THE MISTRESS OF TREVELYAN
Jennifer St. Giles. Pocket, $6.99 (384p)
ISBN 0–7434-8625–0
 

Set in late 19th-century San Francisco, this conventional but well-crafted gothic romance from first-time author St. Giles is full of spooky suspense. Lowly laundry worker Ann Lovell, the book’s narrator, will do almost anything to snag the position of governess at Trevelyan Manor, even face off with forbidding Benedict Trevelyan, who’s rumored to have killed his wife. Ann succeeds in persuading Benedict to hire her, despite her lack of formal teaching experience, but as she settles into her new position, she can’t shake the sensation that someone is watching her. That feeling only intensifies as her relationship with Benedict escalates from a chaste but sensual encounter to a full-blown affair.
 

Convinced that Benedict didn’t murder his wife, Ann realizes the culprit must be one of the manor’s residents, who are all members of Benedict’s family. St. Giles has a tendency to overwrite (“I was a mere grain of sand upon the shore of an ocean of pleasure, and Benedict was the tide of that new world”), but her story ripples with tension. This tension and the author’s skill at creating the book’s brooding atmosphere make this an engrossing read. Agent, Deidre Knight. (Aug.) 150 Publishers Weekly
 

THE MISTRESS OF TREVELYAN — Jennifer St. Giles
A Perfect 10
Pocket
ISBN: 0–7434-8625–0
August 2004
Gothic Historical Romance
 

San Francisco, 1873
 

Since the death of her mother a few weeks ago, Titiana “Ann” Lowell is alone in the world. Ann grew up under her mother’s loving care, and greatly misses her. With no husband to support her, Ann’s mother took in laundry to earn a living. It was a hard life, one Ann has no desire to continue. Ann decides to answer an advertisement for a teacher for Benedict Trevelyan’s two young sons. She is qualified for the position thanks to the education her mother insisted she get. Trevelyan Manor sits high on a hill in the city, and Ann has always been fascinated by it and the people who live there. Despite her reddened washerwoman hands, Ann is determined to obtain the position of governess at Trevelyan.
From the moment Ann enters Trevelyan, she feels as if she is being watched. Benedict Trevelyan proves to be a problem she hadn’t expected. For the first time, Ann is attracted to a man and feels a woman’s desire — yet Benedict is the last man she should love. He’s suspected of killing his wife, and even though Ann doesn’t believe he’s guilty, Benedict’s aura of despair and sensuality frighten her. There can never be anything between them; they are too far apart on the social ladder, but sometimes the heart doesn’t care, and passion leads where intellect dare not.
 

Ann immediately becomes enamored of Justin and Robert, Benedict’s children, but the rest of the household remains elusive, and often frightening. Is Trevelyan Manor cursed and haunted by Benedict’s deceased wife, or is someone human trying to drive Ann away? Is Benedict the honorable and passionate man Ann loves, or is he a cold-blooded murderer? Ann will have to learn the truth before the darkness that shadows the manor destroys her.
 

Fans of gothic romance in the tradition of Charlotte Bronte, Victoria Holt, and Phyllis Whitney, read no more — just go out and get this book; you are going to love it! For those of you who are novices to this exciting and romantic genre, read on.
 

THE MISTRESS OF TREVELYAN is an absolutely wonderful tale from debut author Jennifer St. Giles. The pages are filled with tension, shadows, and the sense of expectation found in all truly great gothic romances. In addition to the superb storytelling, the author has created a cast of characters as fascinating as they are varied. Ann is a woman of great compassion and common sense. She is practical about all things in her life, but is overwhelmed by the attraction and passion that fill her in Benedict’s presence. She’s smart and never acts stupidly; even her decision to enter an intimate relationship with Benedict is carefully considered before she acts.
 

