{"id":11792,"date":"2019-03-27T11:19:08","date_gmt":"2019-03-27T15:19:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/?p=11792"},"modified":"2022-10-30T20:02:14","modified_gmt":"2022-10-31T00:02:14","slug":"the-matrimonial-advertisement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/11792","title":{"rendered":"The Matrimonial Advertisement"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Matrimonial Advertisement<\/a><\/em> (Parish Orphans of Devon) (2018) Mimi Matthews<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Set in England in 1859.<\/p>\n

Helena Reynolds has fled London. She’s in Devon responding to a matrimonial advertisement, but if this doesn’t work, she return to London.<\/p>\n

Justin Thornhill was a captain in the British army who served in India, and returned home physically scarred. Raised in an orphanage, he has done everything possible to secure the dreams he had as a child, for himself and for his friends, but he is lonely and alone, and coerced into filing a matrimonial advertisement. He wants a solid spinster–he gets Helena.<\/p>\n

Both Helena and Justin have secrets, and each feels that once other discovers those secrets are brought to light, what they have cobbled together will evaporate. They’re both broken in complicated ways.<\/p>\n

\u201cI dislike suffering for no purpose. Pain and sacrifice should come to something in the end. It should have meaning.\u201d <\/p>\n

Helena nodded slowly, her expression thoughtful. \u201cYes, it should. But I\u2019m not convinced it ever does. Not really.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Yet still care deeply about those around them.<\/p>\n

She gave him a long, searching look. \u201cIs that why we loathe the place?\u201d <\/p>\n

We<\/em>. <\/p>\n

Justin\u2019s chest expanded on an almost painful surge of emotion. He couldn\u2019t tell if it was relief or\u2014 worse\u2014 if it was gratitude. All she\u2019d said was we. It was hardly a declaration of undying affection, but to him, in that moment, it was everything. \u201cYes. That\u2019s the reason.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

And Justin is a good person, even if he’s cold and brusque and tries to force people away.<\/p>\n

\u201cI owe you everything, Justin.\u201d <\/p>\n

He frowned. \u201cNo,\u201d he said, shaking his head. \u201cNo. That isn\u2019t how any of this works. It isn\u2019t a tabulation of debts and repayments.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

What I found both fascinating and horrifying was how that bad guy of the piece continued to believe that the world owed him–Helena owed him. He refuses to see that he has done anything wrong.<\/p>\n

It’s awful, yet it rings unpleasantly true every time he attempts to justify his actions.<\/p>\n

This story does go into some dark places, all of which are based on incidents of the time.<\/p>\n

The editorial that Mr. Pelham writes for the fictional London Courant is a paraphrased version of an actual editorial which ran in The London Times on August 19, 1858. It addressed abuses in private asylums and revealed, among other disturbing facts, just how often sane people were committed by greedy relatives who were trying to gain control of their money.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Which really makes them all the darker and more horrifying.<\/p>\n

But it’s a good story, and I enjoyed it, and I ordered the next in the series, due out next month.<\/p>\n

Publisher: Perfectly Proper Press
\nRating: 7.5\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Matrimonial Advertisement (Parish Orphans of Devon) (2018) Mimi Matthews Set in England in 1859. Helena Reynolds has fled London. She’s in Devon responding to a matrimonial advertisement, but if this doesn’t work, she return to London. Justin Thornhill was a captain in the British army who served in India, and returned home physically scarred. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[194,30,33,26],"tags":[181,557],"class_list":["post-11792","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-7-5-10","category-british","category-historical","category-romance","tag-mimi-matthews","tag-victorian"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/piQkW-34c","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":11881,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/11881","url_meta":{"origin":11792,"position":0},"title":"A Modest Independence","author":"Michelle","date":"April 30, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"A Modest Independence (2019) Mimi Matthews (Parish Orphans of Devon) Set in England, Egypt, and India in 1860 Solicitor Tom Finchley has worked his way up from nothing. He craves security, which is why he puts up with a job that often leaves him feeling uncomfortable, since the men he\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/A-Modest-Independence.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":12171,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/12171","url_meta":{"origin":11792,"position":1},"title":"A Convenient Fiction","author":"Michelle","date":"October 23, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"A Convenient Fiction (2019) Mimi Matthews Set in England in 1860 Laura Hayes father died three years earlier of the same fever that crippled her brother and left her weakened but also in charge of her family--but with few resources to do so, since their properties were left to be\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "British"","block_context":{"text":"British","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/british"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/A-Convenient-Fiction.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":12501,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/12501","url_meta":{"origin":11792,"position":2},"title":"The Winter Companion","author":"Michelle","date":"February 13, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"The Winter Companion (2020) Mimi Matthews Set in England in 1860 This is the 4th book of The Parish Orphans of Devon series, and about the most complicated of the four men. Neville Cross has spent as much time as possible with animals, rather than people, after the accident that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Winter Companion","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/The-Winter-Companion.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":24118,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/24118","url_meta":{"origin":11792,"position":3},"title":"The Siren of Sussex","author":"Michelle","date":"December 7, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"The Siren of Sussex (2022) Mimi Matthews (Belles of London #1) Set in London in 1862 Ahmad Malik and his cousin Mira came to England after her mother died, and after her father died, Ahmad took whatever work he could to care for her. Now he is a tailor, hoping\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Siren of Sussex","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/The-Siren-of-Sussex.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/The-Siren-of-Sussex.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/The-Siren-of-Sussex.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":19491,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/19491","url_meta":{"origin":11792,"position":4},"title":"A Holiday By Gaslight","author":"Michelle","date":"December 30, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"A Holiday By Gaslight (2018) Mimi Matthews Set in England in 1861 I love a good novella \/ short story. I have tremendous respect for an author who can build characters and an immersive story in under 200 pages. What I particularly liked about this story is Sophie has a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "9\/10"","block_context":{"text":"9\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/9-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"A Holiday By Gaslight","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/A-Holiday-By-Gaslight.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":12143,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/12143","url_meta":{"origin":11792,"position":5},"title":"The Work of Art","author":"Michelle","date":"October 8, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"The Work of Art (2019) Mimi Matthews Set in England in 1814 Phyllida Satterthwaite lived with her grandparents until their death, at which point she was taken to London to live with her uncle, who Had Plans For Her. both of her cousins immediately perked up, as if they expected\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "7.5\/10"","block_context":{"text":"7.5\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/7-5-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/The-Work-of-Art.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11792","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11792"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11792\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11792"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11792"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11792"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}