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Julie KlassenBethany House / 2011 / Trade PaperbackOur Price$16.994.7 out of 5 stars for The Maid of Fairbourne Hall. View reviews of this product. 56 Reviews
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Its About Time MamawCleveland, TexasAge: 55-65Gender: female5 Stars Out Of 5Judge not according to the appearanceMarch 14, 2012Its About Time MamawCleveland, TexasAge: 55-65Gender: femaleQuality: 5Value: 5Meets Expectations: 5Let's start with a little information about the characters...
Margaret Elinor Macy - hieress to a fortune and main character in this book
Sterling Benton - Margaret's step father and vilian/manipulator after her fortune
Marcus Benton - Sterling's puppet of a nephew out to marry Margaret and her fortune
Lewis Upchurch - aka Don Juan had courted Margaret at one time. He is all play no work
Nathaniel Upchurch - younger brother of Lewis. He is all work no play. Also courted and proposed to Margaret, she turned him down leaving him bitter.
The Poet Pirate - anonymous
Helen Upchurch - sister of Lewis and Nathaniel. She has become a spinster due to lost love.
Joan - Margaret's maid whom helped her to escape the villianous stepfather and nephew.
Nora Garret - Margarets new name while in disguise.
Fairbourne Hall - resident of the Upchurch family and Margaret's new place of employment as servant.
Mr. Hudson - house steward at Fairbourne Hall. Hired Margaret as servant at Fairbourne Hall.
These are just the main characters there are many more that make up this story.
Margaret Elinor Macy was determined to come up with a plan to flee her step father's iron rule. Sterling Benton not only taken over the financial responsibilties of his new family he also chose to lock away all the families jewels. He also has plans to marry off Margaret to his puppet of a nephew, Marcus Benton, in order go get control of a very large fortune Margaret is soon to inherit. She overheard Sterling and Marcus scheming to go as far as comprimising her virtue forcing her to marry Marcus. This she would not allow to happen she had to find a way to escape.
She seeked out an old friend Lewis Upchurch to help her hide away from Sterling but to no avail. When she was home alone she took money from her step father's room which resulted in her maid, Joan, being accused of the theft and was fired. Margaret convinced the maid to help her escape and give her safe haven. She decides to disguise herself by wearing a wig and coloring her eyebrows darker along with wearing a pair of her father's old glasses. Margaret no longer goes by her real name she is now to be known as Nora Garret and plans to hire out as a servant to support herself until she comes into her inheritance. She had no clue as how to be a servant. But she had no other recourse.
Nora is hired as a house maid by Mr. Hudson, a house steward. When she nears her new place of employment she is shocked to see it is none other that Fairbourne Hall home of the man she spurned, Nathaniel Upchurch and his brother Lewis. Along with their sister, Helen, mistress of the Fairbourne Hall.
She fears she will be recognized and sent back to face whatever her step father has in store for her. But to her amazement she is able to keep secret from everyone. Are does she?
It was really diffucult for me to know just how much of the story I should share in this review. There is so much secrecy among all of the characters, along with manipulation and intrigue. Of course there is a chance for some romance in the story also. It is said that the author's writing is comparable to that of Jane Austen's and I whole heartily agree.
There are many interesting quotes in the book. This is one of many...
Housemaids were meant to be invisible, and all cleaning had to be performed either before the family to up or while they were absent. As one housemaid later wrote. "It was assumed, I suppose, that the fairies had been at the rooms." Trevor May, The Victorian Domestic Servant
I highly recommend this book.
I rate this book a 5 out of 5.
Disclosure:
I was given a free copy of this book for review by Bethany House Publisher/Litfuse. I was in no way compensated for this review, it is my own opinion. -
MaureenTSyracuse NYGender: female5 Stars Out Of 5Riches To RagsMarch 13, 2012MaureenTSyracuse NYGender: femaleQuality: 5Value: 5Meets Expectations: 5Another GREAT book by Julie Klassen. I loved it!!
