Brontë’s Mistress really fell flat for me. The story had so much potential and while there were aspects that I found compelling, the characters were uninspired and not well rounded. There was very little depth and I was not able to be fully pulled into the story. Mrs. Robinson was not a like-able character. She was extremely needy and melodramatic. I struggled with understanding the attraction that Branwell had with her and vice versa. The relationship progressed with little interaction between the two and I was left feeling like I missed something. I wish the characters were written with more personality and life. This book had potential, it just didn’t work for me.

My thanks to @netgalley and Simon and Schuster for the ARC.

Most stories of the Brontes are set in their home village of Haworth gray and windy on the edge of the moor. There we see Charlotte, Anne, Emily, and Branwell venture into the world to try to earn their way, clinging to miserable jobs in other people's homes, returning home to be together when they can. But, always the exception, brother Branwell returns dismissed, a drunk, opium eater. The suggestion is that he had an affair with the lady of the house where he was a tutor.

"Bronte's Mistress" tells the story of this affair from the point of view of Lydia Robinson, that very lady. Her world has been rocked by the loss of both her youngest daughter and mother. Her husband is behaving coldly. Her son has a new young tutor who is frankly admiring of her.

Finola Austin's novel is fearless. Lydia is hard to like. She's sad, lonely, angry. Relationships at home are spiky. Her daughters are growing up and she is afraid that she will never feel real love, passion. Her relationship with Branwell is messy and will make the rest of her life even messier. Her tragedy is that she briefly found passion in the wrong place and will never find it again.

Austin's extensive research pays off in the best way. She paints a picture of remote estates, people marooned far from outside company, women anxious about their survival in the world when that entirely depends on who they marry, people anxious in upper class homes worried about hanging on to a shred of dignity, employees terrified of losing their positions. Where does newly-awakened Lydia fit, or will she fit anywhere?

"Bronte's Mistress" is a very satisfying novel and a fascinating addition to the Bronte's work, and those fine modern books that imagine the stories from another point of view. This seems to be Austin's first novel and I hope she's hard at work on the next one. She has terrific imagination backed by a gift for research and period expression.

Candace Siegle, Greedy Reader, thanks the publisher and Netgalley for this delicious read.

Story of the alleged affair, between the married Lydia Robinson and Branwell Bronte, her son’s tutor, illuminates “portrait of a courageous, sharp-witted woman who fights to emerge with her dignity intact.” It may not be a woman you’d sympathize with, but it gives voice to a woman who is voiceless and suffocating. She is a complex human character full of passion and worth of attention.

Yorkshire, 1843. Lydia has lost her youngest daughter and mother within the same year. She is dealing with grief, rebelling teenage daughters, scrutinizing mother-in-love, and impassive husband. She craves enjoyment, her husband’s love, his touch, instead she receives coldness.

Miss Anne Bronte is governess to her daughters and now Mr. Branwell Bronte joins the household to be her son’s tutor.

With the appearance of Mr. Bronte, the temperature in the room rises. Once again, she starts feeling the music that she plays and sings. She yearns for something more.

She’s been feeling lonely, without any aspirations, especially when she hears so much about Bronte sisters and their talents. But now, “the youthful fire” ignites inside her.

The use of library by Lydia and Branwell becomes frequent. They share their love for poetry, music, and theater.

She also notices situations in which her husband “would have lectured,” but Mr. Bronte listens and reacts with sympathy. She craves attention, which she can’t get from her husband.

The author paints a vivid portrait of a woman who craves excitement in her life and affection of her husband. Instead, she feels lonely in her marriage, thus making her suffocate. She puts an effort to stay connected with her husband, but receives unresponsiveness in return. She feels unfulfilled in her life and searches to fill that gap. She struggles “between expectation and the wish for more.”

The affair doesn’t consume the whole story. She is a strong woman and there is more to her than this. She is also a mother, who at times struggles with this role. But she is human and tries her best, which is honest best.

I’m in awe with the writing. The combination of developing characters, describing the surroundings, moving the story forward and making it very interesting is superb. This is the style of writing I enjoy very much. Subtle descriptions (not overdone) bringing depth and beauty. “(Instead), there are rolling hills and hidden waterfalls. Miles without fences and only the occasional rock to sit on…”

I find myself in the difficult position of thoroughly disliking everything about this selfish and occasionally cruel protagonist while still sympathizing utterly with the untenable and lonely life she made for herself. Bonus: I was totally unfamiliar with the source material of the scandalous story, which means I can choose to believe every word without troubling to contradict any of the storyteller's indulgences with pesky assumptions.

I wanted to love this book...but it ended up being okay. I think sometimes you have to have a likeable character somewhere in the book that you can feel like you relate to and love...but this book didn't have any characters who were particularly detailed or loveable. They seemed somewhat 2D. The main character, for example, Mrs. Robinson, appeared to want, need and feel affection but was completely incapable of showing it, and it ended up putting me off her. Her husband was dry. Her children were brats. The Brontes were lackluster, sheltered, lived in their fantasy world, and boring with haughty opinions. The depth--even the most unlikeable boring character has to have an interest somewhere--wasn't conveyed in a way that I felt interested.

This well-researched novel about the possible, or likely probable, affair between Bronwell Bronte' and his employer's wife, was extremely interesting. I have never read any of the Bronte's novels, but I will soon now I read about this rather sordid incident. Some of the scenes are more graphic than I expected, so this would not be for all readers. I did find this to be a very readable book that piqued my interest in the Bronte' sisters novels.

This was unbelievably tragic and at times quite difficult to read. But wow, absolutely gorgeous writing and amazing attention to historical detail, especially for Bronte fans. I think I read a blurb that said this book is perfect for English majors and die-hard Angophiles, and I'd have to agree with that assessment. Beautifully written, and an ode to women whose voices we have not known because the society they lived in did not appreciate their voices.