Cover Image: A Village Scandal

A Village Scandal

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Member Reviews

The second book in the Village Secrets Trilogy by Dilly Court, A VILLAGE SCANDAL picks up from where "A Christmas Wedding" left off, as Daisy and Jay marry.

April 1869: It's been four months since Daisy and Jay Tattersall's disastrous Christmas wedding where only the couple, the vicar and witnesses showed up with no guests in attendance due to bad weather. Now, for the benefit of the village, Daisy and Jay remarry in a lavish ceremony and wedding breakfast held at Creek Manor, that Jay inherited from his philanderous father, and in which they now live with Jay's mother Mary, Daisy's friend Hilda and her children. The couple have lived a harmonious life together since their first wedding and Daisy could not be happier.

But their happiness is short-lived when, at the wedding reception, Jay is urgently called away to attend to trouble aboard his ship, the Lazy Jane. Leaving his bride, Jay dashes off into the night with promises to return, never to be seen again. His crew, Guppy and Lewis and Ramsden, are picked up by a passing vessel with reports of what took place but Jay could not be found. Believed to be lost at sea, Daisy refuses to give up hope that her husband is alive.

In Jay's absence, Daisy must take over the running of the estate and oversee the renovations to the tenant cottages but is soon met with the obstacle of finances when the bank refuses to let her draw on the estate funds. Jay had not made provision for this should anything happen, and so Daisy is left to make ends meet herself. With no money to pay the servants' wages for the last quarter or cover the costs of the cottage renovations, she finds herself in a quandary. She is then approached by Marjorie Harker with a business proposition which she declares will benefit them both. Marjorie, whose husband is with his regiment in India, seeks a promotion for him and ideal husbands for her daughters and to do that she wishes to rent Creek Manor for a year, which will suffice for the dignitaries she wishes to entertain. In return she will pay all Daisy's servants wages and cover the current estate costs. But what Daisy doesn't know is that she has just made a deal with the devil who upon moving into Creek Manor, treats Daisy as a mere servant in her own home. Will Marjorie Harker be content with giving up Creek Manor at the end of her stay? Or will Daisy have to fight for her place as lady of the manor?

Despite the many challenges she currently faces, Daisy continues to live in hope that Jay will soon return home and take up his rightful place as lord of Creek Manor. In the meantime, she meets Marius Walters and strikes up a business deal with him as a shipping agent for the Lazy Jane, reaping a tidy profit for herself.

Then just when the village had accepted his fate, Jay turns up in a London hospital, where Daisy's brother Toby works as a doctor, a shadow of his former self and no memory at all of who he is. She rushes to his side but is soon despairing of his condition and that he fails to recognises her. Daisy decides take him back to Creek Manor amongst familiar surroundings which may help spur his memory but upon arrival in Little Creek is disappointed to find that nothing is familiar to him. When Marius suggests a walk one evening with Jay to where the Lazy Jane is moored, Daisy is excited at the prospect that her husband will recognise his vessel which she hopes will spur on the rest of his lost memories. When Jay sees the Lazy Jane, his face lights up and at once he recalls her but Daisy's excitement is soon dispelled when that is all Jay recognises.

Then the following morning, she is even more shocked to learn that Jay has decided to sail with the Lady Jane as seafaring is what he knows...not life in a manor he has no recollection of. Before she knows it, Jay has left Creek Manor with her in charge, sailing off to who knows where.

But a scandal is in the midst which will not only set tongues wagging, but send Daisy's life into even greater turmoil than before. How will she face this new challenge? How will she get through it? And what does it mean for her?

In a return to Little Creek, A VILLAGE SCANDAL is filled with twists, turns and a few secrets that will have you turning the pages into the night. Following the theme of the first book, we revisit the characters we met the first time round as well as places old and new. I did find myself disappointed with the first part of the book with Marjorie Harker continually lording it over Daisy, despite her saving her pinched face from disaster. Any enjoyment I had in the story dissipated with the introduction of that particular plotline. However, it soon picked up with Jay's return as new mysteries evolved and was enamoured once again.

