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The Smuggler's Daughters #1
The Lace Maiden
Deal, Kent. 1817. The heart of the British smuggling business.
In Deal's narrow alleyways, amid the gloomy counting houses and muttering inns, Louisa, Winnie and Grace Lennicker live in a dangerous world of fishermen, sailors, and smugglers. When their father, a talented smuggler, is murdered by a rival gang over a few scraps of contraband, the sisters are forced to carve out a living from the ‘honourable trade’ of smuggling spirits, French lace, gold and jewellery. It's the only life they've ever known, and they're determined not to let it be taken away.
Dodging revenue officers and fighting for business with cut-throat rivals, they water down brandy, cut tea with rose leaves, receive goods from ships wrecked on the treacherous Goodwin Sands a few miles off the coast, and even become involved with transferring prisoners of war and gold on the guinea boats to France.
The stakes are high. Getting caught means imprisonment, transportation, or even the gallows. The smugglers' world is tight-knit, but there are people in Deal who would throw them to the wolves at the drop of a hat. It will take every drop of courage, wit, and luck the sisters can muster to reclaim the life stolen from them - and to gain justice for their murdered father.
- GenresHistorical Fiction
400 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 9, 2020
3 people are currently reading
28 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
January 8, 2020
I have been a fan of Evie Grace's work for a fair while now. I have read, reviewed and loved each and every book that she has released - from her debut saga novel 'Half A Sixpence' right up until her most recent release 'The Lace Maiden', which was released on 9th January 2020. I was fortunate enough to sneak a peek at an early review copy of 'The Lace Maiden' and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it but more about that in a bit.
I couldn't help but take to the character of Louisa Lennicker from the start and I ended up feeling quite sorry for her. Louisa, her sisters and their father live in Deal. Louisa's mother died a short time before the story starts. Louisa's father is a fisherman and also a smuggler, which brings all kinds of danger to the Lennicker door. Louisa and her sisters are also involved with their father's business. Louisa's father takes one risk too many and he ends up being killed by a rival gang. Louisa is suddenly catapulted to the role of head of the family, which would be hard at any age but Louisa is still very young and finding her way in life. She ends up being both parents to her sisters, whilst trying her hardest to keep a roof over their heads and the wolf from the door. I kept everything crossed that Louisa would manage to keep a roof over their heads and that she would eventually find the happy ever after ending that she so deserved. What happens? Well that would be telling. To find out what happens, you are just going to have to read the book for yourselves to find out as I am not going to tell you.
I must admit that it took me a little while to get into this book but that has something to do with the fact that I was getting used to all of the old fashioned smuggling type terminology. The story takes place in 1811 when the English language differed a lot from the language as we know it today. Once I got into this book that was it, I just found the book to be unputdownable. The book wasn't exactly glued to my hand but it might as well have been because it travelled everywhere with me. I didn't want to miss a single second of the story. I think that part of my addiction to this story was the fact that I had warmed so much to Louisa that she began to feel like a friend and I felt protective of her. I had to keep reading to discover what fate had in store for her. The pages turned increasingly quickly as my desperation to find out what happened steadily grew and grew. 'The Lace Maiden' is one of those books that I wanted to finish but I didn't want to finish because I was enjoying the book so much that I didn't want it to end. Other bookworms will know exactly what I mean. All too quickly it was time to say goodbye to Louisa and her sisters.
'The Lace Maiden' is brilliantly written but then I wouldn't expect anything else from Evie Grace. She certainly knows how to grab your attention from the start and draw you into the story. She describes her characters so well that they seem to spring off the page and they seem just as real as you or I. Evie uses such vivid, powerful and realistic descriptions that I really did feel as though I was part of the story myself. I even began to interact with the book as if it were real. Before anybody says anything, yes I do know that this is fiction and not real but I find that if I enjoy a book to the extent I enjoyed 'The Lace Maiden' then I 'live' the story as it were real. Having a very vivid imagination also helps of course.
