Lady of Milkweed Manor
by Julie Klassen
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In the style of Jane Austen, debut author Julie Klassen delivers a compelling Regency Era novel. A vicar's daughter avoids her neighbors' scorn by finding refuge in London's Milkweed Manor, a mysterious bastion of old secrets and new life. Trying to conceal her identity, she encounters a former suitor with secrets of his own. Resolved to protect their loved ones, neither realizes the level of self-sacrifice this will require.Tags
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Member Reviews
Upon finishing this novel, I sigh in complete contentment. This is near one of the best novels I have ever had the opportunity to fall deep within the pages and stay for a while. From beginning to end I had my opinions of how things should go, with the slight twists and turns I never had a clue how the plot would be. Sometimes I could not read fast enough, as a matter of fact most of the time. I would not believe certain things were happening. This is a perfect novel in regency time and I can see a bit of Austen and Jane Erye. I can easily say that readers of such will enjoy this story. It is alike, but completely unique and what a tale it tells. Julie Klassen is beyond talented with this work and I am shocked to admit it a debut. You show more can bet that I will read her new novel coming out soon, [book: The Apothecary's Daughter]. I cannot recommend this book highly enough. If I were able to surpass five stars, I have not a clue as to how many I would vote. Throughout this book my heart was breaking. My soul was soaring with joy. It was one of those scenarios where you want to lay the blame, but within yourself you can see that the sinner is not much worse than yourself. Then you attempt to imagine what is going on and put yourself in their place. What would you do? How would you act? What would you want? On a personal note, if too personal skip it, as a person who suffers depression, I can sometimes see how easy it would be to walk away from situations so hard with any foreseeable future or answer. But oh how incredible God can be when he works things out through time. His plan for us is so much more incredible than we could have ever thought. It really makes a person think. show less
I could not put this book down. I got it because I really liked The Apothecary's Daughter, but I didn't really know what it was about until I started reading. I was immediately hooked, and stayed up late to finish the book on the same day I started reading it.
This book portrays Regency England in a different way than I am used to. Charlotte's family turned their backs on her because she was pregnant out of wedlock. She leaves home and takes refuge at a lying-in hospital for unwed mothers. The world portrayed at this hospital, the attached foundling ward, and the livelihood of wet nurses was intriguing. I was also fascinated by the information on the treatment of depression and neurosis during pregnancy during this time period (the show more treatment was, not surprisingly, very limited).
Even though this book is set in Regency England, the experiences and fears of the women in the book were easy to relate to. As a mother, I could identify with the fears of pregnancy, the emotions nursing a child brings, and the joys and fears of parenthood. Thankfully I have never experienced the more heartwrenching aspects of the story--the loneliness, the losses, the destitution, and the sacrifices.
This story was moving and kept me turning the page, wanting to know what would happen next. Would Charlotte get married? Would she be reunited with her son? Who would she marry? Would her family ever forgive her and accept her back? What would happen to her?
The faith aspect of the novel is very subtle. Charlotte's father is a vicar, but seems unable to get past her mistake and the social embarrassment and scandal it will bring to forgive her. The most visible reference to faith comes at the end, when Charlotte finds herself counting her blessings and thanking God for helping her transform her past pain and sacrifices into something beautiful.
This book was wonderful. Yet another book by Julie Klassen that will reside on my keeper shelf. show less
This book portrays Regency England in a different way than I am used to. Charlotte's family turned their backs on her because she was pregnant out of wedlock. She leaves home and takes refuge at a lying-in hospital for unwed mothers. The world portrayed at this hospital, the attached foundling ward, and the livelihood of wet nurses was intriguing. I was also fascinated by the information on the treatment of depression and neurosis during pregnancy during this time period (the show more treatment was, not surprisingly, very limited).
Even though this book is set in Regency England, the experiences and fears of the women in the book were easy to relate to. As a mother, I could identify with the fears of pregnancy, the emotions nursing a child brings, and the joys and fears of parenthood. Thankfully I have never experienced the more heartwrenching aspects of the story--the loneliness, the losses, the destitution, and the sacrifices.
This story was moving and kept me turning the page, wanting to know what would happen next. Would Charlotte get married? Would she be reunited with her son? Who would she marry? Would her family ever forgive her and accept her back? What would happen to her?
