I read historical romances quite a bit. However, the setting of this one, America at the end of the Revolutionary War, is not a time I visit often. I am so glad I picked this up. I truly felt transported to this place and time. Laura Frantz's writing was wonderful and I loved the slow burn romance between Seamus and Sophie.

This book seemed to drag until about half way through and then it finally picked up and became engrossing. A cute, sweet read.

Laura Frantz is an incredible author. The way she weaves a story draws you in and hooks you from the very beginning. This book is no different. This is the post Revolutionary War story of Sophie who helps Seamus with his daughter. The story is not that simple. Frantz is a master storyteller. This is definitely a must read book!

Laura Frantz’s book “The Mistress of Tall Acre” was a really great story. I normally am not a great fan of post-Revolutionary War sagas, but this one was well-written and the characters quite believable. The story line was not one that I’d come across before. That a decorated officer in the Patriot Army was forced to plead for custody of his child, after his wife was declared dead and a gravesite exists to prove it…then shows up after the conflict has ended to try to become wife and mother again was unique and very curious.

After spiriting his daughter away from his wife’s family in the dead of night, Seamus Ogilvy brings her home to Tall Acre to live. Lily Cate misses her aunt and does not know her father because he was away at war most of her short life. Lily Cate makes friends with the neighbor Sophie Menzies. Sophie’s father was a Tory living in rebel territory and the townspeople do not let Sophie forget it. She is ostracized, even though her sentiments as a Patriot are overlooked.

Seamus decides to ask Sophie to help him take care of Lily Cate since the little girl has become quite attached to her. They both harbor feelings for one another and eventually they marry. Their life is torn apart by the return of Seamus first wife, who has miraculously returned from the dead and is set on returning to her prior position as mistress of Tall Acre. What follows involves the reader in the legal aspects and insecurities of the new Republic.

I was captivated by the descriptions of life in that time period. I was also dismayed at the actions of townspeople at the conclusion of the war. “Forgive and forget” is not that easily achieved.

This author is an auto-read for me and many of my patrons.

Sometimes you come across a novel on your TBR at JUST the perfect time. Don’t get me wrong, my favorite genre is mystery/thriller, but sometimes you just want a change. “The mistress of Tall Acre” filled a need for me. I loved it!

A delightful cross between “Jane Eyre” and “Gone with the wind”, this historical love story was well researched, and kept me turning the pages despite other things I had to do.

Set in the years directly following the American Revolution, the novel is set on a five-thousand acre Virginian plantation – Tall Acre.

The male protagonist, Seamus Ogilvy, served as a patriot under the direction of General George Washington. By the end of the eight years of fighting and unimaginable hardship he too has garnered the rank of General. He returns to Tall Acre to find his plantation has suffered much over the years. His fragile wife, Anne, is dead, and his little daughter, Lily Cate is living with Anne’s sister in Williamsburg. When he goes there to bring her back home he is turned away, so he takes the tiny girl by force in dead of night.

Lily Cate is afraid of her father. She has no memory of him, and she is squeamish about his war injuries. A lonely little girl, she wanders the grounds of Tall Acre. This is how she meets Sophie Menzies, a young woman who lives in the neighboring estate. Sophie too is desperately lonely. She has suffered much during the war. Her dear mother has died, her brother never returned from the fighting, and her father was a ‘turncoat’ who sided with the Loyalists and absconded back to Scotland. Now it is just her and two loyal servants living on her 1000 acre estate. Food is scarce and money even more so.

Sophie and Lily Cate strike up a friendship. Seamus meets the neighbor his little daughter talks about non-stop. He finds her stalwart and kindly, and he is grateful for the attention she pays to his little girl. She has brought play and joy back into Lily Cate’s life.

Sophie is shunned by the townsfolk and neighbors due to her father’s political leanings. She cannot find work, and her estate is to be sold for back taxes. Seamus comes to her aid in exchange for some secretarial duties and time spent with Lily Cate.

Though Sophie comes to love General Ogilvy, she is very intimidated by the war hero that he is, and she feels repulsed by the fact that he is a slaveholder. It is only Lily Cate who brings any joy to her life.

Sophie, and several other characters in the novel were Scottish immigrants. I was fascinated to come across many Scots terms while reading such as: glaikit, braw, meirleach, peely-wally, camshauchle, loosome, pinchbeck, and the like.

The relationship of Sophie and Seamus has many trials and tribulations, but the author focuses on the story of the magnificent “Tall Acre” so much that the book doesn’t seem overly ‘mushy’ or ‘romantic’. Under Sophie’s influence, Seamus arranges ‘manumission‘ for all fifty-two of Tall Acre’s slaves. The story also focuses on the many servants (who were once slaves) and briefly touches on their social conditions.

I was also very interested to read of the social customs and clothing worn during this time period. Also touched upon was the lack of medical care and the reliance on home potions and remedies.

Was it well researched? Meticulously. Was the story predictable? Yes it was. But then, readers who like historical romance expect predictability. (though there was one’twist’ that I didn’t see coming) The characters fairly leapt off the page, and the plot was didactic and well as entertaining. Details of the restoration needed after the Revolution, and the political climate of the time, were fascinating to read about. It was Christian fiction, but not ‘preachy’. Religion was a bigger part of people’s lives in the 18th century, so the Christian aspect just seemed a necessary part of the story.

Every once in a while we must take a step back to a time when the world was vast. When a trip of thirty miles was undertaken with hesitation. Before telephones, cars, and modern comforts. A time when folk had to be more self-sufficient, and self reliant. Reading books set in this time period provides us with needed reminders of how life once was…

It was with sadness, that I read the last page and left 18th century Virginia to return to the present. I guess that is testament enough as to how much I enjoyed it.