Banished Saga #6
Ramona Flightner
Historical Romance
Pub date: May 16, 2017 [requested review]
H/h - Lucas Russell/Genevieve Tyler
Setting: Butte, Montana, 1915.
Read in May, 2017
My rating:
[spoiler alert]
Escape to Love,
a lovely novella and book 6 in Ramona Flightner’s Banished Saga series,
was quite the treat. A surprising treat to be sure! I’ve been a fan of
this series since I started reading it back in 2014 and the Saga has
only gotten better with each installment.
The Banished Saga, when
it began, was onset of suffragist movement of Boston 1901.
Along the way we met many characters, including our favorite, the first
couple of the series, Clarissa and Gabriel in Banished Love. Their story was ongoing in books 2 and 3, Reclaimed Love and Undaunted Love.
They still make appearances in the latest installments. We also met
Clarissa and Gabriel’s family. Clarissa’s own brothers Colin and
Patrick, who wasn’t introduced until much later. Her cousin Savannah and
best friend Florence, both avid suffragettes and worked with Clarissa
throughout. Gabriel’s younger brothers Richard and Jeremy were also
introduced, as was their long lost uncle Aidan.
The story started to veer away from the original couples when it jumped 10 years in book 4, Tenacious Love.
The spotlight had shifted onto the second generations of
McLeod/Sullivans. New characters and couples their contemporary were
introduced. By then Clarissa-Gabriel, Savannah-Jeremy, Richard-Florence
were married with children. Aidan had his long lost love Delia back in
his life, bonus with a daughter, Zylphia whom he didn’t know existed (he
was a sailor and had not been around Boston for years). Each had come
through a long, arduous journey to find their own standing in life and
the men or women they loved. I had loved every single moment of it
because it always felt like I’m a friend, and not just a spectator of
their lives.
In book 4, Zylphia, all grown, had transformed into a
beautiful young lady. She was also a suffragette. A staunch supporter
of women’s freedom to vote, a development that didn’t surprise me at all
seeing who were her cousins. She found love in Theodore Goff, aka
Teddy. It seemed like they too, wouldn’t have an easy life either
because things weren’t all smooth sailing in their relationship, as we
find in book 5, Unrelenting Love.
There were new
developments as well. One of Zylphia’s friends, Parthena, a budding
suffragist against her family’s wishes, gets entangled with Savannah’s
younger brother Lucas. Lucas had also been a part of this series for
long, since he was a young man. Now in his mid 30s, he’d garnered a much
deserved successful career in music. He’s a maestro pianist and people
simply adore him. Everyone in his family supported him in his endeavor,
except for his mother, who was extremely conservative and thrived on
being a blight on others’ lives. There was nothing important in her life
other than her social status. She had already tried to sacrifice her
own daughter to that status. Savannah escaped with her life intact in
the nick of time (it’s a story you will find in book 3 and you wouldn’t
wanna miss it). And now, Lucas was another disappointment to her, which
she never failed to vocalize IF ever Lucas visited his parents. Their
father, Martin, however was polite and had always been by his children’s
side.
Lucas and Parthena’s budding relationship didn’t go very
far as Parthena’s mean father married her off (sold her to be precise)
to another man; someone with money and influence, Morgan Wheeler. Even
though Parthena hated the man and didn’t wanna be married, she didn’t
want to marry Lucas either. I understood some of her dilemma. She had 3
younger sisters and knew one of them would be sacrificed if she doesn’t
marry Morgan as her father was desperate for money. But I also felt that
she wasn’t as ‘in love’ with Lucas as he was with her. Besides, it
didn’t take Morgan much to convince her of his own affection after a
confession of harboring a secret tendré for her for a long time. It
kinda proved my point of her not having any strong feelings for Lucas.
Needless to say, I wasn’t much fond of her, but I’d give it that she
loved her sisters.
Anyhoo, regardless, I didn’t like knowing that
Lucas and Parthena were physically involved during their brief
relationship. It went a notch higher when new developments came into the
light. It seemed Morgan’s money couldn’t make Parthena’s dumb father
happy and now he’d chosen his next daughter, Genevieve, to marry an old
lecher... for more money. Parthena was desperate to save her sister and
turned to Lucas for help, IMO because she knew for certain he’d help in
any way he can.
Uh...mmm. Okay.
