Born of Persuasion by Jessica Dotta is the 1st in her Price of Privilege trilogy of historical
Regency oops, actually Victorian romances with a gothic flavour of suspense, starring an orphaned heroine who was raised as an atheist by her family which was subsequently shunned by society and who eventually uncovers dangerous secrets in her parents' past, free courtesy of Christian publisher Tyndale House.
NB: the customer reviews seem to indicate that this is not really a standalone book, and that the heroine's story continues and is better-explained by further installments in the trilogy. Also, some of them complained that it was kind of grim and creepy and not romance-y enough for their tastes. YMMV.
Currently free @
B&N (also in the
UK),
Amazon UK (slated to drop in the
main store after midnight Pacific Time), &
iTunes (available to Canadians).
ETA: Now also free @
ChristianBook (ADE-DRM ePub available worldwide).
And this has been the selected 3rd (non-repeat) free ebook thread of the day.
Because even though I suspect that the heroine's initial lack of faith will probably end up in some kind of conversion somewhere, the premise of exploring the social treatment of an atheist family and the surrounding effect of blaming the daughter for the sins of her father, so to speak, from a possibly-sympathetic religious viewpoint, is interesting enough that this might actually get to be the 5th ever dedicated Christian-imprint book I've ever tried out of sheer morbid curiosity.
Enjoy!
Description
The year is 1838, and seventeen-year-old Julia Elliston’s position has never been more fragile. Orphaned and unmarried in a time when women are legal property of their fathers, husbands, and guardians, she finds herself at the mercy of an anonymous guardian who plans to establish her as a servant in far-off Scotland.
With two months to devise a better plan, Julia’s first choice to marry her childhood sweetheart is denied. But when a titled dowager offers to introduce Julia into society, a realm of possibilities opens. However, treachery and deception are as much a part of Victorian society as titles and decorum, and Julia quickly discovers her present is deeply entangled with her mother’s mysterious past. Before she knows what’s happening, Julia finds herself a pawn in a deadly game between two of the country’s most powerful men. With no laws to protect her, she must unravel the secrets on her own. But sometimes truth is elusive and knowledge is deadly.