by Pepper Basham
Grace Ferguson is delighted that her sister is going to be married and she imagines all sorts of fairytale loveliness for the life she is about to embark on. But when a secret threatens to ruin her family and more than one life - Grace does the only thing possible - she takes her sister's place.
But Grace has never sought a position in society so life as a countess is something she is unprepared for. But if literary knowledge is needed she's read a fair bit. And she is more than adequate as an amateur sleuth - having read any detective novel she can get her hands on. What she never expected was that this knowledge would come in handy when someone tries to do away with her new husband - Lord Frederick Percy.
Assuming the title of Havensbrook Hall was the last thing Frederick ever wanted - but the unexpected loss of his brother has him trying to restore the estate and save it from financial ruin. He needs money and marriage to an American heiress seems his only hope. When a last-minute change finds him marrying a substitute bride it will either be a colossal disaster or a blessing in disguise - and there is no way of knowing which until after their vows are said.
When danger follows Frederick and Grace across the ocean - he can't ignore the fact that someone seems determined to see him dead. The question is why. But finding the answer will have to wait as Lord and Lady Astley settle into their new roles.
As danger creeps ever closer, the darkness of the past threatens the happiness that Frederick and Grace have found during their short acquaintance and even shorter marriage. But to claim the inheritance that is rightly theirs they will need to delve into the past and its secrets to get to the truth, freeing them of the danger that seeks to end them all.
First off, I have to say there is a whole lot of story packed into this book. It isn't that it is too long just a lot of action and story, what with the whole marriage debacle and then the settling into life in England and solving the mystery surrounding Havensbrook Hall and the previous/current residents. Overall I'd say it was an excellent reading experience.
I was provided a complimentary copy of this book with no expectations but that I provide my honest opinion ~ all thoughts expressed are my own.
(For those who don't want lots of kissing - a word of warning - there is a lot of kissing)
About the Book:
Publisher: Barbour Fiction
Release Date: September 1, 2021
Genre: Christian Historical Romance
Will the magic of Christmas bring these two newlyweds closer together, or will the ghosts of the past lead them into a destructive discovery from which not even a Dickens’s Christmas can save them?
Mistletoe is beautiful and dangerous, much like the woman from Lord Frederick’s Percy’s past, so when he turns over a new leaf and arranges to marry for his estate, instead of his heart, he never expects the wrong bride to be the right choice. Gracelynn Ferguson never expected to take her elder sister’s place as a Christmas bride, but when she’s thrust into the choice, she will trust in her faithful novels and overactive imagination to help her not only win Frederick’s heart but also to solve the murder mystery of Havensbrook Hall before the ghosts from Frederick’s past ruin her fairytale future.
