I noted early on how the first wives of both Tristan and James conveniently died around the same time, and that the timing of James’ freedom from Hortense just happened to be within hours of Adelaide’s marriage. What I did find a little hard to believe at times were the timelines and just how convenient certain things were. This is the truth of love and marriage.I appreciated how the story attempted to illustrate the difference between two very different kinds of love, and how the slow and difficult kind can still last and become passionate. Sometimes in relationships you have to put aside your pride in order to make things work, sometimes you have to forgive no matter how much it hurts, and often times you just have to be brave and honest with yourself and your partner. Very often, a working relationship requires compromise and learning to love, to respect, and to grow together. She holds her husband in the highest regard and worries about tarnishing his opinion of her. As her love grew, so did her guilt over both the past and for not sharing the same admiration at the start of the marriage. For Adelaide, true love started off as a compromise but became so much more. Adelaide and Tristan’s love for each other was born out of quiet patience and tenderness, getting to know the other person over time as passion grew between them. This is the kind of love I think everyone envisions, even though in reality the fire often burns out and couples end up struggling with each other’s imperfections. There are so many love stories where characters fall in love upon meeting with a fiery passion and continue to forge the relationship despite any of the difficulties that stand in their way. What I liked was how realistically love is portrayed. The Maid of Milan is a story of regret and finding new love in unexpected places.

Instead of the expected rekindling of a lost love due to circumstance, the story took an unexpected turn, with Adelaide wanting nothing but to put the past behind her. After years of living with guilt over the lies she’s forced to live with and the unsteady beginnings of her marriage, Adelaide’s quiet life is upset when the love of her past reappears. While at first she doesn’t care for Tristan, after getting to know the good person and even better husband that he is she falls in love with him. ✮ Read this review and more like it on The Last Page ✮Īdelaide is a young wife with a past full of scandal who has come to love a husband she was pushed into marrying to save her reputation.

The Maid of Milan by Beverley Eikli