Lady Osbaldestone and the Missing Christmas Carols
Series: Lady Osbaldestone's Christmas Chronicles, Book 2
By: Stephanie Laurens / Narrated By: Helen Lloyd
Length: 6 hrs and 52 mins
BeYONd delightful! Truly wonderful!!!
If you have kidlets at odds and ends this holiday, oh do give any (Except the FIFTH!!!!) Lady Osbaldestone audiobook a go. The charm and magic of Little Moseley do wonders for a person, and the children, the goodness of game and grand hearts bring such joy and peace during this modern era of constant cortisol hits. I went into Lady Osbaldestone and the Missing Carols with such hope for a wonderful time, and oh how charmed I was.
Lady Osbaldestone is back in her dower house in Little Moseley and is once again playing host to her grandchildren, Jamie, George and Lottie—Tho’ this time, it’s not because of mumps in the family but because they’re dying to be with Grandmama and p’raps get into who knows what all. But this time, as Lady O and the children are settling into evening hot chocolate, a carriage pulls up and in walks Melissa, the somewhat surly 15-year old daughter of Lady O’s eldest daughter—Could Lady O pleeeease take the girl in as her family is spending a few weeks at a country estate, grooming Melissa’s older sister for her Season?
Melissa is all Goth-ed out and reticent, her face a mask of near-indifference, but slooowly she warms to Lady O’s warm embrace. Of COURSE Melissa is welcome, and who knows? Maybe Little Moseley will work its magic on her as well.
Now, Lady O is well aware that she requires SOMEthing, some Mystery for the youngest to put their energies into, to keep her little brood occupied and excited. Fortunately, the genius of the church’s new organ player is such that he canNOT play without music. And wouldn’t one know it, but the church’s copy of Christmas Carols and Hymns has gone missing.
Aha! The brood throw themselves into this new activity with heavy duty sleuthing, and even Melissa, tho’ hesitant to speak at first, soon finds her voice. Speaking of voices, the music of Richard Mortimer (The musician who can’t do without sheet music) inspires the four to burst into song, enchanting Mortimer, who decides on the spot to create a little choir.
All well and good for the lads and lasses, but what will keep Lady O entertained? Welllll, a visiting young lady who’s quite on the shelf after three Seasons but didn’t take cuz all the gentleman could see were her spectacles and large dowry. And maaaaybe Lady O sees the lonely Mortimer really looking and seeing young Faith, soooo Lady O is totally in her element with anything that’ll bring this young couple together.
Sooo charming, I can’t tell you. Good-hearted and intelligent conversations and a desire for these upper classes of Lady O to give back to the community of Little Moseley that’s done so much for her and her grandchildren. The story drags juuuuuust a bit as author Laurens has this that and the other and the search for the book of carols hits dead end after dead end. And I did indeed find myself enraptured by her ability to put into words just how swelling and joyful Mortimer and the children’s music was for all and sundry. Made me rather scratch m’ head and think: Ahhhhh, so THAT’s how she writes her explicit scenes for all the steamy romances she’s known for! It made me shudder re: All that I SHAN’T be listening to her for, but delighted as all get-out to see these characters morph and rejoice.
Helen Lloyd is sheer perfection as usual. She IS Lady Osbaldestone with her sharp eye and quick tongue. And she IS a pack of rambunctious university young men, pals of Henry who was sooo dissipated in the last book, but now all and sundry are just game and up for anything, dissipation greatly diminished. Further, Little Moseley has a wide variety of characters of all classes, all walks of life, and Lloyd handles each with ease and grace, never forgetting which voice goes with which character, even as conversations are sometimes rapid fire back-and-forths.
My goodness, I see that there are two more Lady Osbaldestone audiobooks to get me through the next two years. Apparently the fifth, tho’, has a steamy cover and Lady O is in it only a couple of times, and from the reviews it looks like Laurens is back to her explicit ways with Melissa now Being Of Age. I booooo this soundly, but I comfort m’self with: Two more Christmases of Joyful Delight… I’ll sooo take what I can get…
And will be grateful!
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