Talk about going from Rags to Riches Margaret Macy as Nora goes from Riches to Rags. What an eye opener for this young 24 year old woman. They live in England in 1815, and she is from Money! They have oodles of servants for everything. When she overhears her Step-Father encouraging his Nephew Marcus to get with it marry her, at all costs, even if he has to molest her and then save her face. She knows she has to get away, by chance their maid Joan is fired, for something she did, and she takes her to her sister's!
You will not believe that this pampered girl is able to do all that she accomplishes. Is she going to be able to last, or will she end up going home to having someone else dress her?
She ends up at the home of two of her former suitors, and you will have to wonder if one or neither of these men, Nathaniel or Lewis will end up with her.
Don't miss this one, reminiscent of old England and some of its glory! I also love how Nate reinstated a prayer meeting for all of the help each morning.
This is a great Christian Romance Story!
I received this book from the Publisher Bethany House, and was not required to give a positive review. -
Digging4PearlsShippensburg, PAAge: 45-54Gender: female5 Stars Out Of 5Delightful ReadMarch 13, 2012Digging4PearlsShippensburg, PAAge: 45-54Gender: femaleQuality: 5Value: 5Meets Expectations: 5Julie Klassen weaves the tale of aristocrat Margaret Macy escaping her spoiled lifestyle to avoid an unwanted marriage. If she can remain unwed for several months, until her next birthday, she will receive her inheritance. The Maid of Fairbourne Hall is a delightful saga of a spoiled, rich, young woman going in disguise as a maid in England during the early 1800's. Not until after she arrives at her employment, does Margaret realize she'll be working in the home of the man who proposed marriage several years ago. She spurned Nathaniel Upchurch in favor of his brother.
I love the way Margaret learns the hard way to appreciate people for who they are, no matter what station of life they are in. She discovers many valuable lessons along the way, as she adjusts to poverty and being a servant. Through working, Margaret acquires the ability to see beyond herself and her own needs. She also finds out what it means to sacrifice.
I found The Maid of Fairbourne Hall to be a delightful read, and one I highly recommend.
* This book was provided free for review by Bethany House Publishers. -
daisyOHAge: 35-44Gender: female5 Stars Out Of 5March 12, 2012daisyOHAge: 35-44Gender: femaleMeets Expectations: 5great sensational reading material!
would recommend to anyone. -
JanetBelton, TXAge: 45-54Gender: Female5 Stars Out Of 5Well-Researched; Great StoryMarch 9, 2012JanetBelton, TXAge: 45-54Gender: FemaleQuality: 5Value: 5Meets Expectations: 5Excellent!
The Maid of Fairbourne Hall is the story of Margaret Macy, a young woman living with her mother and stepfather. A few months from her 25th birthday, she is to receive a generous inheritance from her aunt on that date. Yet, her stepfather is determined to take it by forcing her to marry his nephew, a scoundrel she can never love. Macy runs away and goes into hiding as a maid, landing by accident in the home of a man whose proposal she refused–quite brutally. Macy has much to learn as she attempts to protect her secret for the sake of her family.
I'll admit, the first one hundred pages had me wondering. Through these, author Julie Klassen was setting the scene, introducing us to Margaret's plight and resulting situation. It wasn't exactly pleasant, but it was necessary. In the author's note at the end of the book, Klassen mentions there were many details of the situation she chose to leave out–to spare us. I was thankful for that.
But I was glad I hung in there through the difficult, but essential, first part of the book. Once I got past it, the story was amazing, and I could hardly put the book down.
Again, as compared to the last Klassen book I read, her style reminds me of Jane Austen's, and the setting is the same, though in Klassen's case, it's historical fiction, while in Austen's it would have been contemporary. Klassen has done her research! (And she tells readers some about that in her author's note, as well.)
If you enjoy stories about the landed gentry in England set in the early 1800's, I recommend this novel to you! I thank Bethany House Publishers for sending a complimentary copy for my honest review.
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