Let's look at the things Jennifer Jordan (henceforth referred to as JJ) has to deal with, shall we?
- 8 siblings of the whole, step and half variety
- one of whom is horrible (the mostly wretched Gwenn)
- one of whom is completely forgettable (Vance who I had to look up when he was mentioned at the end because I completely forgot he existed)
- one of whom is an orphan who may or may not have been in the car when his parents were killed
- a father who is away working for Uncle Sam
- a housekeeper who has zero work ethic
- a hired girl who has the IQ of a can of spam
- a neighbor boy with PTSD who requires lots of attention
- PTSD-boy's snooty aunt
- a landlord who is always in her business (just kidding, he's the best)
- a wedding to arrange
- a wife to murder
- and Guilder to frame for it
The poor girl is swamped!
Okay, the last two were The Princess Bride but still, you get the idea.
JJ is great. She is raising all these kids with very little help. She uses her army-brat know-how to keep them in line. The kids are pretty awesome, too. Their favorite game is Orphan Asylum. Considering that 3 of them are complete orphans, this is a bold stance.
She talks Mr. Caldwaller, a widow who has an empty house that used to belong to his now dead son, into letting them rent the place when their housekeeper bolts and JJ decides it would be better to live by a lake. I think maybe she has an internal understanding that the family would be good for Mr. C and he for them. And she is right.
Mr. C has a daughter, Lacey, who is a beautiful school teacher who loves the kids and acts as a surrogate big sister/Auntie to JJ. There is also a handsome Lieutenant who comes around pretty regularly and Lambert uses a play from her Candy Kane book and pairs up these two kindly young adults prettily. (Oh, spoiler, they get married at the end after an adorable courtship with the requisite misunderstanding.)
The PTSD boy is Cyril, who lost his adored older siblings in the London bombings. He also has some metal in his back but is dying to get back to Merrie Olde so that he can get "in the action." His Aunt is a Mrs. Claypool type of the highest order who just wants what is best for the boy, but is terrible at figuring out that it is JJ.
There is also a tutor and some assorted maids and butlers, one of whom has an egregious brogue, but is a wonderful, motherly type.
The story centers around JJ taking care of every freaking thing. Then she gets sick and everyone realizes how much she does for them all and they help her get well. Cyril is in love with her, natch. Auntie doesn't approve, of course. But everything works out in the end. Even though Alice (my fave) breaks her collarbone and almost can't go on the big trip to New York after the wedding. (And a declaration of love from Cyril to JJ and a chaste kiss.)
There is also a nice bit about how Donny (the brother/cousin who lost his parents in the car crash) begins to hero-worship Cyril, which is just what the sad sack needs.
Also there is a horse and Cyril is a Lord. Not the messianic kind, but rather the English kind. Don't worry, but the end of the book he decides the only good titles are earned ones like "General" and his hair is as short as any, by God, American boy in Florida.
This book was lovely and all those kids are destined to be plot fodder for more Lambertian shenanigans later on. I look forward to reading about all of them. Even Gwenn who is spoiled and selfish, although she does get a little redemption at the end. As we all should.
Back to Penny Parrish next time - on Broadway!
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