What I appreciate about Sandra is her diversity as a writer. I have enjoyed everything she has written, from the French Twist Series to the Ladies in Waiting books (see my review for Secret Keeper).
There is a different flavor to each series, but Sandra brings the same passion and zest to every story she undertakes and I love it. I was really looking forward to reading Mist.
To be honest, I was a bit apprehensive when I started the book, because it was SO different from what I am used to reading, and really, from anything that is out there right now. I honestly couldn't decide if I liked it or not.
But I couldn't stop reading. And the deeper I got into the story, the more I began to find the rythym and flow of the words. I found the flavor of the story- and I remembered other books I enjoyed with a similar feel.
Mist of Midnight is mysterious without being dark. There are clues dropped along the way for you to discover, but they leave you with more questions than answers. I did feel the ending was a bit rushed, with the truth finally being told almost at the last moment. Mist really reminded me of Bleak House by Dickens- as a reader you know more is going on, but what is truth? And who is telling it? These questions keep the pages turning. I loved the details about India- and the way Sandra tied the two worlds together.
Mist of Midnight is different. But it's a kind of different that is needed in a market filled with so much of the same. I enjoyed the book, and the reminder of books-gone-by that it stirred in me.
I recommend for fans of Jane Eyre & Victoria Holt books.
Synopsis
In the first of a brand-new series set in Victorian England, a young woman returns home from India after the death of her family to discover her identity and inheritance are challenged by the man who holds her future in his hands.
Rebecca Ravenshaw, daughter of missionaries, spent most of her life in India. Following the death of her family in the Indian Mutiny, Rebecca returns to claim her family estate in Hampshire, England. Upon her return, people are surprised to see her...and highly suspicious. Less than a year earlier, an imposter had arrived with an Indian servant and assumed not only Rebecca's name, but her home and incomes.
That pretender died within months of her arrival; the servant fled to London as the young woman was hastily buried at midnight. The locals believe that perhaps she, Rebecca, is the real imposter. Her home and her father's investments reverted to a distant relative, the darkly charming Captain Luke Whitfield, who quickly took over. Against her best intentions, Rebecca begins to fall in love with Luke, but she is forced to question his motives—does he love her or does he just want Headbourne House? If Luke is simply after the property, as everyone suspects, will she suffer a similar fate as the first “Rebecca”?
A captivating Gothic love story set against a backdrop of intrigue and danger, Mist of Midnight will leave you breathless.
