The Elusive Miss Ellison, by Carolyn Miller

The Elusive Miss Ellison: A fiction novel

Here we are you guys, our second book review for March! We kicked the month off just a few days ago with sharing about the non-fiction title “Tightropes and Teeter-Totters”. A great book full of practical ways we moms can balance our busy life! This time we are in for a fun fiction novel to lighten the mood a bit. Don’t forget we have several move books in review this month and I can’t wait to share those too, but first you know the drill. Let’s get the legal disclaimer out of the way so we can dive in!

*Disclaimer: I was given a complimentary copy of this book to read and share here with you. All opinions in this review are 100 percent my own honest thoughts. 

About the Book:

“Handsome appearance counts for naught unless matched by good character and actions.”  That’s the firm opinion of not-so-meek minister’s daughter Lavinia Ellison. So even though all the other villagers of St. Hampton Heath are swooning over the newly returned seventh Earl of Hawkesbury, she is not impressed. If a man won’t take his responsibilities seriously and help those who are supposed to be able to depend on him, he deserves no respect from her. In Lavinia’s pretty, gray eyes, Nicholas Stamford is just as arrogant and reckless as his brother who stole the most important person in Livvie’s world.

Nicholas is weighed down by his own guilt and responsibility, by the pain his careless brother caused, and by the legacy of war, he’s just left. This quick visit home to St. Hampton Heath will be just long enough to ease a small part of that burden. Asking him to bother with the lives of the villagers when there’s already a bailiff on the job is simply too much to expect.

That is, until the hoydenish, intelligent, and very opinionated Miss Ellison challenges him to see past his pain and pride. With her angelic voice in his head, he may even be beginning to care. But his isn’t the only heart that needs to change.

These two lonely hearts may each have something the other needs. But with society’s opposition, ancestral obligations, and a shocking family secret, there may be too many obstacles in their way.

Fans of Georgette Heyer, Lori Wick, and Julie Klassen will enjoy the spirited exchanges between the bluestocking minister’s daughter and the bruised war hero as they move past pride and presumption to a humbled appreciation of God’s grace and the true strength of love.

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My Personal Review and Thoughts:

When I started reading the book, I felt it started out a slightly slow in the beginning it picked up quickly and it certainly didn’t disappoint. The lead female character Lavina Ellison was charming, kind and loved taking care of the less fortunate in her village. As the book begins she is living with her father, the local minister when she learns Nicolas Hawkesbury is the new Earl of her village.

Nicolas Hawkesbury is not a stranger to Lavina, in fact, he is the brother of someone who caused her and her family much grief in the past. As we can imagine she is not happy to see the Earl return and has no problem sharing her feisty opinions of him with others and the Earl himself. I loved the interactions between these two characters. Nicholas is a man who leads a privileged life and is a bit self-centered in his thinking, a trait he learned no doubt from his mother whom we meet in the book as well. The tensions and witty banter between the two lead characters kept me interested and wanting to read more about their encounters.  As the book progresses tragedy and misunderstandings happen and these two find themselves working through the events while trying to find forgiveness for each other as well as themselves.

Carolyn Miller did a wonderful job with the character development in my opinion. I fell instantly in love with the kind-hearted Lavina and Nickolas is one of those characters that even though they display some not so promising characteristics, you can’t help but root for him and the man he could be. I loved how the book was a great balance of a sweet slightly predictable love story balanced with some surprising twists. The book is a delight to read and I would recommend it to anyone that enjoys books with historical and inspirational stories. The Elusive Miss Ellison is book 1 in the author’s new series “A Legacy of Grace” and I am looking forward to reading the next two books in this series.

About the Author: Carolyn Miller

Carolyn Miller lives in New South Wales, Australia, with her husband and four children. A longtime lover of Regency romance, Carolyn’s novels have won a number of RWA and ACFW contests. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and Australasian Christian Writers

Keri Bucci

I am a southern girl through and through that loves to laugh, cook, read and spend time with family. My passions outside of home schooling my son are ministering to those in need and creating art in the kitchen! Every day is an adventure in our little house and I wouldn’t trade it or the chance to share here with you for anything!