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May 1651. England has been in the midst of a civil war for nearly ten years. The country has been torn in two, and the King is getting ready to make his last stand against Cromwell’s New Model Army.
Abigail Chaplin, a young mute girl, has lost her father to the parliamentarian cause. But with her family now in reduced circumstances, she is forced to work as a servant at a royalist household - the estate of Lady Katherine Fanshawe.
Abi is soon caught up in a web of sinister secrets which surround the Fanshawe estate. The most curious of which is the disappearance of Lady Katherine late at night.
Why are her husband’s clothes worn and muddy even though he hasn’t been home for weeks? How is she stealing out of the house late at night when her room is being guarded? And what is her involvement with the robberies being committed by the mysterious Shadow on the Highway?
My thoughts:
I can't say I like this period in English history (it's great to read about though), but I kept thinking how I would NOT like to live then. Civil war. You are in, you are out. Death, despair, down with rich people! Ugh Cromwell, I do not like him. All that religious strife too.
Anyway. Abigail lost her hearing when young, and has a hard time finding a job. And of course there is the whole civil war going on too. She gets work at a nearby manor, where only 3 servants and a young noble woman live. Yes things are not good in England. Katherine, the young noblewoman was headstrong, a bit too headstrong, but I got that she wanted to be more free. They become friends, stuff is happening, there is a pinch of romance and mentions of highway robbery. I mean hey, more highway robbery please, I was promised it, but it was just mentioned and never really shown.
Conclusion:
It was short, interesting, and more seems to be coming. Of course I already wikied her so I know what will happen.
cover
I need a whole head
Kindle Edition, 192 pages
Published July 15th 2014 by Endeavour Press
The Highway Trilogy #1
YA, Historical fiction
Own
