After the death of their father, life with her cruel and controlling brother Thomas becomes unbearable for Annabelle. Finding refuge at her Uncle Edmund Langsley's estate, she takes a tutoring position. Still grieving his wife's murder, gamekeeper Owen Locke has sworn never to love again-until he meets Annabelle. A sudden rash of poaching, a murder, and Thomas's arrival with a fiancé in tow for Annabelle forestall any future the two may have. As the story unfolds and the well-rounded, likeable protagonists play out their drama, the rising tension keeps readers in suspense. VERDICT Ladd's third Regency outing (after Dawn at Emberwilde and The Curiosity Keeper) can easily stand on its own, but readers who enjoy this book will want to devour the trilogy. © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

In the third installment of her Regency-era Treasures of Surrey series, Ladd returns to the Fellsworth School in the English countryside to introduce Annabelle Thorley. Despite her father's poor business dealings, Annabelle has lived a life of privilege and protection. After the deaths of her parents, Annabelle's brother, Thomas, is ill prepared to salvage the family fortune and take care of his younger sister. Annabelle's betrothal to a wealthy older man becomes Thomas's plan B. After a physical altercation with Thomas, Annabelle flees to the London home of their estranged uncle, the superintendent at Fellsworth School in the outskirts of the city. Widower and single father Owen Locke, a gamekeeper whose daughter attends Fellsworth, has accompanied his employer to visit Thomas in London. After observing Annabelle's distress at her brother's behavior, Owen agrees to arrange safe transportation to Fellsworth for Annabelle. However, keeping Annabelle safe soon proves more difficult than anyone anticipated. With betrayals, murders, and criminal activity disrupting the peace at Fellsworth, Ladd fills the pages with as much intrigue as romance. Inspirational references are limited to a few mentions of prayers. A well-crafted story for fans of Regency novels. Agent: Rachelle Gardner, Books & Such Literary Management (May) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.