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I've taken part in the #TBRChallenge for the last couple of years and really enjoyed it! If you'd like to play along, the information is here.

This year's prompts are going to be pretty challenging. I might have to plan more than I currently do (frantically choosing something the weekend before the challenge is due, LOL).

Happy reading!

Life held little joy for Celia Murray. Forced by poverty to leave her aunt, who had been her only source of love and warmth, Celia goes to the city to find a job. There she tries to make the best of her new home: a dreary boarding house.

Then everything changes! Celia receives an unexpected inheritance and so sets about to make her dreams come true. She sends for her Aunt Hannah, and together they work a miraculous transformation on the old boarding house, making it into a place of warmth and laughter. Yet Celia struggles with a sense that there is something - or someone - missing.

Enter handsome Horace Stafford, minister of the mission chapel. At first Celia believes this is a man whose faith and compassion matches her own. But when a terrible misunderstanding comes between them, will Celia ever be able to confess, even to Horace, the deepest desire of her heart?

Original Publisher: The American Sunday School Union
Original Year of Publication: 1900 [1993 reprint]
Page Count: 246

Celia Murray is a lonely young lady in the big city of Philadelphia, who works at a ribbon counter and lives in a cheap boardinghouse. She'd love nothing more to than to bring her aunt Hannah to live with her. Hannah had raised her after her own parents' death, and is now stuck with Celia's ungrateful cousin Nettie, her husband, and her bratty kids out in the suburbs. Celia discovers that she is the heir of a family legacy from her late father's great uncle, which will give her enough income to buy the boardinghouse that she's living in and bring her aunt Hannah out to run it. Together, they plan on starting a little mission in the heart of the city: they'll fix up the boardinghouse, give the boarders decent meals and a nice place to live, and will encourage them to find religion. Their cause is greatly helped when one of the first new boarders to arrive is Horace Stafford, a missionary minister who's planting a new church nearby.

Aunt Hannah reminded me strongly of Aunt Crete. She's a kindly woman who has been sorely tried and tested by ungrateful relatives for most of her life. Hannah had planned to become a missionary as a young woman, with her theology student fiancé, before said fiancé's tragic death after he graduated from seminary. Once upon a time she wanted to go and save foreign heathens; she's delighted by the idea of having the chance to save some native heathens instead. She jumps in with two feet to make over the boardinghouse and minister to the boarders, of whom she grows quite fond.

Celia, on the other hand, basically falls at the first hurdle. She can talk the talk but she fails quite miserably at walking the walk. One of the boarders comes home drunk one night, and she's so horrified and afraid that she roundly ignores him, a young man she'd previously been quite friendly with. She overhears Horace talking to him and is unhappy that they are laughing together - Celia believes he should be preaching at him about his sins. Aunt Hannah tries to interest Celia in helping another of their boarders, a very young girl who works in a three-cent store and seems to admire Celia, but Celia is disdainful of her (the girl asks for beauty tips, how dare she!) and more or less only grudgingly assists her, all the time whining about how this is no way to bring new souls over to God. Aunt Hannah tries to explain that God works in mysterious ways, but for most of the book, Celia is having none of that.

She also makes a complete cake of herself, because she finds a picture of a beautiful young woman in Horace Stafford's room and immediately assumes that this is his sweetheart, so she acts cold and distant around him even though she's in love with him. When one of the boarders tells her that it'd be nice if they got married, Celia gets actively angry at the idea. Of course, the girl in the picture is not Horace's sweetheart, and Celia - quite rightly! - feels like a complete idiot when she learns the truth.

The boarders are a found family, and I enjoyed the parts of the story about fixing up the boardinghouse. I really liked aunt Hannah; if she had been the main character instead of Celia, my rating would've been higher. There are strands of romance, mostly blink-and-you'll-miss-them, but what's there is sweet.

This was originally published in 1900 by the American Sunday School Union, which should tell you all you need to know, LOL. This is one of GLH's earliest works and oof, does it show. It's almost written like fanfic, with long quoted passages of verses, songs, poems, etc. There's even a note at the beginning from GLH's daughter, warning readers that it's an early work and that her mother hadn't yet "developed her mature writing style" o.O I'd say that this one is for GLH completionists only.

