Remember When: Clarissa's Story (Ravenswood, #4)
Mary Balogh
Discover the beauty of second chances at love and life in this heartfelt new novel from New York Times bestselling author Mary Balogh.The Dowager Countess of Stratton, Clarissa Ware, née Greenfield, has just presented her younger daughter to the ton, and the rest of her life belongs only to herself. She returns to Ravenswood, intending to spend the summer alone there. But the summer has other plans for her.Born a gentleman, Matthew Taylor has chosen to spend his life as the village carpenter. Growing up, he and Clarissa were close—dangerously so, considering his family’s modest fortune. As a young man, he never would have been a suitable match for the daughter of the wealthy Greenfields. Clarissa married Caleb Ware, the Earl of Stratton, so Matthew married another, though he was widowed soon after.Now everything is different—Clarissa has already lived the life expected of her by society. And Matthew is as attractive and intriguing as he was when they were young. As their summer friendship deepens into romance, they stand together on the precipice of change—essentially the same man and woman they remember being back then, but with renewed passion and the potential to take their lives in an entirely new direction.
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This was a hit for me. Low stakes, gentle read. A little repetitive with the “but he’s just a carpenter” bit from the concerned citizens.
Clarissa is the matriarch of the Ware family of the Remember series. I think you get more out of this having read the previous books. She’s a widow and her children are grown and Clarissa finds herself wondering what’s next. She returns home, alone, to take time for herself. Her loving family can’t quite understand what she’s doing though and pop in often to check in.
She immediately seeks out Mathew. Her childhood best friend. They might have been in love at 17 & 18 but she married up to an Earl. Mathew also married but after a tragedy left home for 10 years. When he tells Clarissa about seeing The Pietra in Rome I was in tears. This guy is an artist at heart.
They return to their friendship, despite everyone being ‘concerned’ about their different social status. Mathew goes through it, reconnecting with his family after 30 years.
It’s a really nice romantic story. As with any Mary Balogh the vast family tree of characters can be a whirlwind.
0What if you could go back in time and choose another life path, but with the same knowledge you have now? I think this book is a way to get at that question: only, instead of going back, you have a chance now. You don't regret your life, precisely, but you get the chance to try for that thing you were too scared to try for as a child. I found it fascinating. Also it's a meditation on what a woman should do/is supposed to do/wants to do when her children are grown up and she's suddenly her own woman. Mary Balogh, you've done it again.
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