The School Mistress (Emerson Pass Historicals Book 1)

Overall a good read. However, I did find historical inaccuracies and little “annoyances” (the bit about farting was unnecessary), here and there.Most glaringly, to me, was the lack of knowledge or incorrect information regarding multiracial or mixed marriage in 1910 (the year the book takes place). I do genealogy as a hobby, and have a certificate of genealogical research from Boston University and while this definitely does not make me an expert on the matter, it gives context to why this bothered me so much. Mixed marriages are something I see regularly in census records, marriage records, birth records, etc. I feel that an author who writes historical fiction should do their due diligence and fully research the facts.SPOILER….and a history lesson, haha:----The main female character Quinn is shocked to learn (in 1910) that a white man from Colorado married a black woman (the reader knows he met and married her in Chicago eight years prior, so 1902), and thinks how it is illegal “back east”. When she asks about whether they were married or not she’s informed “not legally”. This is my gripe:With the exception of Colorado’s laws at the time, which I had to look up and were more complicated, this is just incorrect:- Illinois repealed a law prohibiting interracial marriage in 1874. Well before the two were married in Chicago in 1902. Thus their marriage was legal in Illinois. 28 years before they married.- Massachusetts legalized interracial marriage in 1843. Their marriage would have been legal in this state as well. For the past 67 years when the story takes place.Quinn, being from Boston, MASSACHUSETTS, would likely have been exposed to multiracial couples to a certain degree, and she most definitely wouldn’t have thought, “Making a fuss was certainly one way to put it. Mixed marriages were illegal back east. I’d assumed they were here as well.”They weren’t “illegal back east.” In fact, New York, New Hampshire, New Jersey, and Vermont never even had laws pertaining to interracial marriage. Maine, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island all repealed these laws in 1887 or earlier. The only states “back east” (meaning the north east area she is from) that still hadn’t legalized mixed marriage by 1910 were Maryland (repealed by the state in 1967 at the start of Loving v. Virginia) and Delaware (overturned by the Supreme Court’s ruling in Loving v. Virginia in 1967). So for Quinn to be shocked by this seems unlikely, given mixed marriages became legal in her home state roughly 47 years before she was born.The only point that MAY have been correct regarding her shock and thoughts regarding interracial marriage is “I’d assumed they were here…” as Colorado generally banned mixed marriage until 1957. EXCEPTING for those marriages that were located in the part of the state once belonging to Mexico prior to and during the Mexican War (1846-1848), that were acquired in 1848 as part of the treaty with Mexico. In this portion of the state that was formerly part of Mexico, they were allowed to “(marry) according to the custom of that country.” So, mixed marriage was legal there.The area of Colorado in question where interracial marriage was legal at the time was south of the Arkansas River and West of the Continental Divide. Essentially the southwest quarter of the state. I will add that there is an Emerson Mountain which is located in this region, however I suspect that the fictional town of Emerson Pass is not located here given that the train ride from Denver is only a couple of hours. If it was though, then the marriage would have been legal there as well. Otherwise, yes, this marriage would have been considered illegal and not recognized by the state. Even more specific, their marriage would have been “absolutely void.” But I think it doubtful that Quinn would have been familiar with the marriage laws of Colorado, or what region of the state it was legal vs illegal. Plus, her reference point of marriage would have been Massachusetts laws, so it seems unlikely she would have even given it a second thought. Quinn’s shock, and even having an assumption about it, is misplaced to me, as well as inaccurate.I know this is probably nitpicking to some, but it was an important issue in our country, and I feel that the historical information in an historical fiction book should be accurate and provide correct information.Otherwise I enjoyed the book, and look forward to seeing what happens in this multigenerational family’s saga.