⭐⭐

The night of the train crash, their lives became entwined. And even though stories of Jasper Holt's wild past were rampant, Jean Grayson knew her heart would always belong to this handsome stranger who had saved her life.

But Jasper knew Jean's family would never accept him. So he made her a promise that one day he would prove his worth to all who were determined to keep them apart...

Original Publisher: J.B. Lippincott Company
Original Year of Publication: 1916 [1993 reprint]
Page Count: 200

Jean Grayson is travelling across the country to visit her much older, married sister in Hawk Valley. Due to a mixup on the final leg of the journey, she has to sit in the public passenger car while her sleeper bunk is sorted. Jean is nervous about this, especially when the only available seat is next to a sketchy looking old man who opening leers at her. Fortunately, a handsome young man is also sitting there, one who makes her feeling immediately safe. When the conductor arrives to announce her sleeper is ready, both men overhear her name and the names of her prominent relations out west. As she's leaving, the old man contrives to place a leather wallet in Jean's care, telling her to deliver it to her brother-in-law.

The old man is a thief called Scathlin, and the young man is named Jasper Holt. Scathlin used to work for Holt, and stole all of his very important papers at the behest of Jean's BIL, who is Jasper's mortal enemy. Holt tracked down Scathlin and has stuck to his side like glue in order to retrieve the papers. He sees what Scathlin does - passing the wallet to Jean - but doesn't try to get it from her.

A few hours later, the train is involved in a horrendous derailment and wreck while crossing a high bridge over water. The cars are on fire, and Jean has to maneuver herself out of her sleeper and drop into the water to escape. Mercifully, another passenger comes to her rescue and drags her from the water - and it turns out to be Jasper Holt!

The two make their way across land towards Hawk Valley on foot, and then horseback, arriving two days later. During these two days, the two have fallen completely head over heels for each other. Before they arrive at Jean's sister's house, Jasper confesses his identity to her and warns her that everyone in Hawk Valley hates him, most of all her BIL. He does not tell her anything about the wallet and does not try to take anything from her, mostly because he suspects that Scathlin removed one or two key documents before giving her the wallet. The two vow to continue trusting in each other, no matter what Hawk Valley has to say about it. Jasper leaves Jean to her family and sets off to find Scathlin.

Jean is greeted with open arms by everybody, and she actually surprises her brother-in-law by giving him the wallet. His reaction makes Jean suspicious, especially when he comes asking for more documents from her. She'd found one that fell out when she initially retrieved it and realized that it belonged to Jasper. She later overhears a conversation between her brother-in-law and one of his cronies in which they quite conveniently outline their plans to basically steal Jasper's property for themselves, but they are missing two key documents, one of which Jean has. She knows she has to return it to Jasper, but he told her he wouldn't come near her family's property, so how can she safely get it back to him?

Meanwhile, Jasper has run Scathlin to ground once again, takes the other important document from his possession, and brings him back to Hawk Valley, basically as an insurance policy. Scathlin tries to threaten Jean for the paper she has, and Jasper swoops to her rescue. She gives him her document, which makes those in her BIL's possession worthless. At the same time, she asks him to participate in the tournament that her family is holding in her honor before she returns east. He does, wins the biggest prize, and suddenly the townsfolk are wondering if all the nasty rumors and innuendo surrounding him are actually true.

Jean returns east to her parents, and she is separated from Jasper for a year(!) before finally reuniting with him. There is a climactic ending and their reunion is very sweet, so this was basically just a feel-good story from pillar to post.

I really enjoyed this. It's low drama, fairly low angst, and basically the story of how a man's reputation can be torn to shreds for no reason at all. There's no Obvious Villain twirling his mustache stage left; and for a GLH book, the religious elements are exceedingly light. There is no proselytizing, no sudden conversion to evangelical ways and means (it's implied to be the reason for Jasper's change in attitude, but there's no explicit come-to-Jesus moment), no judgment to those who aren't Christians, etc. The most that's present here is some prayer, and the fact that Jean's father is a minister and she herself teaches Sunday School classes. Jean herself is of course the apple of everyone's eye, and her sister is forever trying to matchmake for her and an eligible young man in town, but it's not obnoxious. That earned an extra star from me.

