The French Maid

Short and sweet story. Eleanor and Henry have been married for almost a year. Eleanor is very much in love with her husband, but he is oblivious to her feelings. He is a workaholic, devoting most of his time to his political career. He appreciates her presence when he needs her to support him, and her willingness to amuse herself when he's otherwise occupied. When her lady's maid leaves to get married, Henry hires a new maid without any input from her. Eleanor is ready to pitch a fit until she meets Babette.

Babette sees the problem very quickly. Eleanor loves her husband and wants more from him, but is afraid to ask. She fears rejection and would rather muddle along as is than to risk losing what she has. She doesn't have any confidence show more in her ability to gain and retain her husband's interest. Meanwhile, Henry is intent on protecting himself from losing control and focus and does so by keeping Eleanor at a distance.

I loved Babette's motivational abilities. Her speech to Eleanor, telling her that if she wants more from Henry, she has to be willing to risk it all, gave Eleanor the boost she needed. The addition of the sexy nightgown was a great attention-getter and served its purpose very well. But though the night proved promising with its heat and the amazing connection between Henry and Eleanor, there are still issues to be resolved. That same connection that gave Eleanor such hope sent Henry running. He suffers from his own fears and insecurities, and in his attempt to protect himself he breaks Eleanor's heart. I was happy to see him suffer a bit as he tried to deal with the intensity of his feelings. I loved the eye-opening lecture he received from Babette and the effect it had on him.

The conclusion was sweet and romantic. I loved Henry's big moment as he admitted his feelings and confessed his fears. The gift he had for Eleanor was perfect and showed his commitment to making their marriage work. show less

I really liked this. It has amazing depth for a short story and I liked the voice.
Rating: 8/10

I enjoyed this short story. However, I didn't care for the excerpt from her upcoming book that is at the end. I didn't finish it. It just didn't grab my attention.

I got this book free on kindle. It was just okay a busy husbands ignores his wife and a French maid tries to make their marriage better over a short amout of time. If I had to pay for it I would had been really dissapointed. I can't really complain about a big author giving a free book though.