'The Lace Maiden' certainly took me one heck of an emotional journey with all the highs, lows, ups, downs, tears, smiles and well you get the picture. I found that I empathised with Louisa to the extent that I found I was going through every single emotion that she was going through.
In short, Evie Grace has done it again and she has written one heck of a book. I thoroughly enjoyed reading 'The Lace Maiden'. I would have no hesitation in recommending Evie and her books to other readers. I will definitely be reading more of Evie's work in the future. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 5* out of 5*.
I couldn't help but take to the character of Louisa Lennicker from the start and I ended up feeling quite sorry for her. Louisa, her sisters and their father live in Deal. Louisa's mother died a short time before the story starts. Louisa's father is a fisherman and also a smuggler, which brings all kinds of danger to the Lennicker door. Louisa and her sisters are also involved with their father's business. Louisa's father takes one risk too many and he ends up being killed by a rival gang. Louisa is suddenly catapulted to the role of head of the family, which would be hard at any age but Louisa is still very young and finding her way in life. She ends up being both parents to her sisters, whilst trying her hardest to keep a roof over their heads and the wolf from the door. I kept everything crossed that Louisa would manage to keep a roof over their heads and that she would eventually find the happy ever after ending that she so deserved. What happens? Well that would be telling. To find out what happens, you are just going to have to read the book for yourselves to find out as I am not going to tell you.
I must admit that it took me a little while to get into this book but that has something to do with the fact that I was getting used to all of the old fashioned smuggling type terminology. The story takes place in 1811 when the English language differed a lot from the language as we know it today. Once I got into this book that was it, I just found the book to be unputdownable. The book wasn't exactly glued to my hand but it might as well have been because it travelled everywhere with me. I didn't want to miss a single second of the story. I think that part of my addiction to this story was the fact that I had warmed so much to Louisa that she began to feel like a friend and I felt protective of her. I had to keep reading to discover what fate had in store for her. The pages turned increasingly quickly as my desperation to find out what happened steadily grew and grew. 'The Lace Maiden' is one of those books that I wanted to finish but I didn't want to finish because I was enjoying the book so much that I didn't want it to end. Other bookworms will know exactly what I mean. All too quickly it was time to say goodbye to Louisa and her sisters.
'The Lace Maiden' is brilliantly written but then I wouldn't expect anything else from Evie Grace. She certainly knows how to grab your attention from the start and draw you into the story. She describes her characters so well that they seem to spring off the page and they seem just as real as you or I. Evie uses such vivid, powerful and realistic descriptions that I really did feel as though I was part of the story myself. I even began to interact with the book as if it were real. Before anybody says anything, yes I do know that this is fiction and not real but I find that if I enjoy a book to the extent I enjoyed 'The Lace Maiden' then I 'live' the story as it were real. Having a very vivid imagination also helps of course.
'The Lace Maiden' certainly took me one heck of an emotional journey with all the highs, lows, ups, downs, tears, smiles and well you get the picture. I found that I empathised with Louisa to the extent that I found I was going through every single emotion that she was going through.
In short, Evie Grace has done it again and she has written one heck of a book. I thoroughly enjoyed reading 'The Lace Maiden'. I would have no hesitation in recommending Evie and her books to other readers. I will definitely be reading more of Evie's work in the future. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 5* out of 5*.
February 18, 2020
A good read with well-written characters and a plot that moves at a steady pace. Not all of the situations are resolved by the end of the book, but I am sure they will be dealt with in the next couple of books. I did get somewhat annoyed by the heroine who kept making poor decisions and thereby putting herself in need of rescue. Fortunately, our hero was on hand to save the day each and every time. Still, it wasn't a bad read and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys historical fiction.
March 28, 2020
Although it took me a little while to get into this, I actually really enjoyed it. Louisa and her sisters, Winnie and Grace are likeable characters and the storyline was quite good. Recommend for anyone who likes Historical fiction.
October 27, 2020
A good saga set in 19th century
February 2, 2022
Really enjoyed this book couldn’t wait to start the second book in the trilogy.
Have read all of Evie Grace books never disappointed.
Have read all of Evie Grace books never disappointed.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews