Six Sisters of Shame
By
Liza O’Connor
RESEARCH, RESEARCH, AND
MORE RESEARCH!
With six talented young
women, there was a great deal to research.
Alice is a
mathematician and scientist. Scientists once believed that ether was the substance
that allows light to move through the universe, just as sound needs air or
water to propagate.
Earth's motion through
the ether, some physicists thought, would create a type of wind that bends
light waves the same way that wind in the atmosphere bends sound waves.
But the theory of Ether
was largely abandoned after an 1887 experiment by physicists Albert Michelson
and Edward Morley. Dubbed "the most famous failed experiment," the
test was meant to gather data on the effects of this so-called ether wind. But
the experiment showed that light propagation was not affected, suggesting ether
wind did not exist.
Alice mathematically
proves that ether may exist, only it impacts gravity, rather than light.
And quite recently the
latest theory by Starkman suggests that ether may do exactly that.
Charity
is a pharmacist, nurse, and surgeon. She constantly tries out
new drugs being created during the Victorian era, but she’s very careful,
because much of what the doctors used in the late Victorian era was dangerous
to a person’s health.
She’s also read
everything Dr. Vichow has written on the classifications of cancer, so the head
surgeon allows her to assist in a surgery to remove a large tumor. In doing so,
she locates two very small cancerous masses, thus possibly saving the patient’s
life.
Jora’s
bird watching required me to research a rare bird:
Branta ruficollis. It’s a
lovely goose. It is only rarely found in England, so the fact that both Jora
and her suitor know its name is most odd.
Salise
learns the rules of Crap so she can gamble. Man, is that
confusing!
Rose
is a fabulous painter, so I had to investigate both good and horrible pieces of
artwork, and let her ‘fix’ a Renoir to make it ‘true’. Why had
Renoir disguised the truth in his painting?
Simple, the truth was too ugly for public consumption.
Arial
is a very fine musician on several instruments. She is
attempting to reach perfection.
Their
mother shares information about air compression usage in the post office
And
finally, I had to discover the two credible cretins who were the infamous Jack
the Ripper. I wrote an entire separate blog on that
matter.
Blurb
In his second marriage, a marriage of true
love, Douglas Marsh has acquired six beautiful, identical daughters, who have
made a pact never to marry. All are a challenge to the strict mores and
interests that young ladies of Victorian England should have, but all are uniquely
wonderful. He strives to match his new daughters to men who can appreciate each
girl’s talents and interests. Only, one of his daughters wishes to choose for
herself, and her choice sets off repercussions that could destroy them all.
WARNING:
THIS STORY INCLUDES SOME SEXUALLY EXPLICIT SCENES.
Excerpt
Charity returned to the men. “If I may have
your attention, please. I have two treatments for the crabs. One is the
standard treatment and the other is a new experimental treatment.”
The blacksmith, with a broken leg, shook his
head. “Don’t want no one experimentin’ on me.” The other men nodded in
agreement.
The smithy noticed the disappointment on
Charity’s face and tried to make matters right. “Will this experimentin’ hurt?”
“Actually, the new treatment shouldn’t burn at
all, whereas the kerosene can be quite painful on the open crab bites.”
Now all eight men volunteered for the new
treatment. In the end, she had them draw straws. The winners got the new
treatment.
Francis (the
doctor she loves) was amazed at her success in turning them around. The
only way he could try new treatments was to remove the choice in the matter and
just do it without discussion. He had long ago discovered people do not like to
try new things.
When Charity placed the kerosene on the
blacksmith, he howled and cursed in pain. He stopped when he noticed tears
running down her cheeks. “I ain’t cursing at you, just the burn.”
She nodded. “I know. But you are very strong
and only the worst pain would make you cry out. It hurts me to cause you pain.
And if I were not certain that this will make you better soon, I could not
continue.”
He huffed. “It ain’t so bad, really. I just
like to curse. But seeing as how it’s upsetting you, I’ll try to put a cork in
it.” With clenched jaws and closed eyes, he remained quiet through the
remainder of his treatment. The next three men were just as stoic, even though
their pain was obvious.
God, she was a miracle worker. The reason why
he hadn’t bothered to treat the men prior to this was because he wanted his
surgical patients more time to recover before listening to hours of howling.
“Now for the experimental lotion,” she said and
moved to the fifth man.
His body tensed, ready to suffer his pain in
silence. The moment her hand applied ointment, his mouth fell open in shock.
“That feels good!”
When she finished, he looked at the patient to
receive the treatment next. “Not only don’t it hurt, but the gnawing itch has
stopped.” He smiled at Charity. “This is a much better cure.”
She gravely met his eyes. “We won’t know until
tomorrow if it has cured you.” Motioning to the men at her left, she continued,
“I am very certain the kerosene will cure these brave men by tomorrow, but I am
not certain the lotion can kill the eggs. Your crabs could return in seven days.”
The man shrugged. “I got faith in you, miss.
I’m bettin’ the treatment works.”
When she returned to Francis, he dipped his
fingers into the cream and smelled it.
“Be careful, it would be poisonous if
ingested,” she warned.
“I hope it works.”
“So do I.” She sighed and her shoulders
trembled. “It was hard causing the first four men so much pain.” She took hold
of Francis’ hand and carefully wiped the cream off and then washed his hand
with the soapy water in her bowl.
Her actions were incredibly erotic and he
struggled to remain focused on medical topics. “You make a very fine nurse.”
She smiled and continued her ministrations.
He had always thought marriage was an
impossibility for him. But with a woman such as Charity would not have to stay
home and be neglected. She could help him in his life’s work. “I suspect you
will make an even finer doctor.”
Fabulously Unique
As a fan of Liza's Xavier and Vic series. Knowing this book was from the same universe I I had to read it. And boy am I glad I did.
Jora, Charity, Alice, Rose, Arial and Salese are six beautiful and talented sisters all needing a man to love them for the women that they are. But they have a secret.
From the very beginning you get the sense that something is not quite and you keep turning page after page to try and figure it out.
About half through I was certain I had figured out what was going on. By then I was so hooked on each sister finding her happy ever after I furiously kept turning pages wanting the story to never end.
There are a few bumps along the way but this wonderful unique story will keep you engrossed from start to finish.
5 out of 5 stars
Six Sister of Shame
About the Author
Liza O’Connor lives in Denville, NJ with her dog Jess. They hike in
fabulous woods every day, rain or shine, sleet or snow. Having an adventurous
nature, she learned to fly small Cessnas in NJ, hang-glide in New Zealand,
kayak in Pennsylvania, ski in New York, scuba dive with great white sharks in
Australia, dig up dinosaur bones in Montana, sky dive in Indiana, and raft a
class four river in Tasmania. She’s an avid gardener, amateur photographer, and
dabbler in watercolors and graphic arts. Yet through her entire life, her first
love has and always will be writing novels.
OTHER BOOKS BY LIZA O’CONNOR
HISTORICAL
Humorous, Late Victorian Sleuth Series
A Right to Love (a
romantic spinoff)
SINGLE HISTORICAL NOVELS
Spinoff from Jane Austen’s Pride &
Prejudice
Romance/Suspense
Social Networks
I really enjoyed this story. I loved how we figure out the mystery only to have to find out if the women will survive! What a page turner indeed!
ReplyDelete