What is this book about?

WWII has completely upended the life of Roza Mészáros, a young Hungarian countess. Her life as a privileged member of Hungarian society is over, and after years of practice and training, Roza’s dream of becoming a ballerina is also over.

Shortly after the war ends, Roza meets Joe, a kind and loving American soldier, and they fall in love. Before he ships back to Minnesota, he proposes to her. It takes her almost two years to run the maze of red tape before she is able to join Joe in America.

When Roza arrives at the train station in St. Paul, Minnesota, Joe isn’t there to meet her. She learns he has married someone else only a few months before her arrival. She is heartbroken, but she is also scared. She has only two weeks to marry or she will be deported back to Hungary, where she would be labeled an American sympathizer by the Soviets who now control Hungary.

Facing the possibility of imprisonment or death at the hands of the Soviets, Roza makes a bold decision. With the help of a popular Minnesota newspaper columnist, Roza advertises for a husband. After meeting a handful of the over one thousand men who proposed to her by letter, she casts her fate with Finn Ericksen, a WWII veteran.

Why did I read this book?

Somewhere I read a brief summary about this book and thought, “Sounds like an interesting story.” But I have a large TBR pile, so I didn’t rush out and buy it. I forgot about the book until I read that one of our local bookstores was hosting a talk with Loretta Ellsworth about the book. I like to hear authors talk about their journeys as writers and why they wrote a particular book, so I went to meet Ellsworth.

Once I learned that The Jilted Countess was based on a true story, I was hooked. Only the very beginning of the book is based on facts: the Countess was jilted, she did advertise for a husband, and she did marry one of the men who responded. Once the couple married, however, they shunned all publicity. Ellsworth tried to find out what happened to the real-life couple, but couldn’t. So, she used her imagination to create a wonderful historical fiction romance novel.

Why did I like this book?

It’s a well-written, character-driven love story that touches the heart without being sappy. It’s sort of a reverse fairy tale — the Countess is in search of a commoner, instead of a prince, who can save her from a perilous fate. She finds one, but will there be a happy ever after?

Wonderfully paced with an engaging plot, the book is a page turner. I stuck my nose in the book on a two-and-a-half-hour road trip to a golf shop where my husband would be fitted for a set of golf clubs. After each chapter or so, I’d close the book for a couple of minutes and say something to him. He likes it when I keep him company on road trips, so I usually don’t read, but I couldn’t resist returning to the pages of Roza’s life.

Once we arrived at the golf shop, my husband signed in for his appointment, and I was free to read without feeling guilty. And I asked an employee if they had a small lounge area where I could sit and read while my husband had his fitting, but they didn’t. I wandered around, thinking I’d have to find a place to sit on the floor. But tucked at the end of a small hallway, I found a padded bench in an area that housed golf shoes. I sat and read for the next hour and a half, finishing the book.

At times my eyes welled up with tears, and I had to fish in my purse for a tissue to dab my eyes. A couple of times people wandered into the shoe area, and I’d stop reading and ask if they wanted to use the bench to try on shoes, but thankfully, no one did.

Ellsworth dedicated this novel to a friend of hers who told her to write the story. I’m glad she listened to her friend.