A Christmas Promise Delivers
Is it too early to read holiday-themed books? Not for me apparently since I just read the last page of Mary Balogh’s A Christmas Promise (on my new Kindle, naturally).
The novel first appeared as a Signet Regency in 1992. In it, the Earl of Falloden inherits heavy debts along with his title and agrees to marry the daughter of a wealthy coal merchant to have his debts cancelled. Eleanor Transome’s father is gravely ill and wants to secure his daughter’s future before he dies.
Both agree to the alliance. He thinks she is a grasping cold commoner who hungers to be a countess while she assumes Falloden is a greedy spendthrift.Of course neither is true!
Balogh is one of my favorites because of her spare, almost poetic, writing style. She deftly manages to evoke deep emotion with fewer words. Her writing brings to mind Willa Cather’s sparse yet evocative style.
My only pet peeve is a meaningless one really. The cover shows a couple ice skating. I don’t recall that happening in the book. Am I wrong? If you’ve read A Christmas Promise and do remember such a scene, let me know!
And now for the shameless plug…
Voting continues in the Kensington Brava/RT Writing With the Stars contest. I am one of eight remaining finalists in the national competition. The winner will be published.
But I can’t get there without lots of support because I am up against some very talented writers. (Hopefully, one day we’ll all be published!)
Click here to check out all of the entries. I hope you will consider voting for my manuscript, Seducing Charlotte, a historical romance set against the backdrop of the dawning Industrial Revolution.
I promise voting is super quick and easy. You can click in, vote and be done in under a minute. No registration is required. Thank you!
