Only 5 days until "An Unlikely Arrangement" releases. I am so in love with this story and cannot wait for you to meet Abigail & Garrett.
I'm so excited to have my first Editorial Review for "An Unlikely Arrangement" from Booklife and wanted to share it with you.
An Unlikely Arrangement: Brides of Biltmore
Cindy Patterson
The first novel in the Brides of Biltmore series from Patterson (author of Broken Butterfly) infuses a sweet classic romance with a compelling story of personal evolution. Abigail Dupree despairs of her parents’ choice for her future husband: William Arendell, a boorish lout many years her senior. But a scandal in Abigail’s past brought shame upon her and her family, limiting her options for marriage in early 1900s North Carolina high society. When Abigail slips away from the house to avoid a social engagement that will force her to interact with her terrible suitor, she finds herself in a precarious situation. Fortunately, she encounters Garrett Barringer, her father’s handsome and gentlemanly new employee who escorts her back to safety.
Abigail chafes at Garrett’s continued overprotective interference in her life and the complications he creates as she plans to salvage her tarnished reputation, but his presence forces her to look at things in a new way. Abigail’s journey of self-discovery has many twists and turns as she struggles to know her mind and follow her heart while still honoring God and her family. Her lack of self-awareness, while occasionally frustrating, lends authenticity to her character. Readers who are patient with the pace of her growth will be rewarded with an inspiring journey towards greater maturity and self-knowledge.
Though Abigail strives to be “grown up” and independent, she must navigate the many restrictive social conventions of the Gilded Age, which affect everything from her forbidden friendship with her maid Rose to the social graces at parties, including those she attends at the wealthy Vanderbilt family’s new Biltmore Mansion (keep an eye out for a charming cameo by the bold Alice Roosevelt, daughter of Theodore). Abigail’s strong Christian values also affect her thoughts and actions, offering crucial touchstones as she struggles with control, guilt, and forgiveness. Readers who enjoy Regency romance will find all its traditional components here, along with deeper, spiritual reflection on love.
Takeaway: Gentle, slow-burn romance with a convincing heroine at a crossroads.
Comparable Titles: Jen Turano’s Behind the Scenes series; M.A. Nichols’s The Kingsleys series.
Thank you so much for your support.
Love~Cindy Patterson