Lady of a Thousand Treasures

by Sandra Byrd

"Miss Eleanor Sheffield is a talented evaluator of antiquities, trained to know the difference between a genuine artifact and a fraud. But with her father's passing and her uncle's decline into dementia, the family business is at risk. In the Victorian era, unmarried Eleanor cannot run Sheffield Brothers alone. The death of a longtime client, Baron Lydney, offers an unexpected complication when Eleanor is appointed the temporary trustee of the baron's legendary collection. She must choose whether to donate the priceless treasures to a museum or allow them to pass to the baron's only living son, Harry--the man who broke Eleanor's heart. Eleanor distrusts the baron's motives and her own ability to be unbiased regarding Harry's future. Harry claims to still love her and Eleanor yearns to believe him, but his mysterious comments and actions fuel her doubts. When she learns an Italian beauty accompanied him on his return to England, her lingering hope for a future with Harry dims. With the threat of debtor's prison closing in, Eleanor knows that donating the baron's collection would win her favor among potential clients, saving Sheffield Brothers. But the more time she spends with Harry, the more her faith in him grows. Might Harry be worthy of his inheritance, and her heart, after all? As pressures mount and time runs out, Eleanor must decide whom she can trust--who in her life is false or true, brass or gold--and what is meant to be treasured"--

• ISBN13: 9781496426826
• Publish Date: 9 October 2018
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 4 March 2021
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Tyndale House Publishers
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 464
• Language: English

Reviews

[phyllish]

Where your treasure is. . .

My rating is 4.5 stars

Harry was chronically late. Eleanor had even come to expect it of him. And she felt that his tardiness reflected a lack of care for her. In fact, there were so many little signs, and some bigger ones, that maybe he couldn’t be trusted. People all around her were cautioning her against him.

Poor Eleanor was in a difficult situation. She didn’t really have anyone she could confide in and had gotten to the point that she really felt that no one cared about her. That she wasn’t treasured.

Through many hardships, Eleanor clung tightly to her faith in God. At times that faith was little more than that of a mustard seed, but it was enough to see her through. In addition to her faith, I admired her greatly for her kindness to others, even in her difficulty. More than once, she sacrificed greatly to benefit others.

Despite an overall tone of melancholy, Lady of a Thousand Treasures was a treat to read. The slightly Gothic style and feel of the writing made me think of Jane Eyre. There was a great mystery with danger and unexpected twists. The author wisely told the story only from Eleanor’s perspective to not give away any hints of what was going to come.

In the interest of avoiding spoilers, I will refrain from saying more about the story itself save the fact that the absolutely most romantic moment in the book occurred in the most unexpected place. I would have never expected to give a swoony sigh in a location and circumstances like that.

I learned so much about the collecting of antiquities and reliquaries in the Victorian era. I also got to go inside a prison (Eleanor visited some women there to minister to them). How abominable that one could be thrown in prison for stealing bacon and be sentenced to one year! And that those who had the means were treated better than those without.

I had a delightful time reading this book. It was very different from the contemporary series of the author’s that I have read and yet I believe I enjoyed this one even more.


This review was originally posted on Among the Reads


I was given a free copy of this item. This gift did not influence my opinion or review.