3.5 Stars

Set just prior to the start of the First World War, T. J. Brown's Summerset Abbey is a novel about three women, sisters Rowena and Victoria Buxton, and Prudence Tate. Although born into an aristocratic family, Rowena and Victoria were raised by their father in a most unconventional manner. Prudence Tate, the daughter of the Buxton sisters' governess, was raised right along side the girls and always made to feel part of the family. When their father unexpectedly passes away, Rowena and Victoria pass into the guardianship of their uncle and are forced to move to their family's country estate, Summerset Abbey. While both sisters love the Abbey, Rowena refuses to move unless Prudence is permitted to accompany them. But, as the daughter of a governess, Prudence is not welcome at the Abbey in any role but that of a servant and, as a result, she forced to serve as Rowena and Victoria's lady's maid. Life at the Abbey is nothing like life in the home they grew up in, and all three women must come to terms with new expectations and roles.

The greatest strength of this novel is the strong sense of place that Brown has created. Through often vivid descriptions of the Abbey, its inhabitants and its guests, the reader is able to gain an appreciation for daily life - both upstairs and down - on an English estate. Rowena, Victoria and Prudence are well-developed characters and, because the narrative's focus alternates between each of the three women, the reader comes to understand their individual hopes, fears and motivations. The only shortcoming of this novel is that with little to no mention made of events happening outside the confines of the Abbey, it doesn't evoke a strong sense of time. As a result, even though the novel's summary indicates it is set in 1913, there is little evidence in the book that the start of World War I was only a year away. Lastly, while many readers may find the novel's conclusion abrupt, given its unexpected nature it heightens anticipation for the sequel, A Bloom in Winter, which will be released in March.

Overall an enjoyable novel with interesting and engaging characters, Summerset Abbey is recommended to fans of Edwardian-era historical fiction and to fans of the TV show Downton Abbey.

Note: A copy of this novel was provided to me by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. ( )

eGalley courtesy of NetGalley

****SPOILERS*****















Summerset Abbey
by T.J. Brown
Publication Date: January 15, 2013
Gallery Books
Paperback: 320 pages
ISBN: 1451698984
Genre : Fiction / Historical
Source: eGalley courtesy of Net Galley
Reviewed by: Wendy Clements
Rating: 3/5

Summerset Abbey is the story of three young women, Rowena and Victoria Buxton, and Prudence Tate. The Buxtons are gentry, whereas Prudence is the daughter of their former governess. All three are motherless, and Rowena and Victoria’s father took Prudence in and raised her with his daughters, the bond between them as strong as any sister’s. In the Edwardian era, the setting for the story, Sir Philip Buxton is an unconventional man, raising his daughters to be free thinkers, exposing them to new ideas when women did not have many rights and were expected to marry and have a family, and to behave respectably within the limitations society dictated. The girls did not have the traditional coming out balls, were never debutantes, and were taught that class doesn’t matter, the important thing is people.

The novel opens with the funeral of Sir Buxton, and the three young women preparing for it. All of them are devastated, but they expect to remain in their home, unlike any other traditional home a man of the gentry might have. It is clear how much the young women depend on each other, offer each other support, and, most importantly, love and trust each other. No one cared that Prudence was the daughter of the governess, they were, in mind and spirit, true sisters. They had met artists, authors, men in science—all of them looking to the future—motorcars had already started to overtake carriages in popularity, and it was the dawn of aeronautics.

In doing what he believed was the right thing to do with his daughters and Prudence, however, Sir Buxton had gone to the opposite extreme. He wasn’t necessarily wrong to do so, but in Edwardian England, when women were still seen by the gentry as a way to cement ties between families, for land or money, his decision left them completely unprepared for his death. They believed they would stay in their home, and life would go on, not the way it had, but they would survive the death of their father and guardian and continue to live the way they always had. No provisions or legal papers were left on what would happen under these circumstances, and Sir Buxton’s brother, Lord Summerset, and his wife decide to move the three young women to Summerset Abbey to stay with them. Not having made arrangements in advance was really a pretty bad idea.

