by Karen Tuft
Paperback: 296 pages
Publisher: Covenant Communications, Inc. (December 1, 2019)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1524412015
ISBN-13: 978-1524412012
Lady Elizabeth Spaulding’s world has fallen apart.
Despite living her entire life to please her demanding parents, the Duke and Duchess of Marwood, she has little to show for it. After Elizabeth’s second failed betrothal, her father’s debts and appalling acts of retaliation force him to flee the country, consigning Elizabeth and her bitter mother to a life of poverty and exile. But Elizabeth’s fortunes change one day when an elderly acquaintance makes her an offer she can’t refuse.
Lady Walmsley, widowed and childless, is in need of a lady’s companion—and who better than the lovely Lady Elizabeth? Determined to rescue Elizabeth from her dreary life in the country, Lady Walmsley secures the help of Kit, the dashing Earl of Cantwell, in her quest. But the young woman they find is a ghost of the charming girl they once knew. Taken in by Lady Walmsley, and with Kit’s enthusiastic encouragement, Elizabeth finds herself pushed further and further from her empty solitude as she discovers the joy of truly living. Now, for the first time in her life, she must decide for herself who she is and if she deserves to be loved.
Kit and Elizabeth is the sequel to The Earl’s Betrothal. There are pros and cons to having read the previous book first. There are some scenes from The Earl’s Betrothal that are skimmed over in this book, like the scene about Amelia’s parentage at the ball. If you have read the first book it makes a lot more sense, and I feel that you will better be able to appreciate the characters. On the other hand, having read the previous book, some of the recap tends to drag a little.
This book took me a bit to get in to at first. The first three chapters of the book include Elizabeth’s point of view of what happened during the book The Earl’s Betrothal which I have read. Chapter four no longer includes recap and becomes the new story which I was quickly able to get in to as the story really got going.
Elizabeth’s parents had never treated her well and they had always wanted a son. While a son had been needed for an heir, they shouldn’t have taken it out on her. She was always treated like property, and they told her often of her failure in not marrying who they wanted her to. She had always tried to make her parents proud and act like the daughter of a duke. This has caused others to compare her with being made of stone. She is still grieving the loss of her betrothed Alex and doesn’t want to marry his brother Anthony which her father is demanding. When Anthony offers her a way out, she takes it.
“I have ever only been a disappointment and have been making amends for it since the day I was born.”
Elizabeth’s father is truly evil with no morals and no love for his wife or daughter.
It’s so crazy during this time period that if someone doesn’t produce an heir, their remaining family loses everything due to entailment. Someone could just show up and kick people out of their house, even while they are in mourning. It was also a little shocking to see how some of the servants treated their masters; especially right after a tragic event.
Lady Walmsley is loud and talkative and just what Elizabeth needs to keep her from hiding in her room and shutting down. She also needs Kit to challenge her and help her find the good in life. Kit also helps her to realize who she really is and what she really wants.
“That question had raised other similar questions. Did she enjoy playing the harp? Did she even like music? Did she like doing needlework? Or painting? Or drawing? She’d taken lessons as a girl in all of these things and in others as well and had always worked to improve her skills. It had been expected of her. But she’d never thought about whether she liked doing any of them. It had never crossed her mind.”
Some favorite quotes:
“She had little faith at the moment, but maybe, just maybe, there was the tiniest acorn of faith that hadn’t been entirely extinguished . . .”
“Kit thought he might rather stick a fork in his eye than listen to a woman cry.”
Timeless Novels 