Note that Morgan and Lucas
have come to blow more than once in book 5 for Parthena and I couldn’t
blame either of them. Parthena, with her bright hair and personality,
was all vivacious; someone who loved to be in the spotlight and both men
wanted her equally. Genevieve, on the other hand, was a total opposite
of her. She was deemed plain and plump, with brown hair. She was more of
an introvert because of the beating her self-confidence has taken from
her parents, especially her cruel father. She was also a musician, much
like her sister. Much like Lucas himself. While Parthena played the
piano, which is how she met Lucas, Genevieve played the violin. Of
course, their father never approved of such ‘outlandish activities’ from
the ladies of an upstanding family like theirs, and their mother
agreed, much like she did on everything their father said like the
obedient wife she was. *eyeroll*
At the end of book 5, it seemed
like Lucas was coming to terms with the fact that Parthena wasn’t in
love with him. It was more and more apparent and though it hurt, Lucas
was trying to rebuild his life without her in it. So when she convinced
Morgan to talk to Lucas about helping Genevieve, I wasn’t happy. I
wanted her out of Lucas’s life for good, but that wasn’t gonna happen. I
knew where it was going and I wasn’t sure I’d like knowing Lucas
getting involved with both sisters, no matter what their circumstances
were. It’s a trope I find often used in contemporary romances and I
avoid those as much as I can. Here, I decided to carry on because I had
every confidence in Ramona’s writing.
Lucas promised Parthena and
Morgan that he’d help Genevieve because that’s the kind of guy he was; a
good guy, honest to boots and would never ignore a damsel-in-distress.
More than that, the whole situation reminded him of what Savannah had
gone through in the hands of her first husband, and that he couldn’t
help her when she needed it the most. When the story ended, Genevieve
and Lucas were strangers going off into the proverbial unknown to save
her from an unwanted marriage. Lucas had also promised that he’d marry
Genevieve as soon as he can, which is how he can thwart any attempts
made by her father to marry her off to anyone else.
I mentioned
all that for a bit of intro to the series for anyone new to it, also
because this is where Escape to Love begins. Lucas was taking Genevieve
to Butte though he didn’t have any clear idea about what to do. He had
had no time to plan anything because they had to leave Boston in extreme
haste. On the way, we find Lucas and Genevieve forming a very
unexpected bond. Though it was rather fragile in the beginning, it was
absolutely astonishing for them nonetheless. She wasn’t easy with
strangers but Lucas was also very easy to fall for. She hated knowing he
was once involved with her sister and it did bug her a lot. She was
nothing like her sister, will she ever be able to catch Lucas’s
attention? Or will there be a constant comparison, where she’d
definitely fall short? Many things were weighing down on Genevieve. She
didn’t know if she’ll ever find happiness in this marriage.
Lucas
was the same. Though, knowing Genevieve had gradually made him see what
a treasure she was, he wasn’t sure he can love again. Can he take a
chance on Genevieve? Would she love him back, or would she also break
his heart? Would she ever see him anything other than a famous musician,
much like everybody else; much like how Parthena had seen him? It was
apparent that they both needed to find these answers to be able to
figure out where their marriage stood.
As they reach Butte where
Patrick was residing with his Fiona, Lucas and Genevieve pay them a
visit. Our favorite residents of Missoula—Clarissa-Gabriel,
Savannah-Jeremy, their children accompanying Colin and Araminta
(Clarissa’s children’s nanny)—also travel to Butte to spend the
Christmas together. It was definitely a treat to see them all together,
catching up on their lives. I loved it! Just as much as I loved seeing
how Lucas and Genevieve’s relationship unfolded. Previously as mentioned, I had my doubts, yet I loved how they came together, both in
need of love and an assurance of having the feeling returned. Their
understanding of each-other was marvelous, which is why they clicked.
Lucas had already figured out that Parthena was a mistake and he didn’t
want to look back. He made certain Genevieve knew that too!
All in all, Escape to Love
was indeed an escape I needed for the past couple of months. I really
enjoyed it. Ramona sure did pack a lot of emotions in such a short
space! I can’t wait to find out what’s up next in this Saga. I can see
that there are plenty of story left to unravel, most especially I'm
anticipating something between Colin and Araminta. ;) Highly recommended;
only remember that this series is very intertwined so best start from
book 1 for full enjoyment. I won’t suggest reading this novella as a
standalone. 4.5 stars.
Review copy received from the author. Thanks Ramona! x
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