(Hawthorne House #3)
Kristi Ann Hunter
(Bethany House)
ISBN: 978-0764218262
January 2017/352 pages/$14.99
Lord Trent Hawthorne couldn't be happier he is not the duke in the family. Free to manage his small estate and take his time discovering the life he wants to lead, he has grand plans of someday wooing and falling in love with the woman of his choice. When he finds himself honor bound to marry a woman he barely knows, his dream of a loving marriage like his parents' seems lost forever.
Life for Lady Adelaide Bell was easier when she hid in her older sister's shadow--which worked until her sister got married. But even with her socially ambitious mother's focus entirely on her, the last thing she expected was a marriage of convenience before she's been introduced to society.
With nothing going as expected, can Trent and Adelaide's marriage of obligation survive their own missteps and the pressures of London society to grow into a true meeting of hearts and minds?
Read an excerpt.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
MY THOUGHTS
Kristi Ann Hunter became a must-read author for me with her debut novel, A Noble Masquerade, and she continues to delight with the third book in her Hawthorne House series. While numerous stories have been written about "shotgun weddings" or marriages of convenience, Hunter addds twists that make An Uncommon Courtship uniquely fresh and utterly captivating. Adelaide's timidity and uncertainty, resulting from her mother's willful negligence, collide with Trent's bumbling efforts at courting his wife, and the result is both amusing and cringe-inducing. An unconventional arrangement with his household servants adds to the awkwardness of their situation. Witty repartee interspersed with moments of tension and altercation make for lively reading, yet Hunter weaves in tender and poignant moments as well. Sigh-worthy and completely satisfying, An Uncommon Courtship is a must-read. While it stands alone from the earlier novels in this series, you'll want to read them all. Don't miss this engaging story!
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a digital copy of this book from Kristi Ann Hunter and Bethany House Publishers. I was not required to write a review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Q&A WITH KRISTI ANN HUNTER
1. This book has an unusual beginning for a romance novel. Why did you choose to start it that way?
On page one, we find ourselves at the wedding breakfast of the hero and heroine. The vows are already completed and Lord Trent, whom many readers have gotten to know in the rest of the series, is suddenly married. I started it this way because I wanted it to be a bit of a shock for the readers, just like the marriage was a shock for Trent and Adelaide.
2. How does An Uncommon Courtship fit in with the rest of the Hawthorne House series?
Lord Trent is the younger son of the Hawthorne siblings. He’s taken his family role seriously in the previous books, but he’s never truly had to take on any responsibility until now. Readers of the free e-novella A Lady of Esteem may recognize Lady Adelaide’s family. She is the forgotten daughter of Lady Crampton. After spending a life overshadowed by her ambitious sister, Lady Helena, she finds herself forced to suddenly decide for herself what she wants in life. Several other characters will also be familiar to readers of the novella, since Trent is now living in Amelia’s old house.
3. What aspects of the story were more difficult to handle?
A married couple, particularly a married couple in the early 1800s, has a very different relationship than an unmarried couple, yet at the same time Trent and Adelaide are faced with all of the same problems that a new couple would have outside of marriage. They don’t know each other and don’t know what the other likes, feels, or thinks; yet, at the same time, they are living together and forced to face the expectations of everyone outside the marriage. Finding the balance between being married and being strangers was an interesting aspect of the story to explore. At times, the hero and heroine turned into their own villain as they, too, tried to find their footing in an out-of-balance situation.
4. How are the spiritual elements of this story different from the other ones in the series?
An Uncommon Courtship focuses a good bit more on godly relationships and how those impact your personal walk with God than some of the other books. There are scenes I particularly love where a group of God-honoring men gather together to help each other follow God more closely. Trent and Adelaide especially find themselves struggling in their marriage until they realize they need to bring God into the relationship as well.
Many thanks to Bethany House Pulishers and Kristi Ann Hunter for providing this Q&A!
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