Love's Legacy by Natalie Kleinman

Love's Legacy
by Natalie Kleinman

ISBN-13: 9781800556461
Kindle: 225 pages
Publisher: Sapere Books
Released: March 9th 2022

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
When her father — a countryside reverend — dies suddenly, young Patience Worthington is left with no home and little money. In urgent need of support, she is forced to seek out her estranged uncle, a viscount at the vast Worthington Place. Patience arrives to find that her uncle has died and that the current viscount is her cousin, Gideon. After hearing her plight, he agrees to give her a home on the Worthington estate.

However, when Patience and Gideon learn the cause of the long-standing rift between the two sides of the family, they quickly begin to clash. Too proud to accept the viscount’s charity, Patience soon leaves Worthington Place to seek shelter with her late mother’s relatives in Bath. With her kindness and beauty, Patience is an instant success in Bath society and regularly crosses paths with Gideon. Despite their differences, they enjoy each other’s company when they aren't causing offense to each other.


My Review:
Love's Legacy is a Regency romance. The story was told in a distant point of view, where we're told what everyone is thinking and doing, but we never got inside someone's head. The characters were both bland (with little distinct about them) and superficial. From the moment they met, Patience and Gideon offended each other and would act coldly toward the other until, suddenly, they were all friendly again though usually nothing had been resolved. Each was too proud to apologize or to explain a misunderstanding. For example, Gideon withheld even the most general explanation about why he warned her away from a bad guy. Patience refused to trust his judgment and even though she didn't like the guy, she kept him as a friend to defy Gideon's attempt to 'control' her. We're told that they sometimes got along and managed not to offend the other for a week or two, but the actual scenes mostly showed them in conflict. Then, at the very end, nothing had really changed but one kiss convinced Patience that this was true love and suddenly they're in perfect accord.

Patience had two suitors that she got along with very well, and she went to them when she needed help or advice. But she rejected them because there was no "spark" (um, fighting?). Incidentally, the main characters all had very modern views, which brings up the numerous historical inaccuracies. For example, characters tended to just show up at people's doors without writing to tell them that they were coming. Patience just showed up on her uncle's doorstep (from whom her family was estranged) in the evening, without sending a letter ahead about her visit, and with no plans to stay at an inn. She simply assumed he'd read the letter from her father (though she didn't know what it said) and provide her with a home and financial support. Wow! Then there was a scandal that, um, wasn't a scandal that's at the root of their family conflict. (Her mother pursued her best friend's betrothed before she knew they were betrothed, then immediately backed off when told and wished them happy. She was disowned even though the people who waited to tell her were at fault.)

There was no sex or bad language.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.