In the Shelter of Hollythorne House by Sarah E. Ladd Review

 Good Morning Bookish Lovelies :)

I pray today finds you all doing well, and I'm excited to welcome you (or welcome you back) to The Preppy Book Princess!

I'm Kirby, and I'm so thankful you're here.

The Preppy Book Princess has been a pet project of mine since September of 2015, and I continue to adore getting to share my love of fiction and non-fiction titles with you all.

My all time favorite genre is Christian fiction, and it makes up the majority of books I read.

Today's title is another upcoming Christian fiction release, and I'm looking forward to sharing all about this one with you all.

Keep reading down below for my full review.

In the Shelter of Hollythorne House by Sarah E. Ladd:

Source: Publisher via NetGalley

Publisher: Thomas Nelson

Publication Date: July 11th, 2023

Genre: Christian Fiction/Historical Fiction

Synopsis: The Houses of Yorkshire

Synopsis:

A young widow faces an uncertain future . . . until an unexpected encounter with her first love gives her heart a second chance in this Regency romance set on the Yorkshire Moors.

England, 1817—Charlotte Grey thought she had seen the last of Anthony Welbourne. Knowing her father would never consent to his only daughter marrying a man he deemed beneath their family’s station, Charlotte bid her final farewell to Anthony and vowed never to turn back. Instead, she honored her father’s wishes by marrying the wealthy Roland Prior.

Determined to put his love for Charlotte in the past, Anthony chose to immerse himself in a life full of meaning—first as a soldier fighting a war overseas, then as a member of William Walstead’s watchmen, a rugged band of men dispatched to deal with perilous situations. Fearless and persistent, he makes it his life’s focus to fight for those who can’t fight for themselves.

When Charlotte’s husband dies unexpectedly, she quickly realizes how blind she’d been to his nefarious ambitions and how many people he’d angered on his relentless quest for wealth. To protect her infant son, Henry, from those who wish him harm, she and the baby flee to Hollythorne House, her childhood home. There Charlotte comes face-to-face with her former love, who has been sent as one of the hired watchman to protect her and Henry until the details of her late husband’s estate are settled.

Anthony’s presence brings back feelings she never expected to have again, and she struggles to trust his intentions. Are the watchmen really looking after Charlotte as they claim—or are they looking to make trouble for Roland’s estate and heir? Despite the constant reminders of their past, Anthony must remain focused on the task he was hired to do. But when new threats emerge and the past collides with the present, both must decide what they are willing to risk for the chance to right old wrongs and carve out a new future . . . together.

(synopsis from Netgalley)

My Review:

In the Shelter of Hollythorne House is a wonderful second chance romance within the historical Christian fiction genre that provides readers a blissful escape to the Yorkshire Moors in 1817. 

Charlotte and Anthony were head over heels for each other in their young adult days, but familial conflict kept them from their own happily ever after. A few years later, Charlotte finds herself a widow after her husband dies unexpectedly, and she'll stop at nothing to keep her infant son safe and protected from her late husband's nefarious business dealings. When her late husband's brother insists on having guards accompany her and her son to her family's estate, she's not prepared for one of said guards to be Anthony. He's just as surprised as she is, and while old feelings start to emerge, a sinister mystery is unfolding all around them, and it will take them working together to get to the bottom of everything before it's too late.

In typical Sarah E. Ladd fashion, the writing was whimsical and beautiful, and the reader got to feel like they were right there experiencing the moors with Charlotte, Anthony, and baby Henry. The whole novel has a sinister overlay that made the mystery seem that much more realistic, and even though this one is over 300 pages, it felt like I breezed right through the majority of it.

With realistic character development, a well rounded mystery, and a wonderful swoon worthy but clean second chance romance, In the Shelter of Hollythorne House is another delightful historical romance from Sarah E. Ladd, and one that I ended up enjoying immensely.

Final Rating: 4/5.

I'd definitely recommend this one to anyone who is a fan of historical romance, Christian fiction, or second chance romances. I appreciated that it could be read as a stand alone since even though I had read the first title in the series, I didn't actually realize they were even part of the same series until after I finished this one.

Thanks so much to Thomas Nelson for allowing me to advance read and review this one!

I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary advance reader copy of this novel from the publisher (Thomas Nelson) via NetGalley. I was not required to give a positive review. All thoughts and opinions are my own, and this is my honest review. 

Thanks for reading today guys! I pray you all have a great rest of your day :)