Sue and Celeste are taking us back to Talcott House where young ladies are trained and brought up to be the perfect little brides to their Papas. This is the 4th book in the series, and they can all be read as standalones. The 4 women are all friends and they are all referenced in each other’s books, but you aren’t going to be lost if the first one of these books you pick up is Papa’s Captive.
Lord Caldwell has been courting his beloved Rosie for quite some time. They are betrothed, but she’s nervous about setting a wedding date. When he doesn’t show up to see her in some time, Rosie is very worried that her hesitation has driven him away. It doesn’t help that she already has a secret that makes her worry that her betrothed would abandon her if he found out. It’s a terrible secret.
On the day that two of the other girls at Talcott house start poking at her because Lord Caldwell hasn’t been there for a while, all of Rosie’s anxiety pops up and she ends up smacking Lettie and rolling around on the floor, fighting with her. But, just as she’s about to be punished, Lord Caldwell shows up. The two of them are going to go out walking through the gardens, but Lord Caldwell has other plans. He gives a gift to Garland so that she’s distracted and then he spirits Rosie away to Gretna Green to get married. You see, back in the day, England had very strict regulations concerning getting married. But Scotland, you see, did not. Gretna Green was the first Scottish town over the border and so many, many people eloped there. Luckily for Lord and Lady Caldwell, Gretna Green was a quick ride away from the familial castle in Scotland, so after the 2 day trip to Gretna Green and a quick marriage, they were able to spend their first night as a married couple in their own bed. But of course, nothing is ever all that easy, now is it?
I like Rosie. She’s sweet and loving. She also deals with a lot of anxiety, and I can totally relate to that one. And, while she works really hard at trying to be a good girl and a proper lady, I think that she definitely has some fire in there. I mean, she tried to punch one of the other girls and threatened to punch Garland. And by the way, I totally think that Garland was trying to get with Lord Caldwell. I would’ve wanted to punch her too. Lord Caldwell seemed a little flighty at times, but that started to calm down, and I liked him a lot.
The secret about Rosie’s father wasn’t what I was expecting it to be, I mean, I did expect something criminal, but not that particular thing. I expected something more gruesome, I think.
Lord Caldwell’s cousin is a raging bitch. Maybe she would benefit by a few trips over someone’s knee with a belt and a whole lot of time sitting in a naughty chair or in the corner. Or, you know, being bricked up in a wall. You choose.
OK, that’s all I have to say about this one. Go check it out, along with all the other books. Happy reading!
In Between the Pages 