Twitter Tuesday - Downton Abbey Inspired Reads

This tweet today made me click over to Simon and Schuster link right away. We that Mundie Moms adore "Downton Abbey" and have watched it faithfully since the first episode. Matthew and Mary's wedding from last Sunday's episode was the topic of conversation between a lot of us yesterday. Wasn't it just perfect? So in keeping with the theme of Downton, we are thrilled to add these reads to our TBR. 

Summerset Abbey: A Bloom in Winter by T. J. Brown looks good. Here's the synopsis: The highly anticipated second installment in the Summerset Abbey series, which picks up just after the climatic conclusion of book one.

After Prudence’s desperate marriage and move to Devonshire, sisters Rowena and Victoria fear they have lost their beloved friend forever. Guilt-ridden and remorseful, Rowena seeks comfort from a daring flyboy and embraces the most dangerous activity the world has ever seen, and Victoria defies her family and her illness to make her own dream occupation as a botanist come true. As England and the world step closer to conflict, the two young women flout their family, their upbringing, and their heritage to seize a modern future of their own making.

I just started Cinders and Sapphires by Leila Rasheed and oooh, it's good from the very beginning. Here's its' synopsis: One house, two worlds...

Rose Cliffe has never met a young lady like her new mistress. Clever, rich, and beautiful, Ada Averley treats Rose as an equal. And Rose could use a friend. Especially now that she, at barely sixteen, has risen to the position of ladies’ maid. Rose knows she should be grateful to have a place at a house like Somerton. Still, she can’t help but wonder what her life might have been had she been born a lady, like Ada.


For the first time in a decade, the Averleys have returned to Somerton, their majestic ancestral estate. But terrible scandal has followed Ada’s beloved father all the way from India. Now Ada finds herself torn between her own happiness and her family’s honor. Only she has the power to restore the Averley name—but it would mean giving up her one true love . . . someone she could never persuade her father to accept.

Sumptuous and enticing, the first novel in the At Somerton series introduces two worlds, utterly different yet entangled, where ruthless ambition, forbidden attraction, and unspoken dreams are hidden behind dutiful smiles and glittering jewels. All those secrets are waiting . . . at Somerton. 

This book has been recommended to me by so many friends that I finally gave in and bought it. More of an Austen-esque read but has the intrigue of Downton. Edenbrooke by Julianne Donaldson's synopsis: Marianne Daventry will do anything to escape the boredom of Bath and the amorous attentions of an unwanted suitor. So when an invitation arrives from her twin sister, Cecily, to join her at a sprawling country estate, she jumps at the chance. Thinking she’ll be able to relax and enjoy her beloved English countryside while her sister snags the handsome heir of Edenbrooke, Marianne finds that even the best laid plans can go awry.

From a terrifying run-in with a highwayman to a seemingly harmless flirtation, Marianne finds herself embroiled in an unexpected adventure filled with enough romance and intrigue to keep her mind racing. Will she be able to rein in her traitorous heart, or will a mysterious stranger sweep her off her feet? Fate had something other than a relaxing summer in mind when it sent Marianne to Edenbrooke.

Do the words "drama in a sweeping English country estate" make you pick a book up? These days my answer is oh, yeah.