The House of Discontent

by Esther Wyndham

Patricia, always shy, and scared at the thought of going to live with relations whom she hardly knew, tried to fortify herself with the thought of the stranger who had helped her over a difficult part of her journey. If he had been so kind, surely her own kindred must be more so?

She was disappointed to find herself part of a thoroughly unhappy household, and yet her stay there was destined to bring her the greatest happiness of her life.

Genres: Harlequin Romance

189 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1955

About the author

Mary Lutyens (pseudonym Esther Wyndham; 31 July 1908 – 9 April 1999) was a British author who is principally known for her biographical works on the philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti.

Reviews

[Margo]

Every time I see this title I find myself saying, "The House of Discontent? I LOVE that place!" And that is my problem with this book. It's an amalgam of the most mediocre traits of romances of the time, including inexplicable behavior and contrived barriers. Ultimately, I felt like the H is going to be a burden for the h -- despite his confidence, he expects the reserved h to show all her cards and when he doesn't, he behaves coldly to her.

[Bec]

note for the librarians - this edition has 190 pages.

For the age of the tale, it still holds itself. Orphaned in Hongkong, Patricia moves to England to be with her remaining family - an aunt and uncle she barely remembers, and slightly younger cousin Mary, slightly older cousin Edward who lives away from home. Her aunts dark mood cast a long shadow on all all who live there, and only lifts when Edward returns home. As time goes on Patricia finds her feet, joins the community and the usual drama of being just old enough to marry - who pairs off with who and how is the bulk of this read. It was very sweet and lovely, even if a bit dated.

[Lynn Smith]

This edition Published 1966
Not very keen. The characters romance to me was not completely believable as they barley spent time together and the chemistry just not there. This story was too tame and very much of its time.

[Tia]

I found the book irritatingly boring unfortunately. Yes, there were some good parts but not many. I didn't necessarily dislike the novel but I didn't find it charming or enlightening either. It was all a bit too much fluff for me. Also the hero drove me batty, the romance between him and the heroine was kind of shoddy as well.