A VILLAGE SCANDAL certainly keeps you on the edge of your seat and, despite a momentary lull, I found myself enjoying the ride. Readers will be captivated from the beginning and, in true Dilly style, will fall in love with the characters.

I look forward to the third installment "A Country Bride" to learn what becomes of Daisy and the village of Little Creek.

I would like to thank #DillyCourt, #NetGalley and #HarperCollinsUK for an ARC of #AVillageScandal in exchange for an honest review.

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Dilly Court definitely knows how to keep you on the edge of your seat with this book, a real nail biter. Poor Daisy is really an amazing character throughout the series, determined and ever ladylike she faces everything thrown at her head on with dignity and grace with her amazing support network of friends and servants I won't spoil the end of the book but it's apt and well deserved. Bring on the next installment I can't wait.

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A great story that kept me hooked till the end.
I loved the storytelling, the vivid historical background and the great cast of characters.
I look forward to reading other stories by this author.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

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I would like to thank NetGalley and the publishers for asking me to read and review.
This story was a wonderful read.
It is well written with some great characters and as a reader you feel you are right there with them. The plot draws you in and keeps you turning those pages.
A brilliant, heartwarming read.

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Love this series. Reminds me of Outlander so glad i was privileged to get the second book in the series via Netgalley

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Dilly Court really is a wonderful writer. She writes so effortlessly and immerses you in time and place instantly. This is the second in the village series and you really need to read book one first as this carries on where that left off. I'm so pleased it did as I'd been missing the characters. Great to see them all again and to attend a more prone free wedding with nicer weather.

The problems soon start however when the groom goes missing that same evening. Not exactly the wedding night Daisy was hoping for! This started the story of twists and turns and was very well paced, described and mysterious. I never think the covers of these books represent the goodness and nature of the stories within as this is quite gripping and has some really strong issues and themes in the book. Poor Daisy and Jay! - Their lives are examined and explored and we really see their characters develop in interesting ways. I love the sense of a village like Little Creek and all that it entails. I'd really missed it and its inhabitants since book one.

Another great Dilly Court book!

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Loved this story.
This is the 2nd in a trilogy, the first being "A Christmas wedding" which at the end of the book Daisy and Jay marry.
As we open this book Jay and Daisy are remarrying as their first wedding was met with disaster, because of bad weather, they had no guests.
Jay has inherited a large manor in the village they live in "Little creek" which they plan to live in with Jay's mother and Mary and her children. Jay is an adventurer and loves his boat the Lazy Jane.

On their wedding night Jay is urgently called away by one of his crew as there is trouble at the boat, he leaves behind his new bride dashing to the scene, never to be seen again. His crew were picked up by a passing fishing vessel, but Jay could not be found. Daisy is a strong woman who will not give up hope, she takes up the running of the manor and turns it into a thriving business, always living in hope that Jay will be found.

This book certainly keeps you on the edge of your seat and engrossed from the first page. I loved the different characters and cannot wait for the third episode to find out what happens Daisy.
Thank you, NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

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Christmas wedding ended with Jay and Daisy marrying without their friends and family because of the bad weather. This book starts with them marrying again in the spring with everyone they love there. Unfortunately their happiness is short lived when is called away and failing to return. Everyone thinks Jay is dead but Daisy won’t give on her husband and she rents out the Manor House to help pay the estates debts. Jay turns up in hospital a shadow of his former self and with no memory of who he is. Married life isn’t going how Daisy planned but she never gives up despite the obstacles that keep getting thrown in her way. There are many ups and downs for Daisy and the people of Little Creek making an interesting read. I can’t wait for the summer when book three comes out.
Another great book just need to read the final one now.

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I really enjoyed this book! A great story line that kept me hooked and excellent main characters. I would highly recommend this book.

