Dearly Beloved – Mary Jo Putney Free Audiobook

Written by Mary Jo Putney
Read by Dearly Beloved
Format: MP3
Bitrate: 64 Kbps
Unabridged

Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc.
Release date: April 28, 2020
Duration: 16:34:55

Love must find a way . . . A sheltered life in the countryside has left Diana Lindsay restless to see the wider world, for both her and the son she is raising alone.

She cannot marry, but perhaps as a courtesan she will find love and protection despite her painful past. Gathering her courage, she moves to London-and finds herself the city’s most desired woman, as admired for her charm as for her beauty. But it is one man who captivates her-handsome, haunted, and harboring a secret as deep as her own . . .

Bound by the sins of his youth, Gervase Brandelin, the Viscount St. Aubyn, has spent his adulthood seeking redemption through service to England. Now a spymaster, he can allow nothing to distract him from his duty. But when he meets Diana, his burdens seem to lift. Though she can never truly be his alone, their genuine love fills him with hope, until a treacherous deceit-and a deadly enemy-threatens to tear them apart forever . . .

The summary tells you little about the story…Publishers Weekly does
“Putney sugarcoats the unsavory premise of this story about two people who, thrown together by an accident of fate, heal each other from the wounds of childhood.

In 1799 Scotland, Gervase Brandelin, the victim of a sexually abusive mother, is livid when forced to wed Mary Hamilton, a deranged clergyman’s innocent daughter whom he has unwittingly compromised, and promptly rapes her following the ceremony. After years of separation, they meet again, but Gervase does not recognize his wife. Instead, he knows her as Diana Lindsay, whom he believes to be an accomplished courtesan and whom he woos to become his mistress. Through the tender courtship and through Gervase’s kindness to the epileptic son conceived in the brutality of their wedding night, the pair experiences unsullied love for the first time and discovers the joys of family. Gervase’s involvement in the super-secret espionage service working to undermine Napoleon adds spice and atmosphere.”

Putney likes to deal with issues most writers avoid…..

The setting may be Georgian but our cover lady forgot her powdered wig and side-panniers.