The faith aspect of the novel is very subtle. Charlotte's father is a vicar, but seems unable to get past her mistake and the social embarrassment and scandal it will bring to forgive her. The most visible reference to faith comes at the end, when Charlotte finds herself counting her blessings and thanking God for helping her transform her past pain and sacrifices into something beautiful.
This book was wonderful. Yet another book by Julie Klassen that will reside on my keeper shelf. show less
This is definitely not my usual kind of 'historical fiction'... regency ladies in their poufy dresses, 'proper' speech & mannerisms, etc... but there I was at the bookstore spending the church budget on new books for the library, and the woman ringing me up at the till saw that I had this book & the author's next one in the stack, and promptly began gushing about them. She was so enthusiastic about this author that I found myself saying "well, I guess I'll have to try them" and agreeing to come back and let her know what I thought. Well, since that's the only Christian bookstore in town, and I still have more cash in the library budget, I figured it would be awfully hard to avoid her... and I just knew I'd feel guilty if she asked me show more what I thought and I had to admit I wasn't really interested in reading the books after all. Especially when she was so excited about them... so, when I got home, I picked up Lady of Milkweed Manor and began reading... and read some more... and kept reading... and finally had to go to bed. The next morning, I... uh... didn't start work until I'd sat down and finished reading the book. Oops.
"Huh," I thought, "Guess it was worth my time after all..." And so, I've placed the second book on the TBR list. I won't say a whole lot more about it - I don't want to give the plot away, but if you're interested, there are several good reviews on LT that give a bit more detail. I was glad I read it without knowing anything about the plot, probably since I might not have bothered otherwise. It was a pleasant surprise, and very well written for a first novel.
And I'll admit it... I was actually bawling my eyes out near the end (and I think mumbling "no, no, NO!" as I read), when the author made me think something was going to happen/had happened that actually didn't. My goodness... skillfully done. Recommended, even to those who don't usually like this kind of regency-style historical fiction. Guess I learned a little something about my literary tastes with this one! show less
"Huh," I thought, "Guess it was worth my time after all..." And so, I've placed the second book on the TBR list. I won't say a whole lot more about it - I don't want to give the plot away, but if you're interested, there are several good reviews on LT that give a bit more detail. I was glad I read it without knowing anything about the plot, probably since I might not have bothered otherwise. It was a pleasant surprise, and very well written for a first novel.
And I'll admit it... I was actually bawling my eyes out near the end (and I think mumbling "no, no, NO!" as I read), when the author made me think something was going to happen/had happened that actually didn't. My goodness... skillfully done. Recommended, even to those who don't usually like this kind of regency-style historical fiction. Guess I learned a little something about my literary tastes with this one! show less
Charlotte struggles to gain back her life…
This quote is perfect for the theme of this book:
“Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay. –”
― R Zaccharias
Charlotte commits a sin that will change her future forever. Because of this sin, she is forced to cover up the truth. I don’t normally enjoy books that have a deceptive thread but the characters in this book tried to be truthful and the plot led the reader through the perils of sinful consequences.
Other reviews have stated a lot of this storyline so I will add that although a bit naive, the main character gives herself to a man, so whether to read this story or not would be an individual show more decision and not a blanket recommendation for a certain age group.
Simon Prebble has a pleasant, authentic voice and tells this story well. show less
This quote is perfect for the theme of this book:
“Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay. –”
― R Zaccharias
Charlotte commits a sin that will change her future forever. Because of this sin, she is forced to cover up the truth. I don’t normally enjoy books that have a deceptive thread but the characters in this book tried to be truthful and the plot led the reader through the perils of sinful consequences.
Other reviews have stated a lot of this storyline so I will add that although a bit naive, the main character gives herself to a man, so whether to read this story or not would be an individual show more decision and not a blanket recommendation for a certain age group.
Simon Prebble has a pleasant, authentic voice and tells this story well. show less
As good as her last one I read (The Apothecary's Daughter). The story was full of twists and turns and felt absolutely believable. I absolutely did not want this one to come to an end.
