Captain Gideon Whitlock never thought to see the woman he spent one unforgettable night with again. His years at war have changed him into a different man—one he feels certain she could never bring herself to love. Sylvia Whitlock has moved on from being abandoned the man she eloped with following a reckless night of passion. Telling herself she doesn’t want or need him, she dedicates her life to … life to healing the wounded, traumatized soldiers of the Crimean War as a nurse.
When Gideon’s sudden appearance at the home for soldiers where Sylvia has taken a new position, they will both be forced to face their past. They must also consider what their future will be, and whether the pain of their separation will prove enough to keep them apart for good.
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I picked this up among the sale offerings on amazon. I had not noticed Elise Marion’s books before, but after reading this I will read more of this Men at Arms series.
The story line is a nice change of pace in period and topic for me. Sylvia has made a life for herself, assuming Gideon did not want to come back to her. Gideon’s battling his demons and memories after surviving a horrific battle. Quite convenient they re-meet at a convalescent home for soldiers.
All around I felt this was well done – pacing, dialogues, and conclusion.
This is a superb story which has been well narrated by Sarah Kempton.
I too have lived through a very traumatic time in my life and I know how difficult it is to find the first little glimmer of sunshine so I totally felt for our hero, Gideon with his problem after his stint in the war.
Because of his PTSD problem, his wife, Sylvia believes he has abandoned her so when they meet up again she is livid and lets him know that in no uncertain terms but she doesn’t know why he has avoided her and slowly, as the story unfolds, she learns of his problem.
The story tells of how they work together to rebuilt the trust on both sides. The original love is still there and they work on all their difficulties that they need to overcome in order to have a second chance in love together.
Beautifully written, I felt every single emotional tug and am definitely recommending both the book and the audio version.
I requested and listened to a free copy of the audiobook and my voluntary and unbiased review is recorded above.
Learning to love again.
An English Captain on his way to the Crimean War meets a Scottish lass at an inn in Scotland. It’s love at first site and they marry. One night together forms a bond, but after two years of correspondence she doesn’t hear another word. One year later they meet again at a hospital for soldiers wounded physically and mentally. Scarred, afraid of physical contact and repeated violent nightmares, he’s stayed away from his wife. She’s willing to do anything to help him as long as he loves her. An excellent story of healing and the power of love.
Really good second chance at love story. Ms. Marion handles the issue of PTSD very well. I received an ARC of this book.
This book is a mixture of history, romance, more history, more romance, some very sensual heat, and a great story.
What I was most impressed with while I was reading the ARC of this story is that the subject matter was very relevant to today, and gave me a glimpse inside the Victorian’s view of mental illness and what is now known as PTSD. The Captain of the story is written with such empathy I defy anyone to dislike him for anything while they’re reading. He captured my imagination in the first chapter, and his characterization pleased me throughout.
A caution – if you are the type of person to read a prologue and stop reading if it doesn’t appeal to you, you may have a problem with this book. The prologue speak of what contemporary readers call “insta-love”, and if you are one of those readers who dislikes that trope, don’t let that discourage you from reading this book. By the time you get through Chapter 1, you will understand that the love the Captain and his wonderful Sylvia have is lasting and strong. Strong enough, you see, to survive the Captain after he’s returned wounded from the Battle of Balaclava.
When I say this book is about history, it truly is. The Crimean War is the centerpiece of this story, and no, there’s no dry history inside. But if you read to learn, then you’ll accidentally learn things about the Light Dragoons (a.k.a the Light Brigade). The Light Dragoons were decimated in the Battle of Balaclava and this book is about one man who returned from that war. By the way The Light Dragoons exist today and are based in Yorkshire, England.
I enjoyed this book, for all of the reasons I mentioned above. It is a story that centers around a huge part of British History in the Victorian era; a love story with just enough sensual steam to make it interesting; and it shows the Victorian’s opinions on mental health and how alienists treated what is now known as PTSD. Color me impressed that all of that is written in what I would call a novella, which is part of a series about the Crimean War and the love stories that could have come out of it.