Victoria is eighteen, her sister a few years older, and Prudence in the middle. Three women their age living on their own now is commonplace, but in the eyes of Lord Summerset, it was completely unacceptable according the to rules of ‘civilized’ society. There is some protest, but not much, and the three pack what they need and head for Summerset Abbey, where the tight knot of their friendship and sisterhood hits the event that changes their lives, possibly forever (there is at least one sequel that I know of)—Lady Charlotte, their aunt, separates them, sending Prudence to the servants’ quarters downstairs, and Rowena and Victoria to their ‘proper’ places upstairs. Their aunt knows exactly what she is doing—the three young women find that whenever they mention Prudence’s mother’s name, no one will talk about her. Now, there is the underlying mystery of why no one will talk about her.

This is the point in the novel when it was unclear to me whether the young women are supposed to considered strong characters or not when subjected to the tests of the gentry’s thumbscrews. They fall into place fairly quickly, it seemed. As the oldest, Rowena feels a great responsibility for what happens to Victoria and Prudence, but she already has several strikes against her—she is a woman, she is deeply grieving for the loss of their father, and while she may have been strong in her old, familiar environment in London, at Summerset Abbey she has nothing to ground her. The combination of these things, instead of spurring her on to action, freeze her in place while the feelings of not having control of anything continue to pile up—Victoria constantly accuses her of doing nothing to help Prudence, now working as their Lady’s maid, which is true. Rowena becomes snappish and irritable, treating the servants, including Prudence, more and more the way her cousins and the rest of the Buxtons do. Rowena is no match for her Aunt Charlotte, who is an expert at manipulation and turning any situation to her advantage. The more accusations are thrown at her, the more she shuts herself off. The only one she feels herself with is a young pilot who crashes his plane near her when she’s out riding one day. She finds herself attracted to him, but not only is he involved with something her uncle would highly disapprove of, but his family and the Buxtons literally hate each other. Even they have a clash over class, which ends up having more to do with the families not getting along. With him, Rowena seems stronger, but at Summerset Abbey, she wilts.

Prudence struggles because she doesn’t fit in anywhere anymore. One of the Lords who comes to visit with the Buxton’s cousins is drawn to her, and she is to him, but instead of seeing where that might go, she leaves with one of the servants, Andrew, a seemingly kind young man with aspirations of becoming a veterinarian, thinking she could learn to love him. She no longer trusts her former ‘sisters,’ and Lady Charlotte will make her life unbearable. So, the question is, does leaving Summerset make her a weaker or a stronger character? She has knowledge, which everyone knows is power, and could very possibly ruin the Buxtons, righting who knows how many wrongs their family has perpetrated in their own home and elsewhere. Or, is she stronger in that she walked away, having that knowledge yet behaving in a better way they did—not stooping to their level of manipulation?

Surprisingly, it is Victoria, frail and asthmatic, who takes the risks to help Prudence. At first, she seems helpless because of her illness, but being at Summerset helps her physically regain her strength—she comments she was always better there when they visited in the summers. She doesn’t seem to have trouble fitting in with her cousins and their friends, and she stubbornly attempts to carry on learning how to type and still has her dream of being a Botanist. It is the unexpected relationship with Kit, the oldest of her cousins’ friends and eight years her senior, who has the same feelings about marriage that Victoria does—not knowing that, they are off to a rocky start until he realizes she’s not interested in that, and they become friends. He goes with her to find out the truth about Prudence’s father. Her ability to persevere and unexpected resiliency, in my mind, makes her a strong character.

