Ambersley (Lords of London) [Kindle Edition]

Amy Atwell (Author)

Book Description

An heiress in disguise. A duke who doubts his legitimacy. Will secrets destroy their love?

Traumatized by a blaze that killed her parents, young Johanna remembers nothing of her privileged past and remains ignorant of the dangers that surround her. She grows up among the servants, where she develops a sense of purpose that helps her survive the betrayal that unmasks her true identity. Once she is forced to take her proper place in Regency society as the highly sought heiress to the Ambersley fortune, she must defy the relatives who would make her a pawn in their struggle for power. 

When Derek Vaughan inherits the dukedom. his dubious parentage makes it a sacrilege to accept. But touched by the ravaged estate and its destitute staff, he braves a society that once shunned him while he rebuilds Ambersley and guards it from his stepmother's bankrupting clutches. He intends to grant the title to his half-brother when the boy comes of age, but Derek's plans go awry from the moment the gardener's apprentice--once his trusted young friend--is revealed to be not only an heiress of beauty and spirit, but the one woman who may finally capture his heart.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"AMBERSLEY shares rich storytelling treats that go beyond the traditional romance; it's reminiscent of classic Judith McNaught works."  --RITA-nominated author, Therese Walsh, The Last Will of Moira Leahy

"Atwell (Lying Eyes, 2010) has an intriguing premise, and her craftsmanship shows in solid descriptions, smooth dialogue and observations... Historical accuracy adds greatly to the pleasure of the Regency romance."  --Kirkus Reviews

About the Author

Award-winning and bestselling author Amy Atwell worked in professional theater for 15 years before turning from the stage to the page to write fiction. She now gives her imagination free rein in both contemporary and historical stories that feature smart women and noble men who find love while managing to mend their meddlesome families. Her manuscripts and books have earned her a Golden Heart® nomination, over 25 other contest finals and Ambersley has been featured on the Top 100 Books lists for both Amazon Kindle and Barnes & Noble Nook. An Ohio native, Amy has lived all across the country and now resides on a barrier island in Florida with her husband, two Russian Blues and a demon kitten. She’s currently writing the second book in the Lords of London series.

Product Details

• File Size: 549 KB
• Print Length: 351 pages
• Page Numbers Source ISBN: 0984968210
• Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
• Publisher: Amy Atwell; 1 edition (June 18, 2011)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B0056TJOSY
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #11,652 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 52 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Couldn't put this book down! September 22, 2011

By Joyously Retired Teacher

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

A fire destroys the ducal manor, killing the duke and duchess, after which their four-year-old daughter Amber Johanna is missing. The gardener and his wife find the frightened little girl and keep her safe while madness reigns at the manor. But they keep finding reasons to hang on to her afterwards, such as wondering if she will be well-cared-for by her distant relatives, if someone started the fire on purpose and would kill her too if they knew she still lived, etc. The truth is, they lost a son named Johnny about the same age and Amber fit the bill. They make up a story about taking in an orphaned relative, and because they dress her as a boy and call her Johnny, and because she has lost her memory, no one suspects that she is the missing girl.

The new duke has a stepmother that would like to see him dead so that her son could inherit. He has reason to believe that he is not really the true heir because his mother--who was hanged for murdering one of her lovers--conceived another man's child and passed him off as legitimate. He realizes he should not really inherit the dukedom, but his half-brother is only 12 and under the influence of his greedy mother, and thus not able to handle the onerous duties of restoring the burned manor, especially since the previous duke's fortune was left to his missing daughter and cannot be touched until she appears or is presumed dead after 7 years.

Johnny becomes great friends with the duke, and is happy pretending to be a boy because she can be with people she loves and do things she enjoys. Her "parents" realize they should confess the truth, but are afraid that the duke's selfish stepmother will mistreat her and/or they themselves will be imprisoned or sent to Bedlam for hiding her in the first place. After Johnny rescues the duke from a fire when she is 11, she remembers her identity, but decides not to say anything because of fear that the duke will be angry at her deception and because she fears for her parents. Even when Amber Johanna is declared dead and the duke inherits her money, she keeps the secret because she wants everything to stay the same. Why does she need money anyway? Life is great the way it is.

