Tea & Read: Masquerade

Title: Masquerade

Author: Nancy Moser
Rating: One cup of tea
 

This was the first book I read by Nancy Moser. I have been looking forward to reading one of her books and was excited about reading Masquerade. Unfortunately, the book wasn’t as quick a read as I thought it would be.

It is the story of Charlotte Gleason, an English girl sent to America with her maid, Dora. She is to marry on of the wealthiest heirs but a man she’s never met. She decides to switch places with Dora, and in essence trading lives. It’s a “Prince and the Pauper” type story.

I think my biggest problem with the story was that I didn’t like Charlotte from the beginning. Of course, the fact that Charlotte is a spoiled brat provides a good character arc. Moser puts Charlotte in a perfect situation to change and make a drastic change. Unfortunately, by the time Charlotte starts to change, I’d lost interest in her story. Dora, on the other hand, drew my attention more than Charlotte.  

The writing technique was good. Moser gives great description of sea voyage and the clothing of the time. The pacing of the book, however, was slow. It took me several weeks to finish this book. I found myself putting the book away when it got slow. But I must admit that I’m glad that I finished the book. The ending was believing and plausible.

I would definitely read another book by Moser.