The Secret Pearl - Mary Balogh

The Secret Pearl - Mary Balogh - 1991

The story is about a young girl who is forced to sell her body to live. She had not eaten for 2 days. She is taken by a man who sees her standing outside of a theatre. He is horribly scarred and she is a virgin. He is a Duke, married with a child and feels guilty about taking her virginity. He secretly offers her a job as a governess for his daughter. She does not know the job is for him and is shocked of finding out that it was he who hired her. She believes he hired her to be his mistress as well as governess. He is married to a woman who is ill and she hates him. She always loved his brother. They never consummated their marriage and as the weeks go by the Duke slowly falls in love with the governess. Fluer, the governess is actually running away from a terrible secret and lives in fear all the time that her secret will be revealed.

It is a lovely story and a nice love story. I found the character lacking in emotion. They both had suffered earlier in their life and trusting and love were difficult for them. It was just hum-drum and I was waiting for something exciting to happen. There was mystery and the plot did thicken but I was not sitting on the edge of my seat waiting for it to be revealed. I was waiting for the story to just end so I could go to sleep.

I love Mary Balogh and was introduced to her writing with Slightly Wicked. That heroine was not afraid to take what she wanted.

Rating - 7
A good read but would not buy.

Enjoy