immerse myself in another place in another era.
Another thing I love about Roseanna’s books is seeing clearly through the eyes of people who are completely different from myself. Often, these people are villains or anti-villains, hiding in the shadows, giving the reader an uneasy feeling of what’s impending; you are seeing events from both sides, but often unsure how close the protagonists are to this hidden danger. And sometimes, as in ‘Number of Love’, you’re seeing through the eyes of a mathematical genius like Margot, or in this book, a heavily scientific natural mind that thinks in Latin definitions and ways of cataloging like Libby. I’m not even partly similar to Libby in...almost any way, but Roseanna makes a clear path into her style of thinking and understanding that is both fascinating and still understandable to any of us who don't think that way.
Melbenna in this story was another fascinating character; with her stubborn streak, her free-roaming island ways, and her determination to stick with what she’s decided is best and not allow herself to examine uncomfortable things too closely. Hers and Libby’s growth really parallel each other’s, while being completely unique and seeming opposite at the same time. It makes for really stand-out interactions and intertwining plotlines.
All that, backed with an overarching mystery that has more loose ends than...something with a ton of loose ends...!...makes for a compelling constant build of all the things that need to be answered, and left me with several anxious moments where I was certain there just weren’t enough pages to resolve it all! But as she does so well, Roseanna tied up just what was needed, when it was needed, and not a moment sooner. And with her usual delivery of a satisfying explanation, but not often in the ways we expect.
And as a final note, I always appreciate that any romances she writes will be sweet and clean in content, but never without difficulties that differentiate them from simple (and so often glorified) shallow infatuation. So you can actually be happy for the couple at the end, instead of wishing they’d look just a little past the emotion of a moment.
With an effort to keep avoiding spoilers, here is where I will just encourage you to pick up ‘The Nature of A Lady’ and embark on a fantastic adventure in the year 1906, of lost people and things, mysterious happenings and findings, rumors of pirates and dangerous treasures seekers-- all on a wild and lovely set of islands just off England’s shores.
All that, backed with an overarching mystery that has more loose ends than...something with a ton of loose ends...!...makes for a compelling constant build of all the things that need to be answered, and left me with several anxious moments where I was certain there just weren’t enough pages to resolve it all! But as she does so well, Roseanna tied up just what was needed, when it was needed, and not a moment sooner. And with her usual delivery of a satisfying explanation, but not often in the ways we expect.
And as a final note, I always appreciate that any romances she writes will be sweet and clean in content, but never without difficulties that differentiate them from simple (and so often glorified) shallow infatuation. So you can actually be happy for the couple at the end, instead of wishing they’d look just a little past the emotion of a moment.
With an effort to keep avoiding spoilers, here is where I will just encourage you to pick up ‘The Nature of A Lady’ and embark on a fantastic adventure in the year 1906, of lost people and things, mysterious happenings and findings, rumors of pirates and dangerous treasures seekers-- all on a wild and lovely set of islands just off England’s shores.
(...And you’re gonna want a kitten aftwards, fair warning...)
A great place to find yourself a copy ------> The Nature of a Lady -- landing page
Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publishers, and was not required to leave a positive review. All views expressed are mine and mine alone.
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About the Book
| The Nature of a Lady |
1906 Lady Elizabeth "Libby" Sinclair, with her love of microscopes and nature, isn't favored in society. She flees to the beautiful Isles of Scilly for the summer and stumbles into the dangerous secrets left behind by her holiday cottage's former occupant, also named Elizabeth, who mysteriously vanished. Oliver Tremayne--gentleman and clergyman--is determined to discover what happened to his sister, and he's happy to accept the help of the girl now living in what should have been Beth's summer cottage . . . especially when he realizes it's the curious young lady he met briefly two years ago, who shares his love of botany and biology. But the hunt for his sister involves far more than nature walks, and he can't quite believe all the secrets Beth had been keeping from him. As Libby and Oliver work together, they find ancient legends, pirate wrecks, betrayal, and the most mysterious phenomenon of all: love. |
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About the Author
Roseanna M. White is a bestselling, Christy Award nominated author who has long claimed that words are the air she breathes. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two kids, editing, designing book covers, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of a slew of historical novels that span several continents and thousands of years. Spies and war and mayhem always seem to find their way into her books…to offset her real life, which is blessedly ordinary. You can learn more about her and her stories at www.RoseannaMWhite.com.
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