TJ Brown’s writing is engaging and makes an enjoyable read. I did have some difficulty truly connecting emotionally with the main characters—possibly because of what I wanted them to do being impossible for them given the time period they lived in. Some of the minor characters were given more depth. It didn’t come across so much as good vs. evil as evil soundly quashing good. From what I know, there were upper class families that had their share of scandal, but survived nonetheless, and while sometimes it was secret, sometimes it was common knowledge. Lady Charlotte’s hatred of Prudence seemed a little too intense and misdirected—Lady Charlotte seems to feel she is so clever with all of her little plots. I felt a little let down at the end, but curious enough about the characters to pick up the next book to find out what happens to them. I would have to say that by the end, even though he was a minor character, I found Kit the most intriguing, and I hope there’s more of him.

I am curious as to whether there will be a foil to Lady Charlotte’s character at some point—a woman who is self-sufficient not because she married well and has twisted her husband around her finger and perfectly trained him to do her bidding, but has money of her own, doesn’t need someone else, and is gentry but kind, not scheming. Lady Charlotte is presented as the ultimate goal a girl should wish to become—she rules Summerset through fear, not love or respect.

In terms of the historic feel for the period, I think the author did a very good job. One of my favorite series as a child (they actually address some of the same issues as Summerset Abbey) was Flambards, by K.M. Peyton, which takes place in the same time period.

While I personally would have liked a little more depth of character for some of the major characters, I did enjoy Summerset Abbey, and found myself wondering what would happen next. I checked the description of the book on Amazon and it mentions the ‘distant rumblings of war.’ I really didn’t see anything even hinting at World War I in the novel, unless it was something subtle I missed. I thought that important to mention—some people might be intrigued because of that aspect, which isn’t present. The next two novels are following, for book publication, in fairly short order, the second, Summerset Abbey: A Bloom in Winter, in Mar 5, 2013, and Summerset Abbey: Spring Awakening, due out August 6, 2013. I am curious to see if they match up to their marketing descriptions.














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Summerset Abbey is a turn of the century historical novel. I won't say it is a historical romance novel even though there are undertones of romance throughout this story.

Three young women are rocked by the death of a loved one, forced to leave the home and lifestyle in which they have grown up and betrayed by their own family. Victoria, Prudence and Rowena must face new challenges and heartache as they discover themselves and solve the mystery surrounding Prudence's true identity.

First, I love historical novels. There, I said it. However, I do not like all that I have read. Most are focused on the damsel in distress to be saved by the rakish lord of the manor. Summerset Abbey is not that kind of a novel. T. J. Brown was able to turn the three young women, who had lived the life of privilege without most of the social norms, to turn into stronger, independent women of the era. She mentions suffrage and the New Woman, two key terms in this period of history, and the move from automobiles to aeroplanes. She also brings into play the limitations on families in each socio-economic level and the disparity between the classes that still existed during the period. Issues as mundane as smoking and drinking, as females were not supposed to smoke at all and only drink small quantities of certain liquors, are integrated without much effort. Great touches.

I am looking forward to reading more about the women in book two. ( )

Read to have something to tide me over while awaiting the new season of Downton Abbey. I liked this & will likely continue with the series. ( )

...1913 class consciousness and the rich and powerful

With the death of their father, Rowena, Victoria and Prudence (who has been brought up with them as a sister) are taken by their uncle and aunt to Somerset Abbey. Prudence however is treated as a lady's maid much to the discomfort of Rowena and the horror of Victoria. In one fell swoop life changed for all three.
Their story held my interest. I felt puzzlement and some scorn for Rowena's way of dealing with the situation, and admiration for Victoria's misguided attempts.
This is really Prudence's story and one cannot help but feel angry for her at the injustices she experiences.
Unfortunately, the ending seemed somewhat rushed after the thoughtful building up and introduction to all the key players. Indeed I was left me wondering just what sort of life Prudence by way of the author had been rushed into. I must admit that I'm left feeling a little short changed. The quickness of Prudence's decision (which probably adds to the drama in the rest of the series) took the story from 4 stars to 3. And yes I will have to read the rest of the series as it's 1913 and I'm sure all the political and social actions of the times will have consequences for the lives and situations of the various characters, and to the series' final outcomes.

A NetGalley ARC ( )