Author: Roseanna M. White
Print Publisher: Bethany House
Audio Publisher: Recorded Books
Narrator: Liz Pearce
Published: July 2017
Series: Shadows Over England, Book 1
Genre: Historical Romance
Length: 15 hours, 17 minutes. Unabridged.
About the Book: (from the publisher’s Web site)
She’s Out to Steal His Name. Will He Steal Her Heart Instead?
Rosemary Gresham has no family beyond the band of former urchins who helped her survive as a girl in the mean streets of London. Grown now, they are no longer pickpockets–instead they focus on high value items and have learned how to blend into upper-class society. Rosemary is beginning to question whether she can continue in this life when she’s offered the challenge of a lifetime–determine whether a certain wealthy gentleman is loyal to Britain or to Germany. After all how does one steal a family’s history, their very name?
As Europe moves ever closer to World War I, rumors swirl around Peter Holstein. Awkward and solitary, but with access to the king, many fear his influence. But Peter can’t help his German last name and wants to prove his loyalty to the Crown–so he can go back to anonymously writing a series of popular adventure novels. When Rosemary arrives on his doorstep pretending to be a well-credentialed historian, Peter believes she’s the right person to help him dig through his family’s past.
When danger and suspicion continue to mount, both realize they’re in a race against time to discover the truth–about Peter’s past and about the undeniable attraction kindling between them.
My Thoughts on the Book:
A Name Unknown is a delightfully fun read for those readers who like their historical romance with a touch of mystery, intrigue, and humor.
The characters are particularly fabulous. Rosemary for her compelling character arc and faith journey. Peter for his charming awkwardness combined with his thoughtfulness toward others, and an appealing quality I can’t quite pin down with words. I admired the way he “talked” so easily about his faith (in written form anyway), and I enjoyed watching the progression in Rosemary’s beliefs as they wrote back and forth. Their romance is sweet and includes some of my favorite tropes and character traits.
There’s a plot twist I didn’t see coming that was… intriguing. I’m tempted to re-read the whole thing just to convince my inner skeptic that all the pieces really do fit the twist. LOL! But I won’t give away any details. You’ll want to read this for yourself.
Specific to the Audio Edition:
I listened to the audio edition and absolutely loved it. Peter’s stuttering plays quite well in spoken form, and halfway through I had to track down a print copy to see if the author wrote it all out that way or if the narrator was ad-libbing. Sure enough, it’s there in written format too. I think it speaks to both the author’s and the narrator’s skill that Peter’s speech impediment comes across believably and sympathetically in the story, without becoming a barrier to the reader’s enjoyment. Narrator Liz Pearce expertly employs a wide range of voices in terms of accent, gender, age, and emotion, resulting in a lovely overall listening experience.
Thank you to Recorded Books for providing a complimentary copy of the audiobook for review purposes.
Quick Links: About the Audiobook | About the Series | Audio Sample | Author’s Site