Her Rags-To-Riches Christmas

Good story. I thoroughly enjoyed the romance aspect, which was enhanced by the setting. I have seen very few historical romance stories set in Australia during the early years, and this one was very well done.

George has just arrived back in Sydney after being away for three years. Although he enjoyed his time in England and the countries he visited during his return trip, he missed his home. As he’s walking away from the ship, he hears the terrified screams of a woman and doesn’t hesitate. What he found was a young female convict being ruthlessly whipped, a sight he couldn’t stomach. He purchased her indenture on the spot and took her home to his farm to work there.

Alice was convicted of a crime she didn’t commit and transported to Australia. The journey was wretched, and her time since arrival was not much better. Between the man in England who lured her away from home and into trouble, and the men on the ship and land, Alice has lost all inclination to trust a man ever again. She was extremely wary of George’s offer to work out her sentence on his farm.

I liked both Alice and George. Alice is a survivor and has far more inner strength than she realizes. Her wariness around George was understandable. I loved that she dared to make her position clear when her suspicions made her think George had nefarious intentions. Her first few days are a bit rough as she adjusts to the change in her circumstances. George is a wonderful man. Born and raised in Australia, he loves his land and his country. He is also a man with a kind, nurturing, and protective heart, as shown by his collection of stray and rescued animals.

I enjoyed seeing the development of the relationship between George and Alice. There are sparks between them from the start that both try to resist. Alice, because of her distrust of men in general, and George, because Alice is an employee. I loved how George understood why Alice was so prickly and was amused by her more often than not. Because of his acceptance of the difference in their positions, George goes for the friendship option with Alice. I loved seeing him show her the beauties of his homeland and work on building her trust. There were some funny moments involving George, Alice, and unexpected encounters with animals. There were also some very moving moments as Alice regains some of her ability to trust. It was also easy to see that the feelings between them grew stronger. I ached for Alice, who believed that she was nowhere near good enough for him. As she began to realize the depth of her feelings for him and suspect his, she was also haunted by a secret from her past. I hurt for both of them when she finally confessed that secret, though I also wanted to smack George for his reaction. The ending was quite nerve-wracking until they found their way back to each other. The epilogue was terrific. I liked seeing where they were a few years down the road, especially the changes in Alice.

I also liked seeing George’s two friends, Sam and Ben, again, along with their wives. The close friendship among the three men is fantastic. I loved the way that they teased each other, and also supported each other. I loved that each of them had excellent advice for George, even though he wasn’t always willing to listen to it. I also liked their kindness and support for Alice and her relationship with George. I also loved their wives, Georgina and Francesca. They were so down-to-earth in spite of their society backgrounds. It was great to see the way they took to Alice and their parts in bringing Alice and George together.