"Cobblestones to Corsets" by TrueEnglishRose

Posted by Pb

(banner made by Mina)

Isabella was born as the daugther of farmer Charles Swan and has had a very simple upbringing. When she is still a teenager, her father passes away after a long illness and Bella takes over the responsibility to care for her sick mother and younger brother, Charles Jr. From making sure to earn enough money to be able to pay the rent, to organizing the household, Bella is dealing with it all. Additionally, she constantly has to worry about her poor mother, who is barely staying alive, as well  her brother, whose education is far too expensive. So at the tender age of 18, the young yet very mature woman, has many weights to carry on her shoulders and it is one cold winter that she eventually struggles with making ends meet. What she doesn't know is that, behind the scenes, a few people pull some strings to help her go through this difficult phase in her life...

Situated right next to the little cottage of the Swans, is the mansion of Lord Carlisle Cullen and his wife Esme, their landlords. For years, the latter has been best friends with Bella's parents and has always felt a special connection to the brown-haired girl. When Esme notices how much Bella struggles to keep a roof over her family's head and everyone fed, she is determined to help her with the payments. But her plans are ruined - or rather temporarily intervened - when Mrs. Swan eventually passes away. Esme decides to let Bella and her brother move into her home, at least for the amount of time the young woman needs to recover from the loss of her mother. Coincidentally, it just so happened that only a few days earlier, Esme and Carlisle's oldest son Edward was back in town and visited his parents. He sees Bella and is utterly fascinated by her. Yet Edward can't stop thinking about his late wife as he is constantly reminded of her by their two children. Meanwhile, Bella refuses to start any kind of romantic relationship until her brother's future has been settled, despite the fact that she likes Edward, too... Will the two of them be able to deny the intense chemistry they have between them?

Set in the 1800s, this story is very precise in capturing the details of the time period. Not only that, TrueEnglishRose manages to write a mind-boggling plot that will have you hooked until the very end! The story portrays Bella's and Edward's characters wonderfully. It is great to see a very independent Bella, who, despite what is expected of her, has her own opinions of how things should go (even such mundane things as not wanting to wear a corset). The way she behaves and thinks is extremely mature and your heart will break when you'll read about the impact she has on Edward due to her natural charme. Edward, on the other hand, is quite moody in the beginning; mainly because he is worried about raising his children without a mother. But with Bella interacting so well with both him and his kids, he is adamant on making her his wife. Unfortunately, Bella wants some time as she needs to figure things out and is slowly finding out what Carlisle and Esme have been doing behind her back. Don't worry folks, our sweet Edward is willing to wait for the love of his life and the story has an adorable HEA! This fanfiction is definitely one of the best out there and yet, there are many who have not read it - this is your opportunity! What are you waiting for? ;-)

Cobblestones to Corsets consists of 50 chapters and 96,588 words. The story is rated M for some language and sexual situations.

COMPLETE

 

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