This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
Maid to Match
Bethany House (June 1, 2010)
by Deeanne Gist
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
After a short career in elementary education, Deeanne Gist retired to raise her four children. Over the course of the next fifteen years, she ran a home accessory and antique business, became a member of the press, wrote freelance journalism for national publications such as People, Parents, Parenting, Family Fun, Houston Chronicle and Orlando Sentinel, and acted as CFO for her husband’s small engineering firm–all from the comforts of home.
Squeezed betwixt-and-between all this, she read romance novels by the truckload and even wrote a couple of her own. While those unpublished manuscripts rested on the shelf, she founded a publishing corporation for the purpose of developing, producing and marketing products that would reinforce family values, teach children responsibility and provide character building activities.
After a few short months of running her publishing company, Gist quickly discovered being a “corporate executive” was not where her gifts and talents lie. In answer to Gist’s fervent prayers, God sent a mainstream publisher to her door who licensed her parenting I Did It!® product line and committed to publish the next generation of her system, thus freeing Gist to return to her writing.
Eight months later, she sold A Bride Most Begrudging to Bethany House Publishers. Since that debut, her very original, very fun romances have rocketed up the bestseller lists and captured readers everywhere. Add to this two consecutive Christy Awards, two RITA nominations, rave reviews, and a growing loyal fan base, and you’ve got one recipe for success.
Her 2010 books, Beguiled and Maid To Match are now available for order.
Gist lives in Texas with her husband of twenty-seven years and their two border collies. They have four grown children. Visit her blog to find out the most up-to-the-minute news about Dee.
ABOUT THE BOOK:
Falling in love could cost her everything.From the day she arrived at the Biltmore, Tillie Reese is dazzled, by the riches of the Vanderbilts and by Mack Danvers, a mountain man turned footman. When Tillie is enlisted to help tame Mack’s rugged behavior by tutoring him in proper servant etiquette, the resulting sparks threaten Tillie’s efforts to be chosen as Edith Vanderbilt’s lady’s maid, After all, the one rule of the house is no romance below stairs.
But the stakes rise even higher when Mack and Tillie become entangled in a cover-up at the town orphanage. They could both lose their jobs, their aspirations…their hearts.
If you would like to read the first chapter of Maid to Match, go HERE.
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MY REVIEW:
Although I have enjoyed all the novels of DeeAnne Gist, I think Maid to Match is my favorite of her books to date. It offers a fascinating look from a maid’s point of view at life inside the famous Biltmore mansion during the Vanderbilt years. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about what was expected of the staff of the Biltmore, particularly the duties of a lady’s maid. I was amazed by the type of intimate details that maids were expected to attend. That way of life is so foreign to me, it is difficult to imagine that it actually took place in the United States within a day’s drive of my home.
A turbulent romance between Tillie and Mack, two of the Vanderbilt servants, drives the plot. As each of them plans their future according to their own ambitions and desires, they soon find that the Lord has other plans for them. Maid to Match paints a stark contrast between life at the Biltmore and life at the local orphanage which adds even more depth to an already excellent story.
It is difficult for me to say just how good this book is without totally giving away the whole story. It is full of informative and humorous gems as well as plenty of drama and romance. In my opinion, Maid to Match is a must read.
