Quest For The Missing Lady

‘The Fairest Beauty’ by Melanie Dickerson is a historical Christian retelling of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. In Dickerson’s earlier book called The Healer’s Apprentice (which I reviewed under that name), Wilhelm and Rose got married. This story deals with their two sons. You don’t have to read the first story to enjoy this one, but you will learn what the parents had to go through to find their love.

In Hohendorf Castle, Duke Baldewin Breitenbach married a beautiful lady and had a baby girl. Shortly afterward the wife died. The duke later went on to marry again to another beautiful woman named Ermengard. What he didn’t realize is that her beauty only went skin deep and that her heart was black and she dabbled in black magic. The duke went away on business for a time and when he returned, he found that his two year old little girl, who looked just like her mother, had died. Shortly afterwards he disappeared. It was rumored that his new duchess had killed him but no one knew for sure. What almost no one knew was that the child was given to the servants to be raised as one of them. And so Lady Sophia was raised to be a scullery maid in her own home.

Many years later a servant by the name of Pinnosa had a dream. She was one of the few in the castle who knew who Sophie really was. Pinnosa dreamed that Ermengard would kill Sophie soon if something wasn’t done to stop the duchess. So she faked her death and walked all the way to Hagenheim Castle to warn them, which is at least a week or more of travel on horseback.

Valten, the eldest son of Duke Wilhelm, has been betrothed to Lady Sophia since she was a baby. While he was still young though, news reached them that Lady Sophie had died. So for these many years Valten has believed that he was free to pursue any woman he wished. Gabehart is the second son to Duke Wilhelm. Of the two, Valten is the one who excelled at tourneys, jousting, and sword fighting. Valten has recently broken his leg while jousting.

When Pinnosa reached Hagenheim Castle to tell them that Lady Sophie is alive and in danger from her step-mother, they are certainly surprised. But Valten’s leg won’t let him go to save his betrothed right away.  Gabehart heard Pinnosa’s tale for himself and decided that he will rescue Sophie himself, especially since Pinnosa seemed to think that the danger was imminent. Sophie might not have time for Valten to wait until his leg has healed enough to go save her and he felt such an urgency in his heart to go after her now.

And of course like the typical story line, she ends up escaping the castle and hiding in the woods in the Cottage of the Seven.

So who will win Sophie’s heart? Valten, whom she was betrothed to since birth, or Gabehart, who came to rescue her? And even if she does fall in love with Gabehart, would she be able to get out of the betrothal to Valten, or would she have to marry Valten either way? And there’s the fact that Gabehart has an understanding with the Count Waldomar that he would marry his daughter Brittola. This is a wonderful book.