The Silent Governess: (A Historical Regency Romance Novel)

6624391The Silent Governess was only silent for a time. A young woman strikes the man strangling her mother with a fire iron. Fearing she had killed him the mother sent her away and told her not to return, that she would find her daughter when it was safe. While fleeing she encountered some very 'shady' men plus a group of gentlemen hunting. Neither were happy with her. Later she encountered uplifting people along with the negative sort. She was imprisoned, injured and was hired as a servant. All she wanted to do was to teach school.The flow of the events and attitudes were consistent and smooth. The reader never felt the need to skip pages. It was a large novel but very well written and connected prior events to the present-tense in a smooth flow. Parents can feel free to allow their YA to read this tale. There is not anything contained within to corrupt one's mind.The characters and situations were well formulated giving the reader a sense of actuality. One could easily envision himself/herself there.My review of this book give it a strong Five Stars rating.*I won this in a Goodread's giveaway but would have eagerly purchased it. My thanks goes out to those who so generously offer these books for others to have the opportunity to win.

There are no words. (Now watch me prattle on in typical fangirl fashion. ;) Yes, I just used the word 'prattle'.)The Silent Governess is such a treasure! It has everything a historical fiction fan could want! Mystery, suspense, contention, suspicion, some humor, light (clean) romance, family, friends, loyalty, betrayal- lots of unexpected plot twists and discoveries!Trust and the value of family are the major themes in this story, and they are proved over and over to our confused and searching heroine (and hero).This book was brim full of fun and lovable characters (at least, you think so. >:)) and I especially loved reading about Olivia's young charges- Audrey and Andrew.There really isn't too much you can say about this story without giving something away...so go read it for yourself! It's incredible and totally worth your time. I found myself drawing out the last chapters over as many hours as I could, to keep it in my life- knowing I'll always wish I could read it for the first time again. (Which makes me REALLY glad her books are so long! :D)I'm really looking forward to reading more from Julie Klassen! How can one author continue to completely surprise her readers with each and every new and unique plot?! I'm not sure, but I've been told it's true that she does, so I can't wait to see for myself.

Many reviews give a basic synopsis of the book, so I'll just tell you what my general impressions were: I really liked this book. I am a fan of historical fiction, and I have a soft spot for a romantic story line. This novel satisfied in both areas. Admittedly, the plot is driven by some very convenient coincidences - I mean, just for one example, what if Olivia had fled from home in the opposite direction from the one she chose in the story? Also, the initial reasoning for her being held at Brightwell Manor was a bit flimsy, in my opinion. However, these things aside, I enjoyed getting to know the characters and I thought there was a good amount of growth in the both Olivia and Edward as the story unfolded. Also, the author did a wonderful job setting the scenes and giving insider glimpses into the inner workings of a large English estate of its time. The quotations at the beginning of each chapter about the service profession were interesting and helped set a tone for the attitudes of this era. My only major complaint would be that there is not much time given to Olivia's mother. Her backstory is what ties all the various characters' lives together, but we hardly experience her directly in the main narrative. I would have liked to know at least a little bit of what she thought about everything that was happening in her daughter's life. Still, I would say that, overall, this was an enjoyable read, and I'm glad that I picked it up.

This is the fifth book I've enjoyed by Julie Klassen and my previous favorite was The Maid of Fairbourne Hall and second favorite was Girl in the Gatehouse. This one is definitely edging out "Gatehouse" for the second spot and I'm undecided about the first spot. I like the romance better in "Fairbourne" but I like the unraveling mysteries better Silent Governess. Fairbourne Hall is a bit more exciting/dramatic but Silent Governess is a bit more realistic and I really liked the evolution of Olivia's character and the relationship with her father.I was hesitant to buy this book because a number of negative reviews gave the impression that this story was dreary. It's not! It's not the most exciting book I've ever read, but it was a very enjoyable escape to Regency England where I could experience the life of an Earl's family and his employees living on his country estate. I also never realized how seperate and lonely the life of a governess would be. That was very interesting and it provided new insight for me to consider when reading Regency novels in the future. Klassen's research is always amazing and much appreciated!For the audio book, the narration by Elizabeth Jasicki is outstanding. I usually prefer male narrators because they seem to be better at creating voices for each character (gotta love Richard Armitage reading Georgette Heyer). But Jasicki does a fantastic job of creating voices as well as accents for criminals, maids, grooms, aristocracy and everyone in between. Highly recommend the audio as well as the book.

Captivating book. I got swept away.

