Book Review: "The Lady and the Officer" by Mary Ellis

I received a free digital advance reader copy of "The Lady and the Officer" by Mary Ellis from netgalley in order for me to give my honest review.

I had requested "The Lady and the Officer" because I thought it sounded like I'd enjoy reading it, but it sat languishing on my tablet waiting for me to read it as other books came and went.  I'm not sure why I didn't read it sooner.  Once I did finally start to read it, I didn't want to put it down!

Madeline Howard lives outside Gettysburg trying to keep her late husband's horse breeding farm going when the War Between the States lands in her backyard, literally.  She has already lost her husband to the cause, so when she looses everything else, she goes to stay with the only family she has left.  The problem with that is that they live in Richmond, Virginia, the very heart of the Confederacy.  Her uncle even works for President Davis.

Madeline wasn't in Richmond long before she catches the eye of Confederate Colonel Elliot Hayward.  Madeline likes Elliot, but a couple of chance encounters in Pennsylvania have left her heart belonging to Union General James Downing.  When Madeline overhears some information about the Confederate Army's plans, what will she do with her new knowledge?

Mary Ellis has written characters that are true to life and believable.  There are twists and turns in the story to keep you in suspense as to what is going to happen next.  I do Civil War reenacting, so the Civil War history involved in the book was very interesting.  The characters weren't just static throughout the story, but grew and matured.   I wasn't sure if Madeline and James would get their happily ever after and I felt sorry for Colonel Hayward and wished that Ms. Ellis would have shared what came of him after the war.

I would recommend this book to those who enjoy historical romances with suspense thrown in.

It is available for Kindle:

• File Size: 833 KB
• Print Length: 352 pages
• Page Numbers Source ISBN: 0736950540
• Publisher: Harvest House Publishers (August 1, 2014)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B00LFWFC6O

and paperback:

• Series: Civil War Heroines Series
• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Harvest House Publishers (August 1, 2014)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0736950540
• ISBN-13: 978-0736950541
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches