In the Shelter of Hollythorne House

The Houses of Yorkshire Series, Book 2

By: Sarah E. Ladd

Narrated by: Jude Mason

Length: 8 hrs and 49 mins

Publisher's summary

A young widow faces an uncertain future . . . until an unexpected encounter with her first love gives her heart a second chance in this Regency romance set on the Yorkshire Moors.

England, 1817—Charlotte Grey thought she had seen the last of Anthony Welbourne. Knowing her father would never consent to his only daughter marrying a man he deemed beneath their family’s station, Charlotte bid her final farewell to Anthony and vowed never to turn back. Instead, she honored her father’s wishes by marrying the wealthy Roland Prior.

Determined to put his love for Charlotte in the past, Anthony chose to immerse himself in a life full of meaning—first as a soldier fighting a war overseas, then as a member of William Walstead’s watchmen, a rugged band of men dispatched to deal with perilous situations. Fearless and persistent, he makes it his life’s focus to fight for those who can’t fight for themselves.

When Charlotte’s husband dies unexpectedly, she quickly realizes how blind she’d been to his nefarious ambitions and how many people he’d angered on his relentless quest for wealth. To protect her infant son, Henry, from those who wish him harm, she and the baby flee to Hollythorne House, her childhood home. There Charlotte comes face-to-face with her former love, who has been sent as one of the hired watchman to protect her and Henry until the details of her late husband’s estate are settled.

Anthony’s presence brings back feelings she never expected to have again, and she struggles to trust his intentions. Are the watchmen really looking after Charlotte as they claim—or are they looking to make trouble for Roland’s estate and heir? Despite the constant reminders of their past, Anthony must remain focused on the task he was hired to do. But when new threats emerge and the past collides with the present, both must decide what they are willing to risk for the chance to right old wrongs and carve out a new future . . . together.

• Sweet Regency romance
• Part of the Houses of Yorkshire series but can be read as a stand-alone novel

©2023 Sarah E. Ladd (P)2023 Thomas Nelson

Could not put this book down!!

Love Sarah Ladd's writing. Jude Mason's narrations are akin to Katherine Kellgren, who in my view was The Best audio narrator. This story had a great story, anger, intensity, emotion, romance, and lots of secrets. Looking forward to Sarah's next read.

Slow start

After many chapters in, I was still waiting for it to hook me in. It was mostly storytelling versus immersion; in other words, the narrative explained the story and the characters to us. I’d rather have it unfold interactively between the characters. Having the story told in a linear fashion like a bedtime story was somewhat boring, especially when a lot of it was told through the characters’ minds. Also, Char-lot (as the narrator pronounced her name most of the time, though not always) was often stubborn, immature, and lacking in common sense. The book had a lot of set-up and back-story. It also had a lot of repetition. For example, something the narrative explained would be regurgitated during internal thoughts. On a side note, since her maid was from a prominent family that had been laid low with debt and was a friend, Charlotte should have made the lady’s maid a companion instead of a maid once they were at Hollythorne House. After a while, I skipped to the end. I could not go through all the unfortunate mishaps and misunderstandings that I predicted were going to come. I can see where this story will appeal to readers of this genre and fans of Sarah; it just wasn’t for me.

Excellent read!!

Great story absolutely love the reading. I can’t wait to get the next.
Well worth it ❤️

Nice

Clean and nice. It developed in a short time (the main plot), not a long story-line.

good reader -predictable story

the plot was predictable as expected. I knew who were the " bad cheracters" from the moment they presented themselves.

Another excellent novel Sarah Ladd

Sarah Ladd novels are always one of my favorite writers. Can't hardly wait for her next story.

I enjoyed this a lot!

This was a very enjoyable story. I really treasured the way the main female character was able to overcome and find strength in who she truly was instead of who her abuser told her she was. I was a bit annoyed at the narration…mainly that the narrator kept pronouncing the main male character’s name. She continuously pronounced is as “Antony” instead of “Anthony”.

Wonderful story

I was so glad that Charolette was more concerned over her child than the value of the precious jewels. Very entertaining.

Ladd does not leave a single exhausted trope unexploited.

This one is even more trite than her others. Unless your eyes need the exercise of frequent rolling, save your credit for something worthier.