When her father dies and leaves her completely destitute, Marion can think of only one thing to do–make a new life for herself. Commencing a life of duplicity, Marion transforms herself into Mary Wood–governess. In possession of a forged letter of recommendation and cloaked in the anonymity of her new identity, she enters a life of self-imposed servitude as teacher and caretaker of young Miss … Miss Caroline Jonquil of Farland Meadows. Her idyllic daydream vision of life at the Meadows is dashed when she finds a child desperately in need of hope and a cold and sorrowful home haunted by the past. With her characteristic sunny disposition, Marion casts her spell upon the household and slowly brings to life the long-forgotten joy of those within.
Layton Jonquil is a man tormented by the lies surrounding the death of his late wife, but he cannot deny his growing attraction for the beautiful governess whose goodness and optimism have touched his dormant heart. Their connection grows ever stronger, and despite the impropriety of harboring feelings for a servant, Layton’s heart whispers that this is the woman he’s destined to love. But when Layton’s fears about the past become too much to bear and the falsehoods in which they are entangled threaten to shatter his and Marion’s blossoming attachment, will true love conquer all?
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This was my first Sarah Eden book and after finishing DROPS OF GOLD I went on to read 8 more of her books, back to back. Her books are peopled with likeable, heroic characters, people you root for, and her plots are beautifully crafted. She is an incredible writer. Highly recommend!
one of my favorite Sarah Eden books. Excellent.
Another lovely regency romance. I like the Jonquil brothers more and more; Layton is quite a likable character (this book even makes me like Philip more, who barely makes an appearance in the final few chapters). Marion is a delightful character, and her cheerfulness definitely makes her approachable and likable. I also like the nod to Miles from “For Elise”. I don’t know which book came first, but it was fun to realize I already knew the character of Cousin Miles. The romance progresses a little quickly, but that seems typical—and truthfully, I love the clean, unfettered, heartfelt romances in these books. All in all I really liked it.
(Side note: when listening to an audio book, the quality of the reader can make a big difference in the entire impression. Even when the story is good, if the reader terrible, it’s hard to like the book. I didn’t love the reader of this book. She’s not terrible, but it can color ones perception of the book.)
The two main characters in this book are just delightful. Layton with his guilt and secrets; Marion with her own set. I simply love Layton’s daughter and the laughter she brings to the book. Best of all, while this book is a stand alone novel, if you read the one that comes before it you get to revisit favorite characters. Of all the Jonquil books I do believe this is the story that spoke to my heart about healing during grief. A simply endearing love story!
*This book is a clean read: no swearing, no gross violence, and nothing more than sweet/tender kisses.
Sarah M Eden never ceases to amaze me. Eden writes stories that are touching and leaves you wanting more. You come away with new friends and a desire to be a better person. Drops of Gold is the third book in Sarah M Eden’s Jonquil series! I was so happy to read that Layton had a chance at a happy ending.
I love how the title fits the story, it is always so fun to read books and see how the title displays the story. Drops of Gold was such a lovely written book that talks of grief and learning to live again.
Layton was a broken hero, he was struggling to learn how to live again. His family thought that he was weighed down by grief, but he knew that there was something more that was stopping him. He loved his daughter, but he was struggling to raise her because there were days when he didn’t know how to keep on going. Layton had to learn to let go of his grief and trust in his family and Marion. He had to take the steps to live again.
Marion was a joy to read about, she was so full of life. Life had not been easy for her, but she had learned to look on the bright side. Although she did not understand what Layton and his daughter were going through, she wanted to help them learn to look for the drops of gold in life. Marion was a strong character, she loved fiercely and she wanted to help others see the joys of life. However Marion also had to learn how to trust Layton with the truth of why she came to work for him.
Marion and Layton had to learn to live again after grief. It was sweet to read about their romance growing. I also enjoyed reading about Marion caring for Caroline. Caroline was such a sweet girl and I adored her relationship with her family. It was also fun to read Caroline’s nicknames for Layton’s brothers. And of course seeing the rest of the family was amazing!