After her parents' deaths when she is 17, Johnny cannot give up the disguise. However, treachery on the part of the duke's stepmother results in her unveiled as a female, and the duke angrily sends her away to his aunt and cousin, who quickly discover her true identity. At that point, Johnny becomes Johanna, and she must become a lady and an heiress. "Johnny" was supposedly sent off to America while Johanna becomes an instant success in London society.

Needless to say, Johanna soon realizes her friendship with the duke is really love, but she has no hope of being loved in return. When he offers marriage, she refuses, believing that he does it only for her inheritance. Of course, the duke has other reasons for wanting her, namely that he can't let any other man have her, and he refuses to give up.

In the meantime, the evil stepmother continues her plotting against the two of them, but her plots have the unintended consequence of forcing the two into marriage. All is not well, however, because neither sure of the other's love, and the duke still has grave concerns about his parentage and his fitness to be duke. And his stepmother's plots against them become very treacherous indeed.

I loved these characters and found myself anxiously turning the pages to find out what would happen. Truly, this is one of the best books I have read recently, and I will be eagerly checking out this author's past and future works.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Well done story! October 13, 2011

By jaimilyn

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Riveting story, a definite page-turner. Closer to 4.5 stars for me, as one of the central plot lines seems to have been left unresolved, but as there's threads for what seems to be at least 3 sequels, perhaps the author is leaving it for the future. The author did such a good job with the side characters, I was quite disappointed to find out there's no sequels currently available. More please!

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Well Done April 6, 2013

By Becky

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I think I might be in love with all of the male characters in this book! Derek is absolutely delicious, readers, give him a chance. His story started out a little slow but be patient with him, there is a point. Harry is so infectious and bright, and Curtis with his dark and stormy nature are perfect foils. Ah, but Worthing, Worthing takes the cake and the entire tea service with it. Yum. I think it patently unfair of an author to have two such men as Derek and Worthing in the same book and ask any sane female to choose. Thankfully she keeps Curtis in leading strings for most of it or I don't know how I would have stood it.

That all out of the way, lol, this was a fantastic book! I was initially skeptical because the blurb described it as spanning decades and I thought I was in for either a tortuous read or one so chopped I would barely be able to follow the leaps in plot. Thankfully, neither were the case. This book needs much better marketing, the blurb does not do it justice. The story does span decades, but more in the vein of the Secret Garden. Long stretches of plot deal with the main characters during pivotal points in their lives before settling in to the present day at about the half-way mark. This was an exquisite read. Now that I have read it once, I will go back through and re-read at a slower pace and savor the beginning. I admit to being impatient at the beginning but I was attached to the wrong character and was waiting for him to grow up. I didn't see how the author could bring the heroine together with the man that was being set up as the hero and by the time it made sense I was already deep into the novel. The characters are all so well done, from the staff (I fell in love with the butler too!) to the female protagonists, they were all so alive. I love Johnny. I loved her final fencing scene and I applaud the author for her realism. I almost wish she had chosen "the better man" as Derek often refers to him because I quite honestly agree, but I understand her choice and I stand by it. Such a good book. You know a book is excellent when you start referring to the characters as real people and discuss the choices they make as if they actually had control over their actions. A salute to the author. Very very highly recommended for all Regency Romance lovers. This book is so good!

More About the Author

I'm a writer, traveler and adventurer, a lover of fine wine and top-notch food, and someone who believes you should never let go your dreams. I have cats, no kids, laugh out loud when I find something funny, and I'm still in love with my husband after 20+ years of marriage. I've known friendship and passion, heartache and grief, and I always believe the glass is half full until I empty it. I confess to being a little obsessive-compulsive. And I love chocolate. My debut book LYING EYES released from Carina Press in November 2010. Life is good.

I've lived a little bit of everywhere, but I'm especially drawn to islands (Deer Isle, Manhattan--seriously, it's an island, check the map!--, the Outer Banks, and now a barrier island on Florida's First Coast). Yet, I love urban trekking: Chicago, New York, San Francisco, Las Vegas, London, Paris, Rome, Venice, Munich. I love to travel by car, by train, by plane, by ship--doesn't matter. Show me an adventure. I'm ready.

I've done a little bit of everything, probably because I majored in theater in college. I've acted and directed, trained horses, managed retail stores, sold everything from fossils to wine refrigeration, custom designed closets, unloaded semi-trucks and served on corporate boards. I've sung with a rock band, taught Shakespeare and written a romance novel. Yes, it's possible I'm spoiled and unemployable. Fortunately, my cats don't expect me to take direction.