Rating: 
Summary: A rainy day must!
Review: Carla Kelly has done it again. This time a Welsh bailiff, former foundling, thief, liar and war hero sets out to win the heart of a courageous lady. Susie Hampton is a lady and in the Regency time period, socially superior to Sergeant Wiggins. Their courtship and friendship has been so well crafted by Carla Kelly. She manages to incorporate the horrors of the long battle of England against France, while showing the bravery of the many men and women involved in the campaign. This book was a welcome addition to my vacation suitcase.
Rating:
Summary: Down a Different Path
Review: Carla Kelly never fails to present us with very real characters who are, sometimes, caught up in painful circumstances which they must work through.In The Lady's Companion, she has presented us with Susan Hampton, the daughter of a profligate and selfish baronet who has sqandered his fortune and, therefore, her future amongst her own class. Susan takes courage into both hands and looks for a paid post outside her own circle. She meets the delightful Joel Steinman, proprietor of an employment agency, and is sent to the Dowager Lady Bushnell as a lady's companion. In fact, she has been sent, unbeknownst to her, as a gift from Joel to David Wiggins, former Regimental Sergeant Major, now the bailiff to Lady Bushnell at her manor, Quilling, in the heart of the Cotswolds. This is one thread of the story and it is beguiling in its unfolding. The battle of Waterloo plays a big role in this story for it colours the actions and the characters of David, Joel, Lady Bushnell and her family. A beautiful metaphorical device, a strain of wheat bred from a handful of grain picked up at La Haye Sainte farmhouse during the battle, becomes a symbol of hope, of forgiveness, of coming to terms with the death, destruction, cowardice, heroism and trial by fire that those who survived must deal with in its aftermath. All in all, this is a radically different book - nothing like most traditional regencies. It's not just a cross-class romance, it is about endurance, faithfulness, courage and honour. The love the various characters develop for each other is moving and poignant. The ending of the novel is emotional and sad but also full of hope for the future. Despite their superficial differences, Susan and David are well matched.
Rating: 
Summary: More a Catherine Cookson than a Regency romance
Review: Carla Kelly never writes traditional Regencies, and her books are frequently superior to the average for that reason alone. I adored 'Mrs Drew Plays Her Hand' and 'Reforming Lord Ragsdale.' This book is quite different even from those. Susan is the daughter of a gentleman, but her father is a gambler and has fallen on hard times. After he lost her family home, Susan was forced to go to live with an aunt, who turned her into an unpaid servant. So, she decides, she might as well get paid for such work, and applies for a job as a lady's companion. At the home of her employer, Susan meets, not a handsome son who instantly falls in love with her (as more traditional Regencies would have), but her employer's bailiff. A completely unsuitable match for a lady - but why should it be considered unsuitable? This is why I say this book is more reminiscent of Catherine Cookson's nineteenth-century novels, where these kind of cross-class romances are more commonly found. Kelly provides her usual natural style and occasionally earthy touch to the romance (and I don't just mean in terms of sex scenes; her characters are always well-rounded and she spares no maidenly modesty). I still prefer her earlier books, but if you're a Carla Kelly fan this one is worth a try.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderfully Strong and Moving . . .
Review: I liked this book. Let's get that said and that's what a 3 star means to me. It wasn't my favorite but no less dear to me and nor will I get rid of it because I am a Kelly fan through and through.
I know that this had potential for a four and at times even a five star review because I enjoyed reading it and delving into the gritty life of our protagonists.
As I weighed the decision of how many stars it deserved in my mind, I came the oneconclusion. David Wiggins' character could have been a little more fleshed out. You know he comes to love her and you see it through Susan's eyes but I wish that there had been time given to delve into how David felt. His side of the story never really came into fruitation in this book and he is evasive nad not too forthcoming at times to tell his story and history to Susan which keeps you guessing throughout the read why he is the way he is. There was room for more depth which is one of many reasons I read Kelly, but this is in no way a bad read.
I advocate this book along with all of Kelly's books. Because of all her's so far I've liked and treasure!