Benedict is a man with shadows in his eyes and darkness in his heart. His actions are those of an honorable man, but the reader is fully aware that he has secrets he does not reveal. He is enigmatic, fascinating, and captivating, as well as exceedingly sexy in the way of all dark, brooding heroes. Stephan Trevelyan, Benedict’s younger brother, initially appears to be lighthearted and irresponsible, but he too has secrets and shadows on his soul. In addition to Benedict’s two adorable and lonely son’s, Robert and Justin; his mother; sister, Katherine; and sister-in-law, Constance Oretega, also live at the manor. Mrs. Trevelyan is a bitter and angry woman and makes no bones about the fact that she does not welcome Ann into her home. Katherine is deaf and spends her time painting in her room, rarely interacting with the rest of the family. Constance is a young woman who appears more concerned with fashion than anything else. None of the characters’ surface personalities reveal who they are underneath the gloss, however, so the reader is not sure who is friend and who is foe. This uncertainty helps to create a high level of tension throughout the story. The dialogue flows smoothly and the narrative paints a vivid portrait, not only of the manor and its surroundings, but also of the dark and often menacing atmosphere which permeates Trevelyan.
 

For a story that will entertain from beginning to end, as well as send a chill or two down your spine, I highly recommend THE MISTRESS OF TREVELYAN. It’s an outstanding tale and a Perfect 10 as well as the winner of the Daphne du Maurier Award for both Best of the Best, and Best Historical. ~ Terrie Figueroa
 

Romance Reviews Today

FIVE ROSES FROM A ROMANCE REVIEW!
 

Jennifer St. Giles must most definitely be a descendant of the famous Bronte sisters. By no other manner could she be gifted with such ageless skill as to write a gothic romance, which fascinates even the most discerning of contemporary readers. From the very first page, The Mistress of Trevelyan calls to the reader as Trevelyan Manor had always beckoned to Ann. As Ann could not resist the mystery, neither can the adventurous soul who obsessively turns the pages of the book in search of the truth which lies within.
The story is enthralling, and the characters are captivating, especially the brooding Benedict who shares many likeable character traits with the great Heathcliff of Wuthering Heights. Ann is an unselfish heroine whose admirable quest for truth and love is a rarely seen reflection of the immense talent of Daphne du Maurier’s extraordinary writing gift.
The Mistress of Trevelyan is destined to become a classic romance novel; one readers will reach for again and again.
 

Despite the dark rumors that prevail about Trevelyan Manor and its grim master, Benedict Trevelyan, Ann Lovell seeks a position there as governess for Benedict’s two young sons. As Ann settles in, she finds herself teaching not only the boys about love and life but also the other inhabitants of the house, including Benedict and his two tormented siblings, Stephen and Katherine. All the while Ann finds herself falling harder and harder for Benedict.
 

But the secrets of Trevelyan Manor are dark and dangerous, and Ann’s search for the truth about Benedict’s wife’s death may cause her very own.
 

Jennifer St. Giles must most definitely be a descendant of the famous Bronte sisters. By no other manner could she be gifted with such ageless skill as to write a gothic romance, which fascinates even the most discerning of contemporary readers. From the very first page, The Mistress of Trevelyan calls to the reader as Trevelyan Manor had always beckoned to Ann. As Ann could not resist the mystery, neither can the adventurous soul who obsessively turns the pages of the book in search of the truth which lies within.
The story is enthralling, and the characters are captivating, especially the brooding Benedict who shares many likeable character traits with the great Heathcliff of Wuthering Heights. Ann is an unselfish heroine whose admirable quest for truth and love is a rarely seen reflection of the immense talent of Daphne du Maurier’s extraordinary writing gift.
The Mistress of Trevelyan is destined to become a classic romance novel; one readers will reach for again and again. ~ Reviewed in July 2004 by Natasha.
 

LIBRARY JOURNAL

ST. GILES, JENNIFER
The Mistress of Trevelyan
Pocket: S&S. Aug. 2004. c.384p.
ISBN 0–7434-8625–0.
pap. $6.99.
GOTHIC
 

The beautiful, mist-shrouded house on Trevelyan Hill has always called to bright, bookish Ann Lovell. So when the position of tutor for Benedict Trevelyan’s two young sons is announced, Ann applies and, surprisingly, gets the job. But dark mysteries lurk beneath Trevelyan’s elegant surface, and as Ann grows closer to her young charges, she attracts the admiring attention of their brooding, troubled father. Following closely in the footsteps of Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre, Daphne Du Maurier’s Rebecca, and Victoria Holt’s Mistress of Mellyn, this intriguing, well-crafted romance adds a level of sensuality not found in these earlier works. While this may offend Gothic purists, it is very much in keeping with current tastes. St. Giles has won a number of awards, including two Daphne Du Maurier awards for The Mistress of Trevelyan, and lives near Atlanta.