Love of the Summerfields (Manor House #1)

1880 England: the lives and loves of manor and village intertwine. Earl and shopkeeper, countess and clerk; all will be stunned and transformed by a secret that begs to be revealed.

When the Weston family returns to Summerfield Manor at the close of the London social season, both village and manor relax into their normal existence. But for four women, turmoil awaits. Each must battle the restrictions of her position as her faith and character are tested.

Adelaide Weston, the feisty and domineering dowager countess, is thrust out of her carefully structured life of duty by the reappearance of her first love.

Ruth Weston, the manor's reclusive, guilt-ridden countess, struggles to emerge from self-imposed exile to embrace her marriage, her family, and the duties of her position.

Ruth's loyal lady's maid, Molly Wallace, juggles the demands of her job, the needs of her own tumultuous family, and a secret romance.

And Lila Hayward, a shopkeeper's daughter, finds herself in love with a viscount's son who's engaged to Ruth's spoiled daughter. Lila is sorely tested when she is obliged to act as liaison between the two, putting her in constant contact with the man she loves but can never hope to win.