My feelings on this are mixed. For a first novel, it was decent, but I'm so glad I read a couple of her newer ones first. I don't think I would have sought out more of her books if this were the first one I'd read. I can't really put my finger on one particular thing---just a strange, all over the place story. The Lizette's last scene seemed contrived and very rushed, which caused it to lack the intensity that would normally accompany such a tragedy. The final "twist" at the end concerning Edmund's future was MESSED UP. No---totally not into that. However, the character of Charlotte definitely spoke from a true mother's heart and I found myself sobbing more than once. I'll be keeping this for my permanent collection.
This was a story that brought a wide span of different emotions from me. The story line for me had a slow start, but the more I read, the more the story grew on me and I found near the end of the book I didn't want to put the book down until I saw how it would end (and I don't want to spoil the ending for anyone, but trust me it is worth reading to the very last page!). I really wasn't sure what was going to happen to Charlotte Lamb, the main character in this story. She went through a great deal yet it didn't change the person she was. I also had to stop and search the end of the book to see if the author would validate some of the things folks did during the time period this was written, because some of it was hard to show more comprehend.
Charlotte Lamb was raised as a proper vicar's daughter, but when she makes a mistake one night with a man, she finds herself shunned by her family and forced to go into hiding in London's "Milkweed Manor", a place for unwed mothers. There she finds a doctor she once knew when she was young and he too has secrets he is hiding. Both of them are determined to protect the ones they love even if it means a huge sacrifice on their part. You will come to appreciate Charlotte and her strong yet gentle character. I found myself really not sure how the author was going to end this story and at one brief point felt my eyes tearing up, thinking how the ending was going to turn out. This was a good "drama" filled with details of what some women in Regency England endured at that time. A real eye-opener and it does have a very good romantic twist to it. I enjoyed reading this story and give high praise to the good job Julie Klassen did. show less
Charlotte Lamb was raised as a proper vicar's daughter, but when she makes a mistake one night with a man, she finds herself shunned by her family and forced to go into hiding in London's "Milkweed Manor", a place for unwed mothers. There she finds a doctor she once knew when she was young and he too has secrets he is hiding. Both of them are determined to protect the ones they love even if it means a huge sacrifice on their part. You will come to appreciate Charlotte and her strong yet gentle character. I found myself really not sure how the author was going to end this story and at one brief point felt my eyes tearing up, thinking how the ending was going to turn out. This was a good "drama" filled with details of what some women in Regency England endured at that time. A real eye-opener and it does have a very good romantic twist to it. I enjoyed reading this story and give high praise to the good job Julie Klassen did. show less
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24+ Works 7,333 Members
Julie Klassen is a bestselling, award winning author. She graduated from the University of Illinois and worked in publishing for sixteen years in advertising and as a fiction editor. Klassen's books, The Girl in the Gatehouse and The Silent Governess won the Christy Award for Historical Romance. The Girl in the Gatehouse also won a Midwest Book show more Award and The Silent Governess was a finalist in Romance Writers of America's RITA awards. Julie is also the author of Lady of Milkweed Manor, which was a finalist for the Christy award, The Apothecary's Daughter, and The Maid of Fairbourne Hall. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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Awards and Honors
Awards
Work Relationships
Common Knowledge
- People/Characters
- Charlotte Lamb
- Important places
- London, England, UK
- Important events
- Regency Era
- Epigraph
- To the Milkweed
NONE call thee flower! I will not so malign
The satin softness of thy plumed seed,
Nor so profane thee as to call thee weed,
Thou tuft of ermine down,
Fit to entwine ... (show all)about a queen . . .
. . . Ah me! Could he who sings,
On such adventurous and aerial wings
Far over lands and undiscovered seas
Waft the dark seeds of his imaginings,
That, flowering, men might say, Lo! look on these
Wild Weeds of Song--not all ungracious things!
--Sonnets by Lloyd Mifflin - Dedication
- To my dear parents, whose unconditional love paved the way.
- First words
- When I first knew her, I thought her an amusing scrap of girl, silly and a bit grubby from her mornings spent in the gardens.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)Thankful, especially, that I am here with Charlotte, to watch, finally, fly free.
- Blurbers
- Lewis, Beverly
- Original language
- English
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 558
- Popularity
- 52,974
- Reviews
- 19
- Rating
- (3.87)
- Languages
- Dutch, English, German
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 12
- ASINs
- 7
