Highwaymen hijinks and eighteenth-century Christmas cheer can be found in this vintage holiday short story for young readers, first published in 1888. Eager to visit her Uncle Jasper and cousins Cynthia and Dick at Langton Hall for the holidays, Dulcinea Ormonde—Dulce for short—is overjoyed when her guardian and maiden Great Aunt Lavinia agrees to the idea. When Dulce and Aunt Lavinia set out in their coach for the visit, they little realize that the older woman's fears of highwaymen will be realized, but they are held up by two oddly polite and polished ruffians, not one hour from their destination. One of the thieves takes Dulce's carnelian heart necklace, given to her by her cousin Dick. Eventually arriving at their destination, that relative extracts a promise from Dulce that she will give him something in return, if he restores her stolen property to her...

Originally published in Britain in 1888 as The Highwaymen: Christmas in England, and then reprinted in the US as Dulce's Promise: Christmas in England, this slim volume was one of four Christmas tales created by sisters and author/illustrator team Florence and Edith Scannell, as part of the Christmas in Many Lands series, highlighting holiday stories from various countries. The four tales created by the Scannells (there are others in the series) were also published in a single volume, Christmas in Many Lands: England, France, Germany, and Italy. A complete delight, this brief work of historical fiction—published in 1888, it is set in December of 1789—was quite entertaining, and I enjoyed it immensely. Although the identity of the highwaymen was immediately apparent to me, from their first appearance, it was still amusing to see the process whereby their true selves was revealed, and heartwarming to see the resolution of the romance between Dulce and Dick. The accompanying artwork from Edith Scannell—almost every two-page spread had at least one illustration—also added to my enjoyment. Although only thirty-two pages, this is not a picture book, but an illustrated short story, and is one I would recommend to readers who enjoy vintage Christmas adventures and lighthearted romance. ( )