Drops of Gold was such a sweet and touching book! I was interested the whole time and I couldn’t put it down. I would definitely recommend it, the whole Jonquil books have been stunning and I am excited to read more!
Oh my! Three to four stars one for the adorable plot moppet, Caroline, melting my cold bitter heart.
This ended up very sweet like the other Sarah Eden I read, but a little lacking.
The relationship between Mary and Caroline is very genuine and sweet and makes the book for me. It’s the relationship between the waffling beta hero with a Great Big Secret that falls down a little despite the chemistry between him and the heroine.
I would have liked to see more decisive action from him as well as more on page interaction between him and his six brothers. The nostalgia the heroine and hero delivered regarding their respective parents was sweet as well.
I’m not sure how many times I have either read or listened to this book. At least three times but I think perhaps a few more times than that. Rereading the series now though. This one was never my favorite in the series though I think it was the first one I read? Not sure now. I know I read them out of order the first time around. Anyway, I liked it well enough to keep reading the series and the series has become a favorite of mine. Somehow, as I read the book this time, I loved it more than I ever did before. The first time through I thought it took a long time for Layton to come around and it bothered me that he wasn’t willing to risk the displeasure of society for love but this time that didn’t bother me at all. I still felt sad for Marion since Layton is a bit of a dork and doesn’t explain himself yet assumes people know things anyway. I appreciated each of their stories more than I previously had. And their love story felt more swoony to me. And I ADORE Caroline. Anytime she is in the dialog I find myself grinning. I can’t help it. I wish there was more Caroline in all the books. I do love those Jonquils…
My one big complaint is with the cover. It is beautiful and all BUT the book always talks about Marion’s fiery red hair but the model on the cover has really dark hair. Almost black. No red in sight. I really think they should match the cover better to the story. So come on Covenant. You can do better than that.
No sex, language or violence
One of my very favorite books! Love all of Sarah Eden’s books!!
Lovely. Well written. I love the whole series and can’t wait to read more from Sarah M. Eden
Loved this twist on the classic governess gothic with a hero to love and a heroine you can’t help but root for. Looking forward to reading about all the other brothers in the series!
I’m officially a huge fan of Sarah Eden! It’s been a long time since I’ve sat down and read 4 books from one author and loved each and every one of them. Especially from romance authors. I will usually like one or two of their books and give a “meh” to the others, but I have to say I’ve enjoyed her books enough that I’m probably going to go out and buy a couple of her $10 books. That might not sound like much of a recommendation, but for me it is. I tend to borrow a lot from the library (a LOT) or from friends or scouring the internet for discounts. When I do break down and put money on a book I’ve never read before, it tends to be on the cheap side of things ($5 is usually my limit). So, when I say that I’m ready to gamble and plop down some serious cash for her books, it is a pretty high recommendation from me.
I read this series out of order and while you can do that without losing anything, I would suggest reading them in order. Eden does a great job of tying them all together, so each story is twined with the others, but they still stand on their own and can be read as individual books. As you read each one, you get a chance to revisit some of the other characters you’ve fallen in love with. Each subsequent book is like an epilogue for the previous story. But still, they are individual and can be read in any order without feeling lost. They inform each other, but are not dependent on them.
I loved this story. The heroine is plucky and upbeat, without being perfect or plastic. The hero is brooding and broken, but I still like him. This is just a fun, sweet read.
This book was a little different from the typical Sarah M. Eden book. Don’t get me wrong, it was still a nice and clean Romance (non-religious).
The themes were a bit darker though as it dived into depression, suicide, guilt, PTSD, and death.
It of course had a happy (predictable) ending, it just wasn’t as much of a page turner for me. I’m enjoying reading about the Jonquil brothers though and will continue the series.
One of my all time favorite books!
A beautiful, sweet, clean, well written story. It kept my attention and has a great love story. I look forward to reading more of her books.
I ready enjoy all of this author’s books and her efforts to write an aithentic Regency-era book. Characters are so likeable, people I’d like to meet 🙂
enjoyable