Carole'S Sunday Review: Escapement

Author: Kristen Wolf

Title: Escapement

Genre: Historical Fiction 

Pages: ebook

Published: July 30th 2018

Where I Got It: On My Shelf (Given to me by author/publisher for my honest and unbiased opinion)

Cristofer Vaughn's star is poised to rise. Everyone expects the dashing and gifted composer to soar to the heights of musical genius—an expectation that terrifies the young artist as much as it drives him.

Walking into the fire with Cristofer is his housekeeper, Henri, a passionate and handsome young woman who takes pleasure in dressing as a man. Tending to her famed employer’s domestic needs, Henri crafts a carefree life of routine and diversion behind which she hides the truth of a dark and tragic past. Possessed herself of an extraordinary musical gift, she loyally steers her employer through the tempestuous trials of his artistic and romantic pursuits—while carefully guarding his most closely-held secret.

But Henri’s deceptively simple life is ripped apart when a wealthy and ruthless patron grants Cristofer a spectacular commission, then unwittingly hires Henri—whom he believes to be male—to give piano lessons to his alluring wife, Ava.

The tension intensifies as Cristofer struggles to create music of epic proportions while Henri’s heart is swept away by Ava and a love more powerful than any she has ever imagined possible. 

The ensuing entanglements rise to a dangerous pitch when Cristofer's patron catches wind of a perverse duplicity within his circle and quickly mobilizes his henchmen to target the threat. Soon the only hope for Cristofer and Henri’s survival depends on one publicly exposing the other’s hidden truth—an act that would defy the bonds of love and friendship and bring all their lives crashing down. 

Will Henri sacrifice her heart to stop the oncoming tragedy? Or will she find a way to save both her friend—and her truest love?

I was drawn in from the cover and the summary. What an intriguing story! I had no choice but to try it just to quench my curiosity. 

So the story follows Henri. Henri is a woman who dresses as a man for multiple reasons. One of the main reasons is to help her employer, Cristofer, manage his career and romantic pursuits. Cristofer knows of Henri's secret and is a total supporter and loyal to keeping the secret since it benefits him as well since Henri is equally as gifted with music as he is. They meet Ava and her husband who decide to be patrons of Cristofer and hire Henri as Ava's personal teacher for the piano. Of course, Henri falls for Ava hard. Things happen and everything hangs in the balance. 

Can you blame Henri for wanting to be a male in this world? Being a woman can really suck in this society. The only real goals for women is to marry and have children. Henri wants so much more! She wants to write music and if she has to write with Cristofer then so be it. I did like Henri a lot, but she really is tortured by her past and her obsession with Ava. Poor thing. 

Ava? She was okay...I didn't really get the allure of her. Sure she is pretty and likes to play music, but I really didn't get it. I wish we would've gotten to learn more about her. She felt 2D to me. 

Other than that? I had no real issues. I enjoyed the story. It was a little slow here and there, but I felt it was necessary. It fit the tone of the book. It was told in a very musical way. The author did wonder in the writing style. It truly fits the story. 

The ending was good. I wasn't sure what to expect! I had my theories and I was wrong. Very good indeed!

In the end, this was a pretty good read. I enjoyed the story and the ending surprised me. There were some slow parts but it seemed to fit. I didn't quite get Ava or really like her much, but the story is about Henri. Henri was intriguing. I recommend this to everyone who likes a good people story. I'll stamp this with 4 stars.