Mary's Bookcase : Have a sneak-peek between the covers of The Shadow Earl by Stella Riley

The Shadow Earl
By Stella Riley
Audiobook narrated by Alex Wyndham

Publication Date: 15th July, 2023

Publisher: Stella Riley

Page Length: 433 pages

Genre: Historical Romance

At the end of his Grand Tour, somewhere between Athens and Constantinople, Christian Selwyn, the young Earl of Hazelmere, vanished - seemingly without a trace.

Time passes. In London, his uncle and cousin move into his home … while his unofficial fiancée, Sophia, is left desolate and in limbo. Finally, his friends – loyal and close as brothers – set out to search in person.

Christian’s startling re-appearance at a grand ball takes society by storm and fuels endless speculation. Where has he been during these three missing years? What happened to him?

And more importantly, how did it happen?

Only one thing is clear. The earl who left England five years ago, has returned a changed man. A man with secrets.

Excerpt

Kit & Sophia’s first private meeting after his return.

Their reunion ought to be have been joyful, Sophia thought. Instead, anger was simmering inside her and Kit was behaving like a silent stranger.

Christian wondered how she’d react if he told her that his skin no longer seemed to fit him; that sometimes he felt like a shadow, observing the world but not part of it. Instead, he said baldly, ‘Had I not reappeared, would you have gone ahead with your betrothal to Basil?’

The question hit her like a punch. ‘Yes. What else was I to do?’

He nodded. ‘If you still wish to do so, I will not stand in your way.’

And without warning, her anger boiled over. Rising, she said, ‘If I still wish to marry Basil? How dare you ask that! I never wished it. Does the fact that I waited five years for you tell you nothing?’

Since she was standing, he did so too. ‘I was merely asking if – ’

‘You shouldn’t have needed to ask – you should have known! But since you didn’t … this last year, I’ve lived with a litany of it being my duty to marry before Papa dies and leaves us all virtually penniless. And you – you were never c-coming back because you were d-dead.’

Christian looked back at her, his face white. ‘I’m sorry.’

‘So you’ve said – so you should be.’ Pressing her lips together and spine very straight, Sophia looked him in the eye. ‘If your feelings have changed, say so.’

He walked away to the window, groping for words that might make sense.

‘During my time … away … I couldn’t allow myself to think about you or home or any of the things I might never seen again. I couldn’t afford those … emotions. But now I’m free, I’m battered by feelings – none of them the ones I shut away. Those seem lost. The truth is that I scarcely recognise myself any more.’

Her anger fell away. She wasn’t the only one who was hurting. He was, too – and perhaps in worse ways. She said softly, ‘How long is it since Lord Wendover and Mr Shelbourne rescued you – if rescue is the right word?’

‘It is. And it’s been eleven weeks.’

Behind him, Sophia’s hand crept to her mouth. Eleven weeks? After three years of captivity? No wonder he’s still in emotional turmoil. How could he not be?

~ * ~

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Stella Riley

Winner of four gold medals for historical romance (Readers' Favourite in 2019, Book Excellence Awards in 2020, Global Book Awards in 2022 and Book Excellence Award in 2023) and fifteen B.R.A.G. Medallions, Stella Riley lives in the beautiful medieval town of Sandwich in Kent.

She is fascinated by the English Civil Wars and has written six books set in that period. These, like the 7 book Rockliffe series (recommended in The Times newspaper!) and the Brandon Brothers trilogy, are all available in audio, narrated by Alex Wyndham.

Stella enjoys travel, reading, theatre, Baroque music and playing the harpsichord. She also has a fondness for men with long hair - hence her 17th and 18th century heroes.

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