This is a very pleasant read, and one I think even non-religious people could enjoy.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Growing Temptation

Beautiful young widow Lady Phoebe Brodfield could not conceive that the Earl of Devenham might threaten her virtue. True, the earl was the most handsome rakehell in the realm, whom no woman could resist. True, Phoebe was a guest in the same London mansion as he, with no way to avoid his burning gaze. But the fire in his eyes came from fever, for the earl had been badly injured in war. And this man who lay helpless in a sickbed could not possibly pose a threat to a woman who, betrayed in marriage, vowed never to love again.

Phoebe did not reckon with the law of nature, however. Time heals all wounds, and as the earl grew stronger, so did the danger of his rampant desire - and as Phoebe's once broken heart mended, her defenses melted away...

Original Publisher: Signet
Original Year of Publication: 1995
Page Count: 220

That summary is pretty salacious for what turned out to be a deeply emotional novel. Lady Phoebe Brodfield is still in mourning, 18 months after the sudden, unexpected death of her young husband. Scandal abounded when his body was discovered outside a nunnery in Covent Garden. Phoebe was so distressed that she literally hid herself away from the world, moving in with her sister Judith to serve as an unpaid companion and governess to her passel of nieces and nephews. Only Judith, her husband Edward, and their family are even aware that Phoebe is staying with them; as far as the rest of Society goes, Phoebe fell off the face of the earth.

This all changes when Major John Allen Jameson, Earl of Devenham, returns seriously injured from Waterloo. Too far from his own estates, and with few married men among his friends, he begs succor with anyone willing to take him on. Edward Allington is the friend who invites him to stay at his London home to recuperate from his injuries, albeit not without protest from Judith and Phoebe. Devenham's reputation as a rakehell is notorious, and there is danger to the ladies' reputations when it becomes known that he will be staying with them. Devenham is both injured and ill from resulting infection when he arrives at their home; he can't do anyone much harm considering he's barely conscious.

Phoebe is struck by his preternatural attractiveness, but is determined that she will not be a bored peer's plaything due to proximity. What she doesn't expect is that when he wakes up and begins to recover, he is absolutely nothing like his reputation foretold. The man himself is quiet and thoughtful. He knows how to play the game, but Phoebe makes it quite clear she's having none of that, and he basically leaves her alone. He's curious about her - he's been away at war for over two years, and has no idea of her marriage and its scandalous end. She's far too pretty to be hiding away from the world, but that's her right.

Phoebe attends her late father in law's commemoration and is shocked to learn that he left her an estate in his will, considering her late husband's brother is still quite alive and well. Richard Brodfield also has a very dark reputation; his is quite well-earned, and once he learns of her whereabouts, he immediately starts hounding Phoebe to sell her estate to him. He's not a man to take no for an answer, and things deteriorate quickly as he presses his claim.

Devenham doesn't like Richard and sets out to discover why he's in such urgent need of Phoebe's estate. He's certain that unravelling the mystery of Richard will be the key to unlocking Phoebe's heart, as it becomes obvious that Richard knows more than he's letting on about his brother's death and the subsequent scandals that have blackened his name. Devenham doesn't like what he finds, and ends up being kidnapped(!) for his troubles - and its up to Phoebe, Judith, and Edward to find him before it's too late.

There is a lot to like about this story. The leads are quite well drawn. Phoebe's world was turned upside down at the tender age of twenty. She's questioning everything she ever knew about herself after her husband's death, and her attraction to Devenham is only making those questions harder and more uncomfortable to answer. Devenham presents her with a second chance at love, if only she's willing to overcome her fear and her barriers to take it.

Devenham has his own problems. He has PTSD not only from his war experiences, but from growing up with a cruel elder brother. He was never meant to inherit the earldom, and finds it easier to live down to his reputation than to otherwise be his authentic self. He's quite charming and well aware of his own attractiveness, and has in the past used this to further his interests. He was never a great believer in love or marriage until he meets Phoebe, and has an inside look at his friend Edward's loving household. He is a reluctant war hero.

