Mist of Midnight by Sandra Byrd


In the first of a brand-new series set in Victorian England, a young woman returns home from India after the death of her family to discover her identity and inheritance are challenged by the man who holds her future in his hands.

Rebecca Ravenshaw, daughter of missionaries, spent most of her life in India. Following the death of her family in the Indian Mutiny, Rebecca returns to claim her family estate in Hampshire, England. Upon her return, people are surprised to see her...and highly doubtful. Less than a year earlier, an pretender had arrived with an Indian servant and assumed not only Rebecca's name, but her home and incomes. 

That pretender died within months of her arrival; the servant fled to London as the young woman was hastily buried at midnight. The locals believe that perhaps she, Rebecca, is the real pretender. Her home and her father's investments reverted to a distant relative, the darkly charming Captain Luke Whitfield, who quickly took over. Against her best intentions, Rebecca begins to fall in love with Luke, but she is forced to question his motives—does he love her or does he just want Head Bourne House? If Luke is simply after the property, as everyone suspects, will she suffer a similar fate as the first “Rebecca”? 

A captivating Gothic love story set against a backdrop of intrigue and danger, Mist of Midnight will leave you breathless.

Written in a covered gothic tone, Mist of Midnight starts with the return of Rebecca Ravenshaw to her family estate. Now, this is a return that is already delicate as Rebecca is coming home from India where the rest of her family perished. She is a virtual stranger to England. When she arrives at her estate she discovers it occupied and that her arrival is met with suspicion. It seems that Rebecca Ravenshaw had already claimed the property and died a tragic not-to-be-talked about death. As days go on, Rebecca uncovers more puzzles and strange behaviors, even from the only one she begins to trust, Luke Whitfield, the man in line to inherit should Rebecca prove to be an imposter or show up dead.

Loved this, so dark and thoughtful and outright disturbing in places. My historical desire was fully spoiled with the social exclusion of Rebecca and the calculating folks who watched and waited for her to fail at her endeavor. The twists and turns in this tale offer up a great story in the process.


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