THE GENTLE WIND'S CARESS

Author: Anne Whitfield ISBN: 0709082282 3/2007 HISTORICAL Publisher: ROBERT HALE LTD
Time Period: Victorian, 1876

1876 - On the death of her mother and sister, Isabelle Gibson must fend for herself and her brother in a privately-run workhouse. To escape a life of drudgery and near-rape at the hands of the matron's son, Neville Peacock, Isabelle agrees to marry Farrell, a moorland farmer she has never met. But Farrell is a drunkard and a bully in constant feud with his landlord, Ethan Harrington. When Farrell bungles a robbery and deserts her, Isabelle and Ethan are thrown together as she struggles to run the farm. Both are married and must hide their growing love. Despite the secrecy, Isabelle draws strength from Ethan and his best friend, Hamish MacGregor, as she faces the return of her long lost father and Neville Peacock. And when Farrell returns to claim his wife, tragedy strikes, changing all their lives forever.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

Anne Whitfield's newest release, THE GENTLE WIND'S CARESS, is an emotionally gripping, heart rending romance set in the Victorian era. It is a beautifully written story about family, perseverance, faith and love in the life of a young woman who will give her soul to protect her young brother and herself from the evils the world has shown to her.

A GENTLE WIND'S CARESS is one of those stories that pulls you in from the very beginning. The writing is superb, as is the cast of characters and the settings where this story takes place. Anne Whitfield pulled at my heartstrings and actually made me cry—do you know how difficult it is to cry and read at the same time? I love when a book moves me, and this one absolutely did!

Although I fell in love with Isabelle, Hughie, Ethan and Hamish, the story itself is not one where the hero and heroine find their happily-ever-after together. What it is, is a story about a woman, Isabelle, who is determined to make a life for herself and her brother, Hughie, any way she can after the death of her mother and sister. Isabelle decides that marriage is the way out and the road to a better life. Unfortunately, that decision leads her into hardship after hardship, and it's only her perseverance and the love of her brother that motivates Isabelle to keep living and trying to make life better with her drunken and abusive husband.

Isabelle does manage to find love and it's in the form of Ethan Harrington, the landlord of her husband's farm. Ethan is also in a loveless marriage and when Isabelle's husband leaves her, Ethan is there to pick up the pieces. As nice as that may sound, Isabella's life is still worn with problem after problem. It isn't until the very end of the book where Isabelle finds some true happiness.

The only problem that I had with this book is that I would have liked Isabelle to experience more joy in her life instead of always trying to fight to live. Also, Ms. Whitfield decided to kill off a main character, and it was almost at that point where I just couldn't take reading about Isabelle and experience her sorrow with her. I really wish that it wouldn't have happened, but I understand that it's the direction she wanted to go with this story. I do realize, also, that everything Isabelle experiences only makes her stronger, but it would have been nice to see her receive her happily-ever-after in a different way, rather than what she actually did at the end of the book.

Aside from that, I found A GENTLE WIND'S CARESS to be a moving story in the life a woman who only wants to find safety and security, not only for herself, but also for her brother. It is superbly written and includes a cast of characters that are easy to fall in love with. Although certainly depressing at times, I can't deny the fact that it is a beautifully told story and I certainly recommend reading it.

Julie Kornhausl