Only the hidden treasure will allow Louisa and her sister to gain their freedom.
England, 1388: All her life, Louisa has dreamed of finding the rumored “Giant’s Treasure,” a collection of ancient, lost riches said to be hidden on a mountaintop in Scotland, guarded by a fierce monster. It’s a story her father used to tell her, and when he dies and she and her younger sister have to go live with their shiftless, greedy uncle, Louisa is determined to find that treasure. It’s the hope that has kept her defying her uncle’s efforts to marry her off to the highest bidder.
After her uncle starts to parade Louisa’s twelve-year-old sister Margaret in front of potential husbands, Louisa realizes she has no time to waste. She disguises herself as a boy and takes off for Scotland. But the road is a harsher place than she’d imagined, and she is relieved to find a friend in the knight, Sir Charles, who goes along with her on her journey.
Charles is intrigued by this young woman who claims her name is “Jack” and is set on going to Scotland. He goes along, pretending to believe she is a boy, in order to make sure nothing bad happens to her. As they meet new friends along the road, and as Louisa comes clean about her identity, the pair find themselves falling in love. But what will happen when they reach Scotland? Will they find their independence and the freedom to marry in the form of a buried treasure, or will the monster from Louisa’s own past keep the young couple apart?
A delightfully charming reimagining of “Jack and the Beanstalk” from New York Times bestselling author Melanie Dickerson.
My Review:
I adore fairy tale retellings and this is my first Jack and the Beanstalk reimagining. I’d say it’s on the lighter side at the start but an imaginative twist towards the end brought some wonderfully believable parallels to this age old tale. Very clever, Ms. Dickerson, very clever indeed. 🙂
Louisa makes the perfect damsel in distress with Charles as her knight in shining armour. She’s a spunky, imaginative heroine who is not quite ready to be let loose in the real world. Luckily Charles takes his knightly duties of guarding and protecting seriously. Friendship develops into more but, of course, there’s a quest to conquer and a villain to defeat before the hope of a happily ever after can be obtained!
Love the journey — the people they meet along the way. In true fairy tale fashion, Louisa and Charles provide assistance and encouragement and I appreciated the way the author wove the importance of prayer throughout the story.
I listened to the audio edition narrated by Jude Mason who did a marvellous job creating a fairy tale ambiance in her performance. Thoroughly enjoyed my listen.
My thanks to Thomas Nelson and Zondervan Audio and Negalley for providing me with an audio edition of Lady of Disguise.
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