The Darling - Elizabeth Keys

When Society’s Darling Rebels…
Lenore Brownley thinks she’s taken her destiny into her own hands when her sister leaves Boston and Lenore takes her place as one of society’s favorite daughters. But when the frivolous pleasures of tea parties and new frocks wears thin, Lenore escapes to the wilds of Maine and the dubious comfort of her grandmother’s home—where Lenore’s parents hope she’ll ingratiate herself with the headstrong keeper of the family fortune.


…She Leaves Propriety Far Behind—For Love.
Lenore’s grandmother, however, is more interested in pairing her with temptingly handsome doctor Jake Warren, who runs a local clinic in a nearby mill town. Leaving behind stuffy, proper Boston for a taste of adventure is one thing, but nursing is beyond Lenore’s ken. Or so she thinks, until Jake’s fiery determination to uncover her nurturing side reveals her passionate impulses instead, as well as a new longing to prove to him that she wants to be his partner in every way…

I got this book as a Christmas present. I had never heard of the author so I decided to try it.

I am afraid I did not find it very compelling. This was a part of series and the characters kept referring to people and situations from the previous book which left me a bit lost.

Both the heroine and the hero seemed a bit immature and prone to jump to conclusions, and I'm not sure they actually became more mature during the course of the story. They were also not well rounded so I didn’t feel any empathy for them. The heroine, who doesn't seem to have been very nice in the previous book, is sent to live with her grandmother after the family fortune suffers a blow. The grandmother actually works managing the family businesses but the heroine doesn't seem too interested in learning. Eventually the grandmother has to travel and it's decided that she will help the hero, son of grandmother's beau in his work as a doctor. Confusing? I thought so too. There is a bit of a mystery on the second half of the story about what is happening to some orphan girls but the villain is not well developed and not much information is provided.

In the end I was just not interested enough and I actually skimmed the last few chapters.

Grade: 2.5/5