The cast is rounded out by a passel of children, who are quite adorable in their own right; Devenham's fiercely loyal man Mullins; various servants; and an adorable puppy as well as stray cats!

Richard is truly an awful villain, who's done some crazy shit in his pursuit of Phoebe (including but not limited to murdering his own brother and father). The final kidnapping was an interesting twist - Devenham was the victim, instead of Phoebe - and necessary for the resolution of all the threads of the plot, but I would love to read something quiet and more introspective from this author. She can write emotion incredibly well. I will definitely be seeking out more of her work!

⭐⭐⭐⭐

For Love...or money?

Miss Ada Westlake doesn't consider herself a fool...but everyone else seems. to. Though her family is nearly destitute, she has just turned down another proposal from the best catch in the county. Chas - otherwise known as Viscount Ashmead - has asked many time before and Ada, fearful of ruining their friendship with a marriage of convenience, has made him swear never to ask again. Ada also refuses to hang on to a bag of coins she found in the family orchard, convinced the money is ill-gotten. She appears determined to defeat the possibility of financial salvation at every turn. But Ada doesn't mean to be foolish - only to uphold her principles...

Now, Chas must confined "Addled Ada" to see reason - about money and, most importantly, about him. Because the greatest treasure of all is true love...

Original Publisher: Signet
Original Year of Publication: 2001
Page Count: 216

I've been reading a lot of mystery lately, and needed a change of pace, so I reached for my Signet shelf and pulled this book. This author is known to have a light-hearted comedic touch, which is just what I was in need of. She is certainly true to her talents here, but this story - or, that is to say the main characters - wore thin very quickly with me.

This is exactly what it says on the tin. Ada Westlake is the younger daughter in a destitute family. Her eldest brother, Rodney, gambled away all their money and got himself killed in some sort of accident, so now the baronetcy has fallen to younger brother Emery, who's off fighting Napoleon's army on the continent. Elder sister Tess is considered...er, the family eccentric, so Ada is the only one left who has anything resembling brains. She works the land along with a handful of elderly servants, trying to avoid Rodney's widow Jane and her pestering extended family who have taken up rooms in the old Hall but do nothing to contribute to the family coffers or paying down Rodney's debt.

Ada considers herself practical and principled, but she is actually dumb as a box of rocks and stubborn as a mule. She absolutely refuses to marry life-long friend and neighbor Viscount Ashmead, one of the wealthiest men in the country, because she doesn't want to ~hold him back~ and ~deny him the chance for true love~. When she finds a bag of money in the orchard, she immediately thinks that its the proceeds of smuggling and as such, she can't keep it. Isn't her brother off fighting a war against the French? Taking the money would be tantamount to treason in her eyes. She's determined to give it back to the local leader of the smugglers, one Leo Tobin, and actually does that.

Leo is actually Ashmead's bastard-born brother, so of course he knows that the money in the orchard was actually left there by Charles, in his own dunderheaded attempt to give Ada some funds to get out from under the crippling family debt. He can't tell her that, because Reasons, just like he can't tell her he (romantically) loves her, especially not when she turns down his proposal for the umpteenth time and makes him swear never to ask her again.

When Leo gives Ada the money back, she finds new and even more stupid ways to attempt to rid herself of it. Never once does her supposedly practical nature allow her to just accept the windfall for what it is and use it as would best suit her. This drove me nuts. Ada truly is addlepated and I couldn't figure out why Charles was so gaga over her.

Mercifully, this book has a wealth of interesting secondary characters, including quirky Tess (who has her own ideas of how to regain the family fortune, which is to stage a lavish opera/play in London to great acclaim). Leo immediately falls head over heels for Tess and does everything in his power to make her opera/play/book a success. There's also Ashmead's mother, the dowager viscountess, who's playing matchmaker for her son with a bunch of idiotic debutantes fresh from London; the various townspeople; a mysterious Frenchman; and scads of improbable romances. The pace is very swift and comedic, and honestly, wanting to find out how Tess's play turns out was the only reason I kept reading this.

I enjoyed the author's writing way more than the central romance here, so this one is likely not a keeper.

⭐⭐ 1/2

The Vintage Romance Reader

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