“Wonderful historical fiction! Great accuracy and detailed research, with a full-blooded, gripping story running (and sometimes leaping) from page to page. Excellent read– and even better, the beginning of a series!” DIANA GABALDON #2 – Best 1700s Historical Fiction (Listopia) Following the death of their father, Beth’s brother Richard returns from the army to claim his share of the family … of the family estate. However, Beth’s hopes of a quiet life are dashed when Richard, dissatisfied with his meagre inheritance and desperate for promotion, decides to force her into a marriage for his military gain. And he will stop at nothing to get his way. Beth is coerced into a reconciliation with her noble cousins in order to marry well and escape her brutal brother. She is then thrown into the glittering social whirl of Georgian high society and struggles to conform. The effeminate but witty socialite Sir Anthony Peters offers to ease her passage into society and she is soon besieged by suitors eager to get their hands on her considerable dowry. Beth, however, wants love and passion for herself, and to break free from the artificial life she is growing to hate. She finds herself plunged into a world where nothing is as it seems and everyone hides behind a mask. Can she trust the people professing to care for her? The first in the series about the fascinating lives of beautiful Beth Cunningham, her family and friends during the tempestuous days leading up to the Jacobite Rebellion of 1745, which attempted to overthrow the Hanoverian King George II and restore the Stuarts to the British throne. Join the rebellion of one woman and her fight for survival in… The Jacobite Chronicles.
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Well, I did enjoy the book with such a great ending!
Theresa
Loved the first book so much that I bought the rest of the books in the series!
It is hard to hear the customs of that day. Wonder what people will think of customs?
Loved the historical background and so thankful there was very little profanity! Was very easy to lose myself in the story line, very well written!
My first read of Julia Brannan and will gladly follow up with the next one. Loved the historical lead-in that set the scene so nicely. The characters are easy to visualize and the plot well laid out. Can’t wait to see what happens next!
I read this book twice; Riveted and mystified then the second time to discover “how the author did that”. Kept me guessing and made me think. Stayed with me long after I finished, and made me desperately want more. Not once did these characters give away their secrets, but swept me headlong into 17th century England.
Slow start, but you’ll want to track down book two.
It’s regency romance but darker with a lot of unexpected twists. Very original! I’m only giving it 4 stars since it ends on a cliffhanger.
Loved this book and the characters. A must read.
I really liked the fast pace of this book. It held my attention all the way through. Everyone’s reaction to Sir Anthony was very funny. I Also ordered the next book in the series.
I downloaded Mask of Duplicity when it was offered for free. I realize these offers are to get one interested in a story so that they will want to purchase the next installments. I was totally taken in by this story, and have since purchased #2 and #3 and have yet to be disappointed. Love the characters and the time period in this very well-written story.
I wish I could get the next book of this series.
Delightfully entertaining!
The book is wonderfully written and the characters are well developed and believable. The plot is very different from anything I have read in the regency romance line, which I have been reading exclusively for the last six months.
The two main characters are Elizabeth (Beth) and Lord Anthony. Beth’s father has passed away and she is running the family manor and taking care of the servants. There isn’t much money, but they are surviving. Her step-brother, Richard, comes back into the picture, and the monies left to him won’t buy his next military commission. After refusing to go to her estranged cousins for help, Richard in his anger tries to rape Beth. She pulls a knife on him and threatens to unman him, and so an unease truce is hatched. They go to their cousins, and Richard and her uncle devise a plan to marry Beth off for her immense dowry and the promise of her husband to buy Richard’s next two commissions and pay for living expenses.
Lord Anthony is a flamboyant, gossiping, flop who wears too much lavender and wears too much lilac perfume. Beth automatically is turned off by him, but when faced with marrying Lord Anthony or the sickly old Lord Redburn, she chooses Lord Anthony. But Lord Anthony is not all that he seems.
The first of 5 of The Jacobite Chronicles. Great historical fiction. This book makes you want to get the second book right away.
From the time I picked the first in this 6 book series, I could NOT put it down. The historical facts and timeline are great and it gives you a wonderful view of the Jacobite uprising in 1745. This is a very well researched and well written story that does not drag anywhere in 6 books. Thank you, Ms. Brannan
Love this entire series!
First in a series. Read all!
Another wonderful series set in a time in history that I knew little about. I appreciate how the author has notes before and after the story to show how history was actually included in the book. The characters make you root for them. I’ve made it though 4 volumes and look forward to the conclusion of the story in book 5.
I liked it enough to continue the six book series. Couldn’t wait to see what happened next!