I greatly enjoyed reading this book and came to care about the characters from the beginning to the end. This is the first in a series, and I cannot wait to read the rest.This first book revolves around Quinn, a strong, brave, and yet insecure woman who secures a position as a school teacher in remote Colorado as a way to make money to send back to her starving family on the East coast.Taking the long journey via train alone was a dangerous thing to do, but Quinn pulled back her shoulders and made the best of it, despite the unpleasantries she endured in the train.When she gets to her destination, she is met by a man sent by Lord Barnes, the gentleman she will be working for, who is tasked with bringing her to the Lord's home. The weather is terrible and they are progressing slowly when a stray gunshot spooks the horses and causes Quinn to go flying from the carriage and knocked unconscious.Upon awakening, she is horrified to find herself on the couch in the home of none other than the man she will be working for. What must he think? Her head aches and she cannot sit up without the room spinning. People are fussing over her, faces showing great worry for they have been waiting a long time for a teacher to come their way, including the children of the Lord himself.Although she was originally to stay in a boarding house, Lord Barnes realizes he cannot send this young woman to such a place that is filled with the likes of who knows what, and instead asks her to stay in his own mansion where she will be safer. Her threadbare coat and nearly soleless boots tell him this woman comes from a place where there wasn't enough funds to go around. He is very right. Her mother in Boston was left alone after her father died, and raising children alone in 1910 was a very hard thing to do.When she is well enough to meet the Lord's children, she notices the nanny is rather mean to her charges and that the children seem to fear her, which does not set well with Quinn. When the nanny quits, Quinn steps in to take her place as a thank you for allowing her to live in the beautiful home. She begins to fall in love with the children, who bloom under her care, their mother having died after years of mental illness when she walked out into a blizzard and perished in the snow.Added to this mix is the mystery surrounding the shooting death of a local man who had married a woman of color and had biracial children, which some townspeople were very vocal about - in the negative sense. They did not want those children to go to the new school with their children. Prejudice was rampant - so finding out who shot the children's father was a hard task.Then there's Louisa, a tiny little thing who shows up at the door of the school on the first day but is hesitant to come in. Louise tells Quinn that her daddy doesn't know she's there because he sleeps all day and if he found out she would be in huge trouble. Quinn realizes this child lives with a drunkard and decides to allow her to participate in class. When the truth comes out about Louisa's father and how she has lived, it's beyond heartbreaking.This book is a feel-good historical fiction story that somehow takes elements you may have read in other such books but puts a new spin on everything. It's well written, the characters are extremely well developed, and it left me wanting more.

This is such a warm story. A happy ending is always essential to a good book. I read this last in the series, wish I had found it first. Watching the young ones grow under such loving care shows that our loving God knew families need both parents to bring out the best in children.

History and romance . My favorite combination. Full of mystery and warmth. I want to read more of her work.

I read the book in one day; and, I rarely read... I couldn't lay it down! Some of the early interaction between Quinn and Alexander was oddly written, but don't let that deter you from an incredible love story full of action and intrigue!

The opening reminded me a bit of the Von Trapp family, so the main characters quickly found a place in my heart. A quick read with some romance and adventure. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series.

I just lost interest and didn't care how it ended so gave up on it. I'm going to sound pedantic here but I also had a couple of things niggle me. The story is set at the beginning of the last century and the main character is an English Lord who has moved to America to live, so I found it totally unbelievable that he kept referring to his children as 'the kids'. Surely with his upbringing he wouldn't say that?. Also 2 of the characters were from France and the girl refers to her parents as Mom and Dad - they had died before she moved to America so surely she would be used to referring to them as Mama (or Maman) and Papa? I know I'm being picky but it really bothered me.

I will give four stars for The School Mistress, but with reservations. It was quite a sickly sweet historical romance, with angel-like children and good people. There's just a hint of bad things happening; child neglect and abuse plus bigotry to give it a sharper edge. I would have liked more of this brought out in the story as otherwise it seemed too good to be true.Lord Alexander Barnes gives Quinn a roof over her head when she arrives at Emerson Pass and that first morning she wakes up and remembers it's Saturday. But then the family talk of going to church and of school starting the following day. It's obviously Sunday.However the romance between Alexander and Quinn starts almost immediately and from thereon I sort of knew where the story was heading and it held very few surprises for me. I'm not convinced about the hero being an English aristocrat who had abandoned his duty and responsibilities in England. Unless the series is going in that direction and Lord Barnes and Quinn visit his family (and there's a story there), I couldn't see the point of him being an aristocrat.I did keep reading to the end and I'm happy to give four stars for The School Mistress.

This was such an amazing heartwarming story! I absolutely loved every minute spent in it! The School Mistress (Emerson Pass book 1) pulls you in and won't let you go even after you finish reading. I was fascinated with how beautifully this story is written, how believable characters are. It got me through so many kind of feelings I felt living this story, yes, living not just reading because it was like being there in that small town with all those different people of the community and breathing that air from back in history, getting enough feels to know how it was back in 1910.Sweet love story of Quinn and Alexander, those amazing bunch of kids and their relationships and so much more! I highly recommend this saga to everyone!

This is a lovely story about an impoverished young lady who travels miles across her country to become a school teacher. The story follows her falling in love and helping her community and getting accepted into a new life. She sets up an evening school to help older members of her town learn to read and write and falls in love with her employer.I enjoyed reading this book and will recommend it as a great story.

This is an enjoyable book which gives you a feel of living and the attitudes in America years ago. I liked the characters and look forward to reading other stories in this series.