Bis jetzt hat mir jedes Buch von Julie Klassen unglaublich gut gefallen und auch von diesem bin ich nicht enttäuscht worden. Auch wenn die Enden immer etwa vorhersehbar sind gibt es doch in jedem Buch einige Wendungen die man nicht hat kommen sehen und Geheimnisse bei denen man wirklich bis zum Ende lesen muss um sie zu enthüllen.

Mystery, romance, subterfuge all come together in this beautifully plotted novel. The characters are well drawn, the tone is inspirational, and the spirit is compassionate. A very clever plot twist at the end is the dicing on the cake.

This is the third book I have read from Ms Klassen. I read  The Apothecary's Daughter  and  The Maid of Fairbourne Hall . I have read them one after the other, as I have absolutely loved her writing style. I think she is a very talented author and I hope to read all her books.  The Silent Governess , is the story of Olivia Keene, who runs away from home, as she thinks that she has killed her abusive drunken father. But she finds herself arrested for trespassing and spying (which she was not) on a rich estate, and the Lord of that estate (Lord Bradley) decides to keep her, if not prisoner , at least under a very tight surveillance as he is scared that she will reveal what she overhead. While she is in the lockers, she is attacked by a poacher and lost her voice momentarily. Which suits the Lord perfectly.It is a story of love, secrets, blackmail and heartache, mistrust and conflicting emotions, but also a vivid picture of the life on a rich estate. The book is fairly long, about 430 pages because Ms klassen goes into detail. It is not a fast paced book, but it is how I love my period books. The story is unraveling under the reader's eyes and every loose end is taken care of. Full of twists and plots in parallel and none of them has been neglected or rushed.An undisputed 5 stars from me. The Apothecary's DaughterThe Maid of Fairbourne HallThe Silent Governess

Take a dash of Downton Abbey, a pinch of Pride and Prejudice, a generous helping of Jane Eyre and mix. Add a little mystery and suspense, hidden secrets, romance, humour and finally a good dose of family interaction and you have The Silent Governess.This is the first time I've read a novel from Julie Klassen and it won't be my last. Her writing was engaging and witty. The amount of research Julie had done on the time period and setting was clearly evident. A complex web of character interaction and intertwined storylines kept me intrigued and engaged. The consequences, and subsequent resolution, of the decisions and actions of the characters felt very real, very human. A religious/Christian message throughout the story kept the romance clean, heart-warming and suitable for all ages to read.There were a few reasons that made me take one star off the rating and lessened my total enjoyment of the book. Firstly, the book read more like a movie script or TV screenplay – short, choppy scenes (chapters) with little description, and lots of dialogue. Many of the chapters ended too abruptly, which lead to the book feeling disjointed. This type of disjointedness makes more sense in a movie where the scenes chop and change quickly, but where the viewer has more visual clues from the scenery and actors in order to interpret what is occurring. Perhaps the author wanted the book to have a "BBC Episodic Period Drama" feel, but it didn't completely appeal to me.Secondly, the beginning chapters were dramatic and exciting, then the story slowed quite considerably, only picking up speed again around the 45% mark, but not gaining full momentum until the 60% mark. It was the numerous and abrupt scene setting chapters during the first third of the book that made it feel longer than it should have been. In addition, it did take time to develop TWO mysteries/storylines, which were intertwined, but separate at the same time.Thirdly, in keeping with the movie feel - there was a cast of thousands! The heroine had interactions with both the Belowstairs servants AND the Abovestairs family members – not to mention all the extended family members and villagers. This made it initially quite confusing to figure out who was who, and what was their part in the story, if any. Whilst the author did a commendable job in fleshing out the main characters, I still felt as if there was something missing. Perhaps I just could not relate to them. I did, however, admire how the author tied in so many characters and how they all played a part in the unravelling of the storyline.Finally, the romance in this story took second (or maybe even third?) place behind the main mystery/unravelling of the secret. The main characters slowly falling in LOVE, not instant LUST, did appeal to me greatly. Yet I only vaguely felt the attraction and depth of their love. There was little internal dialogue for the reader to see how Olivia and Edward were falling for each other. Small instances here and there showed how Edward was developing feelings for Olivia, but I did not feel the reverse.So, in the end, do I recommend this book? As a mystery and a good Regency story – yes. As a swoon-worthy romance? Not so much. The author writes well and I did feel transported to Regency England for several hours (notwithstanding an occasional slightly modern phrase here or there that jolted me back to the 21st Century!), but perhaps I just couldn’t connect with the main characters, or their romance. I still give it 4 thumbs up!