THE GIRL IN THE GATEHOUSE by Julie Klassen

If you like Jane Austin and her writings, you will probably fall in love with this story.  It was very well done, but for me it was not one of those "can't put down until I finish the book" type story.  I enjoyed myself while I was reading it, but wasn't a book I thought about or wondered what would happen next as I closed the book and did something else.  I thought the cover of the book was an excellent picture of the the gatehouse and the girl who lived there.

Mariah Aubrey has been banished from her home because of a mistake she made and now must live with in secret.  A distant relative lets her come and stay in an old gatehouse in need of repair and a good cleaning.  Mariah arrives with her traveling companion, Miss Dixon and the two of them begin their life in the gatehouse.

Captain Matthew Bryant arrives on the scene when Mariah's distant relative dies and he rents out the estate house with the hope of one day owning it.  He meets Mariah and a friendship slowly takes place.  But Mariah has secrets she is not sharing with anyone.  And there are more secrets and mysteries as you get to know all the characters in this story.

A story with mystery and intrigue and a sweet romance that slowly develops over time.  The characters in this story were all interesting to get to know and it was set in the early 1800's at a time when many things were handled differently back then.  I could easily see this made into a movie, which I would very much enjoy watching.