The Lady’s Maid by Susan Page Davis {Book Review}

Lady Anne has lost most of her family and most recently her father. According to British law, she cannot inherit her father’s estate and instead it will be turned over to her uncle, David Stone. Unfortunately, her uncle left for America years ago and hasn’t been heard from in years. If he cannot be found, the estate will turn over to another relative.

Determined to find him, Lady Anne sets out with her personal maid, Elise Finster on a journey across the American frontier, beginning in St. Louis. They discover that David headed West years ago and the only way to see if he is still alive is to travel with a wagon train headed to Oregon. What the ladies do not know is they are being followed and someone is trying to find David Stone before they do.

Neither lady has much experience to offer, but they do find help in one of the scouts leading the train, Eb Bentley. As much as he thinks they should not be on the wagon train, he does all he can to make things easier for both of them, but especially one of the ladies in particular. Will they both survive the trip to Oregon and will one of them find a reason to stay in America instead of returning to England?

My Thoughts

I do love the premise of the book series and the adventure that the two ladies take to find Anne’s uncle. I cannot even begin to imagine the challenges that so many faced as they headed West to settle ~ surviving the trip alone would have been a feat. The two traveling in this story came from a proper upbringing and were accustomed to all the modern conveniences of the time. Their attitudes in the process were absolutely wonderful, not wishing for others to think differently of them or know who they really were. They ended up giving up and selling much in the process to try to better fit in with those around them.

I have to admit, however, that this wasn’t my favorite book read lately. While I loved the overall plot of the book, I was a little frustrated at the end of the book because things weren’t all ‘neatly’ tied up and finished. It is a part of a series {it says ‘Book 1’ on the front cover ~ I missed that} and while one part of the plot was wrapped up, it was done rather quickly and almost a bit too hastily in my opinion. Not to give anything away, but if you are hoping for resolution on the finding of David Stone…you’ll have to wait until more of the books are released.

That said, I already have my hands on the next book in the series {Lady Anne’s Quest} where the adventure to find the missing uncle continues {and I attempt to appease my curious mind}. I have no complaints at all about Davis’ writing style or the book otherwise, but I suppose I’m being stubborn. :) 

Find Out More

~ Visit Susan Page Davis' website

~ Buy The Lady’s Maid ~ Prairie Dreams Book 1 by Susan Page Davis in paperback or Kindle format.

This book was provided for review by Barbour and NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are solely my own.