A Cornish Betrothal: A sweeping historical romance for fans of Bridgerton (Paperback)

This magical tale is based on the love and loss of a young woman Amelia who falls in love with Edmund. Edmund is missing, presumed dead after joining the Navy and in time Amelia meets Luke, a young doctor. Whilst she never forgets Edmund she loves Luke and imagines a future with him until a dark twist sees her life thrown up into the air and she believes she will be driven to make a choice about her future. As the drama unfolds we find out not is all as it seems for Amelia or her family. It took a while for me to get into this book but I am glad I persevered with it as the last 50 pages or so were I real treat and I understand now the importance of the setting of the scene. I couldn’t put it down towards the end. I really enjoyed the atmosphere that the author created and it definitely made me want to read more of the books in the series. The cover also looks great!

Amelia Carew is celebrating her twenty fifth birthday in Cornwall, 1798. She is wondering if her new love, Dr Luke Bohenna, will propose marriage, after some time of courtship. There is one consideration; she was in love with another young man until she was told of his death. This historical romance is steep in the atmosphere of a locality familiar with life at sea, with naval officers, sailors of all sorts, a community involved with the insuring ships, receiving goods and helping with those affected by war. This powerful novel has much to say about the place of women in society and the importance of marriage in their lives, but also depicts some women who are unusual in their interests. Amelia is a woman who is very knowledgeable about the healing power of plants, especially herbs. In that respect this book overlaps with another by Pryce, who has obviously gained a wide knowledge of historic medical uses for plants as well poisonous possibilities. A solid knowledge of the area is eident, as well as the transport favoured by the genteel classes of the times. Not that research ever intrudes on the narrative in a negative way, but Pryce has obviously immersed herself in the small details of life in the late eighteenth century. I was very pleased to have the opportunity to read and review this fascinating book. Amelia’s life in her happy family has been marked by her long time love for Edmund Melville, a young neighbour from a large house, son of a baronet. She grew up in the area in the company of Edmund and his cousin Francis. They were deeply in love, but for complicated family reasons Edmund joined the navy, and went away to sea . Since then Amelia was told of his death, which was confirmed by her godfather, and for the past eighteen months she has thrown herself into planting and caring for a herb garden. Distributing medicinal herbs and other charitable works has brought her into contact with a local doctor, and they have discovered a mutual attraction. Just at the point when everyone expects a declaration, Amelia receives a letter from Edmund, who has been a prisoner and very ill. In getting the letter translated Amelia makes another contact. Visiting Edmund’s childhood home she discovers that his mother is very ill and his sister Constance is threatened with an arranged marriage. Amelia becomes determined to keep her promises to Edmund and become his wife, but there is something very disturbing about him on his return beyond his scars and symptoms of trauma. As Amelia struggles to decide if she should honour her promises to Edmund, she cannot forget her love for the devoted Luke. This is a powerful and emotional book which deals with romance in a realistic way as it portrays problems faced when more than one person is attractive. There are some fascinating historical details of naval life in the period, as well as family issues, commercial details and the political realities of French prisoners. The herbal recipes and knowledge are carefully inserted and made relevant as an important part of Amelia’s life. I found this an exciting and fascinating book, full of twists and turns, which kept me guessing throughout. While characters from another book inhabit this story, this is very much Amelia’s narrative as supported by other memorable characters. I recommend this to anyone who is interested in well written historical fiction, especially with the focus on strong women, in an exciting setting.

This is a good saga which is part of a series. This is the only book of the series that I have read. I felt in parts that I perhaps could have done with having read the other books in the series before this one. The love triangle was set up brilliantly from the start of the story and this really hooked me. I really enjoyed the first part of the book but the middle of the story did lose me a little in places. The last third of the book is absolutely where this story shines. The pace of the story really picks up and there are twists and turns on every page. I couldn't read the last part of the book quick enough as I was so eager to see how everything unfolds. I found myself willing Amelia and Luke on and I found the ending satisfying. I just wish Amelia had been a bit less indecisive although the love triangle she found herself in was very complicated and it is clear from her character that she wanted to do the right thing even if that was not what she wanted. All in all I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys historical fiction. I don't think anyone who is not a fan of this genre would have enough to keep them reading through the middle parts of the book.