Welcome to Tilly Bagshawe’s Swell Valley, where the scandal is in a class of its own.
Tatiana Flint-Hamilton’s gilded cage is torn away when her estranged father dies. As the beloved family estate slips through Tati’s fingers, the portraits of her ancestors look down disapprovingly.
The new Lord of the Manor is just as ruthless as Tati. The old-world status of Furlings is everything the wealthy, self-made Brett Cranley has ever wanted. Luckily his wife Angela is the perfect homemaker, happy to fall into line with whatever Brett desires. Along with her two children, Furlings soon becomes Angela’s lifeline, a place she can finally belong. And one she’s not going to give up easily.
Losing everything has made Tati realise that her rightful inheritance is all that she now lives for… and she will do anything to get it back.
But the fate of Furlings lies in the hands of the villagers.
Let the Fittlescombe fireworks begin!
My opinion: I had been toying with reading this book for a while as the cover intrigued me. I was interested in what this sort of bonkbuster novel would be like, and with the Sex Me Up Readathon coming up, it was the perfect excuse to read it whilst lying on a sunlounger in Corfu!
Wild child Tatiana Flint-Hamilton is cut out of her father’s will when he dies. Not only does he stop her from inheriting Furlings, the family home, but he insists on conditions for her to receive an allowance. Furlings is passed on to distant Australian relatives, the Cranleys, who up sticks and move to England. Angela Cranley sees the move as a fresh start for her and businessman husband Brett and their two children, moving away from her husband’s past. Tati wants to be back in what she considers to be her rightful home and will stop at nothing to get it back.
I was pleasantly surprised that this book had a very good storyline. I’m a sucker for a book set in a rural environment, whether it be a cosy mystery or bonkbuster novel. This one reminded me of Jo Carnegie’s books – which I love! I was sucked into the story straight away, and although I hatedthe pretentious Tati at first, I felt like I really got to know her.
The book is set over a period of around ten years so we really get to know the characters and see them grow. The book included a really good mixture of great story and hot sex scenes – although I was confused about just how closely the Flint-Hamiltons and the Cranleys were related. The book is a whopper at over 500 pages, but the story is well paced with a good smattering of well thought out supporting characters, so didn’t feel that long.
If, like me, you enjoy reading about what goes on behind the scenes in country villages that are not so sleepy as they appear, then this book is for you. I will definitely be looking for more of Tilly’s books, as I think this is probably the right level of sexy book for me! A great story, with a lot of depth and thought behind it, with just the right amount of steamy sex!
My rating: Four stars
This week I am taking part in the #SexMeUp readathon – join in the conversation on twitter!
Sheli Reads 