Ana María has just arrived in England after being sent away by her parents in order to avoid being a pawn of the French during their occupation of Mexico. Gideon is an MP with rising political career. Although they know they should stay away from each other both Ana María and Gideon constantly find themselves thrown together. When the threat in Mexico reaches England, will Ana María be able to count on Gideon or will he pick his political career over her? This is Liana de la Rosa's newest novel, Ana María and the Fox!
Pick up a copy of today's book, Ana María and the Fox by Liana de la Rosa!
If you'd like to listen to a certain segment of our show, here's our outline this week:
0:00 - 08:23: Intro, Author, and History Fact
08:23 - 14:55: Synopsis
14:55 - 16:22: Parlour
16:22 - 44:56: General Discussion
We include our synopses as a semi-transcription of the episode in our blog posts. You can learn more about how we compose these by reading this article. As a reminder though, our synopses are FULL of spoilers. Read ahead at your own risk :)
Ana Maria and the Fox Synopsis:
Ana María and her sisters have been sent to England to live with their uncle (who is Ambassador to England) while their parents are in hiding with Mexico’s liberal government during the French Intervention.
They are not close. They have mainly been separated and pitted against each other by their father, who is highly positioned in the President’s cabinet. He is from humble beginnings and his family is there to serve his political ambitions, including his daughters.
They were sent to Mexico in order to hide from the French, so that they cannot be used as leverage on the Juarez government. They also took much of the family wealth with them so that it could not be stolen by the French.
They have been told to live quietly in England and not draw attention to themselves. However, once they arrive their Uncle tells them he has a different plan. He hopes that by having them out in society, they can gain sympathy with London’s elite and help persuade England to support Mexico in their fight against the French. They do however keep their ties to the Juarez government secret.
At their first ball, Ana María meets Gideon. He is well respected MP and is at the ball in order to gain supporter for his bill that will drive England to help finally eradicate the fringe slave trade. He is the grandson of a former slave, who escaped to England when she was 18, only realizing once she arrived she was pregant (it is implied she was raped by someone in the master’s household and that is want instigated her flight from America). Her daughter then married a Scotsman. Gideon, however, was orphaned at a young age, through will, determination, and a supported Priest he managed to claw his way out of Whitechapel to attend Oxford and now he is considered a rising political star.
Gideon is instantly drawn to Ana María but once she learns she is engaged (to a political alia of her father’s), he backs off. He is then further worried about being tied with her when he hears women gossiping about her at another ball, calling her fast and unladylike. In all this, there is honesty between them.
She likes Gideon but when she hears the gossip about her, she understands why he would not want to be associated with her.
This does not stop them orbiting each other and constantly being pulled together. He loves intelligence and how politically savvy she is. Ana María for her part is drawn to Gideon for his passionate fight against slavery and his desire to help those less fortunate.
They also bond over the fact they are both Catholic. Ana María and her sisters even attend Mass at Gideon’s parish in Whitechapel with him and he is further awed by Ana Maria in the way she effortlessly ingratiates herself with the congregation.
Things start to pick up when both find themselves at the house party of the Earl of Tyrell. Ana María and her sisters are there because her uncle heard rumors of the French knowing who they really are and plotting to kidnap them.
Gideon is there to court Lord Tyrell’s favor for his bill. He has almost enough supporters to see it pass but getting Lord Tyrell’s support would guarantee its passage.
It is at this party where Gideon and Ana María finally kiss. He has rescued her after her horse bolted and on their way back to the house they have a heart to heart that ends in a kiss. Before anything more can be said, her sisters interrupt and they are separated. Both convinced nothing more can happen.
However, at the Tyrell ball, Ana María finds her sister in a study with Tyrell. He is accusing her sister of espionage and fortunately before he can run with that narrative, a few matriarchs walk in and support the sisters over Tyrell’s accusations.
They decide they must leave the next morning though to avoid the man as they can tell he has it out for them.
And boy does he. Before they can leave the next Morning, Tyrell finds the sisters and tells them he knows their real identities and he will give them over to the French unless Ana María agrees to marry him. Gideon, who happened to see Tyrell exiting a room looking smug, instantly knows the man is up to no good. When he walks in to see the sisters, he asks them to tell him what Tyrell has said.
Upon hearing about Ana María being forced to marry the man, he asks her to marry him instead. He can protect her from a forced marriage and with his friends, he can help protect her sisters.
She agrees and they sneak out of Tyrell’s house and go to Gideon’s friend Captain Dawson’s country estate which is a few hours away. A perfect place for a quick wedding and to lay low while they plan their next move.
Ana María and Gideon are married and our first encounter is the wedding night.
Gideon surprises everyone by being much more take-charge in the bedroom than expected based on previous encounters.
Our story is not over yet! Tyrell finds Ana María and her sisters on the Captains property and manages to kidnap Ana María. She is brought to a nearby seaport where Tyrell plans to turn her over to the French. Luckily Gideon and his friends have connections so they end up rescuing Ana María and the Earl ends up dead.
Fortunately, Ana María realized she needed to get something on the Earl so managed to steal papers that not only show he was working with the French but also had deep ties to the slave trade.
After the rescue, Ana María and Gideon finally have a chance to express their love.
In our Epilogue, Ana María and Gideon are becoming a sought after couple to have at parties. Ana María also gets a letter from her mother telling her congratulations on her marriage and that she aided the Juarez government in their fight with some of the papers she stole from Tyrell.
That combined with the love and care from Gideon, Ana María feels like life could not be more perfect.
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