27 December 2018

An Intriguing Regency Story | In the Shadow of Croft Towers by Abigail Wilson

ABOUT THE BOOK

From debut author Abigail Wilson comes a mysterious Regency tale of secrets and spies, love and treachery.

Orphaned Sybil Delafield jumps at the opportunity for a position at the mysterious Croft Towers. She believes she was hired to act as companion to a dying woman, but a highway robbery and a hostile welcome from the Chalcroft family cause her to wonder if she was actually hired to help someone spy for France.

An unsolved murder adds intrigue to this already secretive family, and Sybil recognizes Mrs. Chalcroft’s handsome grandson as one of the infamous highwaymen who robbed her. Sybil must determine if this man’s charming smile and earnest eyes speak the truth or if he is simply using her like others in the house. Everyone seems to have something to hide, and Sybil must decide who to trust while also coming to terms with the truth about her own past.

Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Release Date: January 15, 2019

MY REVIEW

 What a splendid debut from Abigail Wilson. A Regency story full of danger, secrets, mystery, and romance, In the Shadow of Croft Towers is not to be skipped by readers of historical fiction. 

Sybil Delafield, from whose perspective the story is told, heads to Croft Towers to act as a companion to an elderly woman. This new setting and cast of characters that soon surround her lends themselves easily to the suspense and tension that permeate Sybil’s experience—an experience full of twists, turns, and revelations that kept me intrigued from beginning to end.  

I highly recommend In the Shadow of Croft Towers. If you’re in need of a captivating read, definitely check it out. 

★★★★.5

Thanks to Celebrate Lit, I received a complimentary copy of In the Shadow of Croft Towers and the opportunity to provide an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review, and all the opinions I have expressed are my own.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Abigail Wilson combines her passion for Regency England with intrigue and adventure to pen historical mysteries with a heart. A Registered Nurse, chai tea addict, and mother of two crazy kids, Abigail fills her spare time hiking the National Parks, attending her daughter’s gymnastic meets, and curling up with a great book. In 2017, Abigail won WisRWA’s Fab Five contest and ACFW’s First Impressions contest as well as placing as a finalist in the Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense. She is a cum laude graduate of the University of Texas at Austin and currently lives in Dripping Springs, Texas, with her husband and children.

EXCERPT FROM IN THE SHADOW OF CROFT TOWERS

 1813

THE ENGLISH COUNTRYSIDE

I often wonder what my life would have been like if I had never learned the truth. I wouldn’t have set off as I did for Croft Towers. I never would have met him.

It’s strange what I remember about the day I left London. The mail coach was late; the weather wretched. The clock had struck midnight long before two strangers and I ducked beneath the postmaster’s outstretched umbrella to board the Royal Mail and rumble across the North Downs.

That difficult journey east marked the beginning of an unseasonably cold autumn. Frigid rain pelted the coach windows. The undercarriage squealed beneath the seats as a metallic scent wound its way between the drafty boards. I gripped the windowsill, wondering if the coachman intended to hit every bump in the road.

“Far to go, miss?”

The woman’s voice startled me. Dressed head to toe in red satin, she’d endured the last few darkened hours with a handful of smelling salts and a tongue hot for complaints, but she hadn’t spoken to me until now. Not until the first hint of rain-soaked daylight peeked over the horizon.

I lowered my gaze and fiddled with my bonnet ribbons. “Yes, ma’am . . . well, not too much farther, I hope.”

Taken from “In the Shadow of Croft Towers” by Abigail Wilson. Copyright © 2018 by Abigail Wilson. Used by permission of http://www.thomasnelson.com/.
 
GIVEAWAY

To celebrate her tour, Abigail is giving away a grand prize of one finished copy of the book!! Enter below, and be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway!

TOUR SCHEDULE



December 22:
Mary Hake | Carpe Diem 


December 24:
Stories By Gina | Remembrancy 










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1 comment:

  1. Kay Garrett27/12/18 12:18

    Thank you for your review on "In the Shadow of Croft Towers" by Abigail Wilson and for being part of the book tour.

    Sounds like a fabulous book. I would love the opportunity to read this book on my TBR list.
    2clowns at arkansas dot net

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