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Jane Orcutt: All the Tea in China

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Jane Orcutt All the Tea in China

All the Tea in China: краткое содержание, описание и аннотация

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The good young Englishwoman knows that her destiny depends upon a good marriage match. But Isabella Goodrich is not your typical good young Englishwoman. After an encounter with those less fortunate than she, witty and fun-loving Isabella makes a shocking decision. Against everyone's advice and wishes, she is going to become a missionary in the Far East. Fighting against cultural expectations, common sense, and a mentor who is not as he seems, Isabella leaves her predictable Oxford life behind and sets sail to a new world fraught with danger. Can she trust the mysterious missionary Phineas Snowe? Or will her adventure end before it even begins? This first novel in the Rollicking Regency series will delight readers who like high adventure, twisting plots, and a fun bit of romance.

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“I do,” I said firmly, with the certainty that one day soon-surely!-I would be repeating that expression in the matrimonial setting for which it was properly intended.

By the time I prepared for the party, my hands were trembling. Flora helped me into the finished dress, then adorned my hair with strings of pearls. She argued in favor of flowers, but when I studied the pearls, they accidentally slipped from my hands to the floor. I looked at Flora triumphantly.

She sighed. “I suppose you will insist that is the right choice, then.”

“Of course.” I was not superstitious, but I did believe that sometimes decisions were ordained for us. To my estimation, young ladies should be careful (though Flora called it impulsive) to pay heed.

Her eyes shone as I departed, and she whispered in my ear that I should remember every fashion detail. She also squeezed my arm and warned me not to spend too much time with Uncle Toby, who would no doubt encourage me to more intellectual conversations than a young lady of my age should pursue.

Tobias Fitzwater, my uncle, had raised my sister Frederica and me but was better known as the dean of Christ Church at Oxford. Though he had never claimed to understand the dreams and whims of girls or young women, he had taught Freddie and me-just as he did his students-to reverence God first and education second. My sister scorned her knowledge once she reached her first Season, but I embraced it heart and soul.

If Uncle Toby knew nothing of proper behavior for girls, I could claim equal ignorance. When, as a child, I observed some of his students fencing, I demanded to take up the sport. My dear uncle readily indulged my desire, and I had no maternal figure to advise against its impropriety. Flora was as devoted to my uncle as she was to me, so she guarded our secret even when my practice grew more scandalous as I gained in age.

Uncle Toby and I rode in silence to the Ransoms’ until he squinted in the dim light of our carriage. He angled his spectacles further down his nose. “Do I see a new pair of slippers on your feet?”

“You do,” I said proudly, sticking out a foot for his inspection.

He studied it, then checked the other slipper, his expression sober. “Where did you get these?”

“Flora had them made for me. Solomon said it was a special pink silk that made him think especially of me. Why do you ask?”

“This is Chinese writing on the toes, were you aware?”

“I assumed as much. Solomon said the silk came newly from the Orient.” I twisted my neck to study the symbols from Uncle Toby’s perspective. “Do you know what they mean?”

“I am afraid not. Far be it from me to judge society, but I cannot help but think it will frown upon such foreignness in fashion.”

That was odd. Uncle Toby had never commented negatively on anything I wore. Still, he was so involved in his studies, he scarcely took notice of his own appearance, let alone anyone else’s. “I am sure that Catherine Ransom and all the other ladies will have more to worry about than the slippers on my feet,” I said with a light air.

Uncle Toby raised an eyebrow. “You are not hoping to impress anyone tonight, are you?”

“Why do you ask?”

He shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “I have been meaning to speak to you of this for a while now, Izzy, but have worked up neither the courage nor the proper words. Perhaps I should best be plain.”

“By all means.” I nodded. Uncle looked quite serious, a rarity for a personal exchange between us. Our conversations, though oftentimes lengthy, were usually limited to scholarly discussions.

“Not all are intended by God for matrimony,” he said.

“Indeed,” I said, wondering why he spoke of himself. Uncle Toby had never wed, preferring to pour all of his affection into his studies-and in raising Freddie and me, of course.

Uncle Toby nodded.

I waited for him to proceed. He looked away, obviously flustered. I continued to wait.

He shifted uncomfortably. I shifted as well, studying the tips of my slippers as though some answer could be found there. At last it dawned on me that Uncle Toby did not intend to say more.

I smiled broadly, then felt an involuntary chuckle tickle my throat. Uncle stared as though he were riding with a lunatic. “I did not envision humor as your response,” he said.

“I did not envision matrimony as a subject you would broach tonight.” Or rather, broach then retreat!

He looked troubled again. Apparently the situation was uneasy for him, but I could not imagine what sort of participation he sought from me.

“Sometimes,” he said, then seemed to draw courage. “Sometimes men are so enamored with finding a diamond that they fail to see the pearl among them.”

I shook my head, bewildered. Now he was speaking of jewels. I patted his hand. “You are quite a riddle, Uncle Toby.”

His shoulders slumped in a sigh of evident defeat, then he smiled at me fondly. “I fear that I am, my dear. I fear that I am.”

Sir Henry Ransom waited at the doorway to greet us as we alighted from our carriage. He ushered us inside his spacious home, and anticipation fairly took my breath. Or maybe it was the smoky aroma of the multitudinous candles. The crystal chandelier glowed above the generous main room, while wall sconces reflected their own kindred flames. Striped and solid velvet chairs were artfully arranged for conversation. Later, I knew, dinner would be served in the massive dining room. The Ransom home was as comfortable as it was large, like a portly woman with her finest jewels.

All of this might have been mine, for David Ransom and I had been friends since childhood. He and his family rusticated in Oxfordshire every year, and we played explorers and pirates together while young, then later began to eye each other with keener interest.

Then Catherine Allbright became the object of his affection. No words of explanation passed between David and me, but none were needed. We had exchanged no promises save those of a pirate king to his fair lady. Though I would never dream of voicing my doubts, I was at a loss as to David’s selection in Catherine Allbright. Unless it was her well-lined purse. She was the daughter of a prosperous landowner, after all, and I but an orphan. I wished them well on their wedding day.

“Will you be all right alone for a moment, Izzy?” Uncle Tobias asked. “Sir Henry wishes to show me his latest art acquisition.”

“Enjoy yourself, Uncle,” I said, smiling, as he took his leave. “I shall be all contentment.”

“Isabella!”

Then again, perhaps not.

“What a perfectly lovely dress!”

“Catherine!” I returned, kissing the cheek of the blonde beauty who had claimed my childhood friend for her husband. I took note for Flora that Catherine had donned a beastly green silk that made her complexion look like the underside of a trout. “You look lovely too.”

“Not for long.” She leaned closer for a confidential whisper. “I am with child.”

My heart sank. Could crueler words be spoken tonight? “Really! That is… wonderful. Truly wonderful. You and David are quite blessed.”

“To be sure. David is the most devoted of husbands,” she said, demurely touching the front of her dress in a maddening way, as though the babe were already making its presence known. She snapped to herself and smiled. “And you? Any prospects?”

“If the Lord is willing, I shall breathe and rise again tomorrow,” I said with a smile. Prospects, indeed! As though I were in search of a situation!

Catherine smiled blandly. “How many years has it been since your final Season? No, wait. Let me guess.” She counted on her left-hand fingers and unfortunately soon moved to those on her right. “I remember now. It was the year David proposed to me. My, but that has been a while.”

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