Reviews tagging 'Child death'

A Dangerous Kind of Lady by Mia Vincy

2 reviews

aoifesbookshelf's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The order of the books has confused me somewhat as they don’t match the publication order. This is the authors third published book and technically first in this series (not including the prequel novel). If you read this book first like I have, you would be forgiven for thinking that the stories of Guy’s sister, Freddie, and her friend Matilda would also form part of the series but as of yet it seems the author will not be returning to those characters. This book does set up the series nicely as it connect everyone and I’m surprised it wasn’t published first.

This story deals with some heavy plots -
loss of a sibling, loss of a parent, physical and financial abuse, controlling parents, commodification of virginity, minor character death.

Miss Annabelle Larke and Guy Roth, Marquess of Hardbury were promised to each other as children and this began their tumultuous relationship. To say they don’t like each other is an understatement. Both Guy and Annabelle blame each other for the way their lives have turned out. I really enjoyed the banter between the two of them as Guy is one of the few people who will not shy away from Annabelle. 

This story’s opening chapters are set during a fancy dress party thrown in honor of Guy’s return to London. Annabelle has now had two jilted engagements - one of which was Guy - and now has been given an ultimatum by her father; if she is not engaged by the end of the night, she will be disowned. Annabelle doesn’t need to pluck a suitor out of thin air as Lord Sculthorpe has already spoke to her father. She only needs to accept him - but she doesn’t want to. For reasons that are slowly revealed through the course of the story, Annabella is incredibly uncomfortable around Sculthorpe. Her only other option for a fiancé in such short notice is Guy, whom she hates and those feelings are mutual. 

Annabelle is very proud and doesn’t know how to ask for help so her attempt at getting Guy on her side fails miserably. She proposes that they pretend to be engaged however her phrasing means this isn’t completely obvious to Guy, who instead leaves thinking that Annabelle is trying to deliberately trap him into marrying her. Annabella has no choice but to accept Sculthorpe. I actually liked that this happened as it felt very different to other HRs where Guy would have accepted the plan. His reaction felt more true to both his own character and the relationship he has with Annabelle. 

We learn that Sculthorpe is quite frankly obsessed with the concept of virginity and this is the sole reason why he wants Annabelle. Horrified by this, Annabelle goes to Guy in the middle of the night asking him to sleep with her so that she can regain some control over her own body. There is a minor side plot that brings about this event -
Guy jilted Annabelle for Clare Ivory. However, Clare left Guy for Sculthorpe. They didn’t last, and now Sculthorpe is with Annabelle. Clare is a courtesan and we learn that she sold her virginity to Sculthorpe.
This information is the trigger point for Annabelle to take matters into her own hands. It also is the reason why Guy and Sculthorpe hate each other.
When Sculthorpe finds out Annabelle is not a virgin, he loses it and physically assaults her leading Annabelle to blackmail him in order to end the engagement. The problem with this is that their engagement ball was due to be held in a few days time. Furious, Annabelle’s father decides to cut her off once the ball is over. This is when Guy has his a-ha moment and realizes that her father was just as controlling of his. At the ball he declares that he and Annabelle are engaged, hoping to buy the pair of them time to sort out their own problems but also help each other.
. 

While all of this is happening, there is a separate story between Guy, his sisters and their guardian, Sir Walter. Sir Walter also has custody of his niece, Miss Matilda Treadgold, who becomes pretty important. Guy wants to gain custody of his two sisters - Freddie and Ursula - and is trying to prove that Sir Walter is not acting in their interests.
The two stories come together when Sculthorpe returns to the party a few days after the engagement ends. It turns out he was in cahoots with Sir Walter to ruin Freddie and/or Matilda. He is killed in a fire which may or may not have been started by Annabelle’s mother


Annabelle is also aware of Sir Walter’s behavior and is undergoing her own investigation to help Freddie. One of my favourite quotes in this book is “Annabelle had not been able to save herself, but she could still save Freddie.” This to me really sums up Annabelle’s character. She believes that only she can save herself and thinks it is weak of her to ask for help however she doesn’t hesitate in helping someone else. 

Ultimately this is a story about two people whose lives have never been their own to live. In order to gain some control back, they must also learn how to trust and eventually love someone they always believed they hated. Both Annabelle and Guy have suffered the loss of a sibling and as a result their fathers have been controlling and distant. Guy escapes to the continent for several years while Annebelle doubles down on maintaining her pride. Unlike other stories where the this kind of protagonist could annoy me, I actually really liked Annabella. There is a lot of misunderstanding and deliberate concealing of information but all of her actions and behaviors were rooted in her own upbringing and the affect it had on her. She also acknowledges to herself that she said the wrong thing and knows what she wants to say but is afraid of being seen as weak. It takes a lot of time but she starts to feel comfortable around Guy and finally lets down her walls. 

I really enjoyed this introduction to Longhope Abbey and can definitely see where the author will find her other stories. I’m particularly interested in Cassandra and her missing husband. 
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picaresquedreamer's review against another edition

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emotional funny inspiring reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

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