Julie Klassen's The Painter's Daughter ~ Reviewed

THE PAINTER'S DAUGHTER

By Julie Klassen

Dec. 2015

Bethany Publishing

ISBN: 0764210726

BACK COVER:

Sophie Dupont, daughter of a portrait painter, assists her father in his studio, keeping her own artwork out of sight. She often walks the cliffside path along the north Devon coast, popular with artists and poets. It's where she met the handsome Wesley Overtree, the first man to tell her she's beautiful.

Captain Stephen Overtree is accustomed to taking on his brother's neglected duties. Home on leave, he's sent to find Wesley. Knowing his brother rented a cottage from a fellow painter, he travels to Devonshire and meets Miss Dupont, the painter's daughter. He's startled to recognize her from a miniature portrait he carries with him--one of Wesley's discarded works. But his happiness plummets when he realizes Wesley has left her with child and sailed away to Italy in search of a new muse.

Wanting to do something worthwhile with his life, Stephen proposes to Sophie. He does not offer love, or even a future together, but he can save her from scandal. If he dies in battle, as he believes he will, she'll be a respectable widow with the protection of his family.

Desperate for a way to escape her predicament, Sophie agrees to marry a stranger and travel to his family's estate. But at Overtree Hall, her problems are just beginning. Will she regret marrying Captain Overtree when a repentant Wesley returns? Or will she find herself torn between the father of her child and her growing affection for the husband she barely knows?

MY REVIEW:

 

Love a dark and brooding hero who’s really all heart on the inside? Captain Stephen Overtree is the man for you! He comes to the rescue time and time again in The Painter’s Daughter, another deliciously intriguing Regency by author Julie Klassen. 

This tale of a marriage of convenience is sure to keep you up late into the wee hours of the morning. The heroine, Sophie Dupont, is between a rock and a hard place when she finds out she’s pregnant. Her lover leaves her behind for a painting trip to Italy.

Enter hero Stephen Overtree, a hulking captain in the army, and the brother of the man who ruined Sophie. He does the right thing by asking her to marry him, giving legitimacy to the unborn babe. But should she? She hardly knows him. She does, and ooh-la-la, what a heated relationship begins. 

And therein begins The Painter’s Daughter. There’s intrigue, romance, and plenty of secrets to go around. Stock up on frozen pizzas before you crack open this one, folks. Your family will starve otherwise, because there’s no way you’ll stop until you read The End.

Reviewed by: Michelle Griep