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This book starts where the first book in this series, A Christmas Wedding ended. Jay had just married Daisy with all their friend and family gathered round. This is their second wedding as the first ceremony had to take place without any guests due to the bad weather. But their happiness is short lived as Jay is called away during the reception, as their is a problem at his boat. He promises to return asap. But Jay doesn't return. Everyone thinks that Jay is list at sea but Daisy refuses to give up hope. Daisy rents out the Manor House to try and make ends meet. Daisy does not give up hoping that Jay will return soon and life can get back to normal.

We meet again all the characters we met in the first book and some new and interesting characters along the way. We also revisit some of the old places we went to before Daisy was married. There's a few twists, some I guessed correctly others I didn't see coming al all. They say the apple never falls far from the tree, a saying that's well suited to one of the characters. I can't wait to read the final installment in this trilogy when it's published in the summer.

I would like to thank NetGalley, HarperCollins UK, HarperFiction and the author Dilly Court for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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A great second part to the \village Secrets Trilogy. I thoroughly enjoyed the first part and this one was just as good. Great characterisations and running the whole gamut of human emotions. It is such an entertaining series, you can feel very involved. I hope I get to read the third part.

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A Christmas wedding ended with Jay and Daisy marrying without their friends and family because of the bad weather. This book starts with them marrying again in the spring with everyone they love there. Unfortunately their happiness is short lived when is called away and failing to return. Everyone thinks Jay is dead but Daisy won’t give on her husband and she rents out the Manor House to help pay the estates debts. Jay turns up in hospital a shadow of his former self and with no memory of who he is. Married life isn’t going how Daisy planned but she never gives up despite the obstacles that keep getting thrown in her way. There are many ups and downs for Daisy and the people of Little Creek making an interesting read. I can’t wait for the summer when book three comes out.

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Absolutely loved the book, can’t wait for the next one. I took my time reading it as I didn’t want it to end.
It was exciting from beginning to end

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Brilliant book with many unexpected turns of events. I had been looking forward to reading this since finishing the first book and was not disappointed. Now can't wait for the next book.
I love there are so many different type of characters and their backgrounds; admit to me a little in love with Jack.
The setting is amazing.

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I really enjoyed this book. The characters were lovely and well-developed. I didn't see the ending coming and it took me by surprise — in a good way! Always love Dilly Court's books and this was no exception. Highly recommended!

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Having read Dilly Court’s previous book in the series, I knew this would be a great story to read. I felt that I already knew the characters and wanted to know more about their future adventures, although it would be interesting to read as a standalone book.

During Daisy and Jay’s splendid wedding ceremony , Jay is called away and seemingly disappears leaving Daisy with no money to pay debts or wages to their staff. She is forced to rent her home to Marjorie Harcourt and work for her. However, Daisy is strong and resourceful, determined to find out what has happened to her husband, leading to her becoming in danger and finding out many scandalous secrets.

The book is well written, with a real sense of history and wonderfully rich well-drawn characters. The story explores the diversity between the rich and poor, showing the harsh housing and working conditions the poor had to endure, compared to the easier lifestyle of the upper class!

There are several twists and turns in the story, and various characters turn out to be other than expected, all making for an entertaining, steadily paced book, although a little drawn out at times.

I can’t wait for the third book in the series.

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Another fantastic book in the series about Little Creek and it’s residents. A great follow on from Book 1 although a few reminders about some of the characters would have been helpful. I loved the pathway that the storyline took especially as it took me by surprise. I can’t wait for the next book having read the teaser at the end of this book. A great fictional book based around Daisy a former Nurse and servant who is now a Lady of the Manor or is she??? Whilst it wouldn’t be essential that you read book1 first it’s probably more helpful. Thanks Dilly Court and NetGalley.

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Always enjoy Dilly’s books and this was up to her usual excellent storytelling. It could be a stand alone book or a follow on from the first in this trilogy.

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I just love Dilly Court books. Engrossed from the beginning and I wasn't expecting that from Jay! Daisy is a strong woman luckily.. I cannot wait to read more from this author!!!

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Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for allowing me to read this Arc.
Another brilliant book from Dilly. This one was full of surprising twists. I would highly recommend it as I would all of Dilly's books. A definite five stars.

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