England, 1817.
Margaret Doria Vickers is the quiet yet independent-minded headmistress of a girls' seminary just outside of London. She believes herself to be pleased with her retiring life, until the Byronic owner of the school arrives, bent on taking up residence alongside the boarders in his dusty old quarters. Edgar Thurlow is a man of many mysteries, who disturbs Margaret's peace of mind and sparks gossip among the servants, though in reality, he means only to mollify his memories with gentler moments, withdrawing himself from the artificial London society he so deeply despises.
Even as his bad habits are gradually revealed to the observant headmistress, a strong understanding crystallises between these two social outsiders. Edgar's past proves too strong to compartmentalise, and it distracts and torments him from any present comforts. In the meantime, Margaret's sister Tilly, who is a governess, comes to visit her, which brings back some of Margaret's long neglected memories of a carefree youth. In spite of the exasperations she feels toward Edgar's behaviour, Margaret finds herself seeking him out, and enjoying his unconventional company in the midst of unwanted attentions from old suitors and thoughtless affectations of a naïve younger sibling. She finds him refreshing, and a sort of character out of time that does not appear to fit in anywhere, much like herself.
Perhaps Margaret will be the making of his good character - or perhaps he will mature on his own terms, just as she must do.
"Well then, there must be a reason why you aren't able to keep your eyes off me in the market today, Miss Wellesley." He whispered in my ear, sending shivers down my back.
"Don't flatter yourself," I took a step back, "it's just that you're the first person I think the word 'ugly' stands for."
"Deny all you want, sweetheart." He inched closer and leaned into my ear, "but your face says it all."
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Are you aware of how people lived in the 1800s?
Well, I for one, do not. But little did I expect myself to be hurled back in time, to a world where I will have an experience of a lifetime.
Meet Ava Winters, a normal and mundane girl who got her heart broken when she stumbled upon her cheating boyfriend with the school's most popular girl. Heartbroken, she shuts herself from the world, only to be left bitter and desolate. But what happens when she finds herself propelled into the Victorian Era?
What were the adventures that lay before her?
What will she do if she finds herself falling for the big-headed jerk, Nicholas Alexander Clayton?
Book 2 is out!
Disclaimer: This story has been tweaked from from the original plot that I had in mind. Also, it is purely fictional. I am not an expert in the study of the Victorian Era nor am I aware of the things and activities that people do in those days.