Date: 12 April 2011, 13:36
|
Every now and then one picks up a book by an unfamiliar author and it like coming home - everything fits and is comfortable and all expectations are fulfilled. I had that experience with Carla Kelly's books and now with Anne Gracie. I first read her second book, Tallie's Knight, and was so impressed that I sought out her first book, Gallant Waif. I was enchanted. The story of Major Jack Carstairs, recently returned from the Peninsular campaign badly wounded in body and spirit, and Kate Farleigh, who is hiding a shameful secret, is exceptionally well told. Anne Gracie writes with excellent knowledge of the period and draws her characters exceedingly well. It is very clear that she has done her research and the quality of her prose is excellent. Some of the peripheral characters in the story (particularly Jack and Kate's friends from the Peninsula) are briefly but memorably portrayed. This is a story of high emotion, courage and heroism but never slips into sentimentality. There is sexual tension without sex scenes and the growing relationship between Jack and Kate is believable and moving. The scene at the ball near the end of the book is one of the most highly charged, emotional and poignant scenes I have ever read in a book of this type - it moved me to tears. I hope that Anne Gracie's books are soon available in the USA in paperback for I think she will attract a wide and devoted following if she keeps up the level of her future efforts to the standards she has already achieved. I was delighted to note that she had been nominated for a RITA for Gallant Waif and I am also delighted to write the first review for this book for amazon.com. I look forward to more from her in future.
|
DISCLAIMER:
This site does not store Gallant Waif on its server. We only index and link to Gallant Waif provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete Gallant Waif if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.