I suggest if you get your hands on the out-of-print book then you'll enjoy Elisabeth Fairchild and Nancy Butler, too.
Rating:
Summary: Lovely book.
Review: I read The Lady's Companion over 3 months ago. I was reminded of it when I saw the title after following the link to the author. I've read all but one and I think it's one of her best. She hasn't written a Regency that is anything less than 4 1/2 stars. Many deserve higher than 5 stars.
Rating:
Summary: I Didn't Listen To My Friends & Now I'm Scrambling!
Review: My friends told me Carla Kelly was a terrific writer. I didn't listen. For a long time I just ignored all regencies because their covers are so hideous. Finally, a few Carla Kelly books came my way and I was astonished to discover a present day writer who is the next best thing to getting a reincarnation of Jane Austen herself! So I've hunted down some of her books but have a long way to go before I have them all. I should have listened because these books are much harder to find nowadays. "The Lady's Companion" is at the top of my list of Kelly's books. It is because she effectively deals with the British system of class. The British tend to drive me crazy over their class distinctions so Kelly had her ideal reader with me on this novel. A writer who can at one and the same time find humor in the class situation yet also write a love story around it--well, no one but Kelly has done it so well since Austen herself, IMHO! In this novel, the "lady" in question, is reduced by her father's gambling to become a lady's companion of an elderly, difficult woman. She also starts thinking about marrying the bailiff of the estate where she works. This is a really radical notion because the two are not of the same class! You would think an interracial marriage was being broached with the reactions this couple encounter. Don't miss this book. In 2nd place with me is "Reforming Lord Ragsdale" by Kelly.
Rating:
Summary: I Didn't Listen To My Friends & Now I'm Scrambling!
Review: My friends told me Carla Kelly was a terrific writer. I didn't listen. For a long time I just ignored all regencies because their covers are so hideous. Finally, a few Carla Kelly books came my way and I was astonished to discover a present day writer who is the next best thing to getting a reincarnation of Jane Austen herself! So I've hunted down some of her books but have a long way to go before I have them all. I should have listened because these books are much harder to find nowadays. "The Lady's Companion" is at the top of my list of Kelly's books. It is because she effectively deals with the British system of class. The British tend to drive me crazy over their class distinctions so Kelly had her ideal reader with me on this novel. A writer who can at one and the same time find humor in the class situation yet also write a love story around it--well, no one but Kelly has done it so well since Austen herself, IMHO! In this novel, the "lady" in question, is reduced by her father's gambling to become a lady's companion of an elderly, difficult woman. She also starts thinking about marrying the bailiff of the estate where she works. This is a really radical notion because the two are not of the same class! You would think an interracial marriage was being broached with the reactions this couple encounter. Don't miss this book. In 2nd place with me is "Reforming Lord Ragsdale" by Kelly.
Rating:
Summary: A lovely romance, with excellent secondary characters
Review: Susan's father has bankrupted them with his compulsive gambling, and she decides she would rather work for her living than be a poor relation, even though it scares her to death. She goes to work as a companion to a lonely but very proper and reserved old lady, where she meets and is intrigued instantly by the lady's bailiff. Not only is this a refreshing change from the usual poor-girl-rich-lord story, but it is extremely well-written and the emotions all seem honest. I like best the books where I feel as though I would want to know the people in it, and I definitely would have wanted to meet these people.
Rating:
Summary: I loved this book!
Review: This book made a Kelly fan out of me. I admit to a weakness for when an author can take a formula and tweak it. Having a Regency heroine fall for a servant and the author actually leave him a servant is a twist that I adored. The hero and heroine fall into an easy and natural relationship despite the social barriers between them. This is a plot easy on the melodrama but full of heart. For me it was a definite keeper.
Rating:
Summary: absorbing, well-researched and sweet
Review: This book made me a fan of Ms. Kelly's writings. The conflict is true to the period (no overly melodramatic murders or abductions) and believable. The characters are personable, except, naturally, when they are intentionally contemptible. I enjoyed this book the first time I read it and have re-read it many times. If all Regencies were as successful as this one, perhaps the genre would have higher standing within the literary community.
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