 |
| Click to view on Goodreads |
After meeting Graham, Kit finds herself wishing things could have been different for the first time in her life, but what she wants can't matter. Long ago, she dedicated herself to helping women escape the same scorn that drove her from London and to raising the innocent children caught in the crossfire. But as much as she desperately wishes to tell Graham everything, the risk of revealing the truth may come at too high a price for those she loves.
(376 pages)
This is an odd mix of a book.
For one thing, it's a grim look at the underside of 19th-century highbrow English society, sparing no punches in its depiction of a world where Kit's project–an orphanage and rehab program to help illegitimate mothers impregnated by nobility–is necessary.
From another angle, it's a love story between a woman traumatized by her past and tied down by duty and a man who . . . well, who doesn't have much of a driving force besides a strong friendship for his friend (whose sister has gone missing, most likely into Kit's program) and a penchant for curiosity that brings them together in the first place.
From still another angle, it's a sappy, idealistic book about believing the best in people and about how there are always honorable people out there, even when it seems like everyone is rotten.
I'll be the first to say that I got sucked into the story and enjoyed a few pleasurable hours reading it. But I'll immediately add that that third point quickly began to grate. You can't have a book about abandoned illegitimate children and then try to argue that humans are inherently good. Further, when Kit blackmails these crummy noblemen fathers into paying child support, this is treated like a morally questionable (to downright evil) action. Why?
No, seriously. Why does everyone get so upset about this? These are obviously, by and large, extremely terrible people who will not do what they are obligated to do unless someone holds their feet over the fire. I have absolutely zero issues with Kit threatening to expose their dirt to the world unless they pay paternity (in fact, my only qualm about this arrangement is that this means she is hiding their criminal activity from the world in exchange for child support they should already be providing!).
I was enjoying the book quite a bit until they started bringing this up as a big moral issue, because I just so completely don't agree with the idea that Kit has done anything wrong. The ending is fine enough, though, and the characters are interesting enough (and the children are definitely cute enough!), so I say definitely do give it a try if you'd like.
Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this novel from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
This is an odd mix of a book.
For one thing, it's a grim look at the underside of 19th-century highbrow English society, sparing no punches in its depiction of a world where Kit's project–an orphanage and rehab program to help illegitimate mothers impregnated by nobility–is necessary.
From another angle, it's a love story between a woman traumatized by her past and tied down by duty and a man who . . . well, who doesn't have much of a driving force besides a strong friendship for his friend (whose sister has gone missing, most likely into Kit's program) and a penchant for curiosity that brings them together in the first place.
From still another angle, it's a sappy, idealistic book about believing the best in people and about how there are always honorable people out there, even when it seems like everyone is rotten.
I'll be the first to say that I got sucked into the story and enjoyed a few pleasurable hours reading it. But I'll immediately add that that third point quickly began to grate. You can't have a book about abandoned illegitimate children and then try to argue that humans are inherently good. Further, when Kit blackmails these crummy noblemen fathers into paying child support, this is treated like a morally questionable (to downright evil) action. Why?
No, seriously. Why does everyone get so upset about this? These are obviously, by and large, extremely terrible people who will not do what they are obligated to do unless someone holds their feet over the fire. I have absolutely zero issues with Kit threatening to expose their dirt to the world unless they pay paternity (in fact, my only qualm about this arrangement is that this means she is hiding their criminal activity from the world in exchange for child support they should already be providing!).
I was enjoying the book quite a bit until they started bringing this up as a big moral issue, because I just so completely don't agree with the idea that Kit has done anything wrong. The ending is fine enough, though, and the characters are interesting enough (and the children are definitely cute enough!), so I say definitely do give it a try if you'd like.
Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this novel from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Join the conversation!