Sovay by Celia Rees

'I have another matter,' he said eventually. 'Do you know this man?' pushed over the slip of paper that Leon had given him. 'Yes.' Fernand studied it. 'He's a journalist. Used to work for Marat's scandal sheet. Specializes in lies and slander. if he can't find anything, he makes it up. or forges it.'
Sovay is not the normal lady of 1794. She is engaged to a boy, of course, but when she finds out that he hasn't been faithful, she has quite a different way of getting back then most of her peers. She dresses as a highwayman, and waylays the unfortunate boy's coach. "Stand and Deliver," she says. That is when Sovay's real adventures start. When a chain of events leads to her father and brother disappearing, her friends in trouble, her own life at stake, and the future of England, France and Ireland resting on her shoulders, Sovay must fight back, to finish off the person who would have England taken over by anyone- a reign of terror that would never end.
Sovay was shown to a cavernous chamber which must once have been a grand bedroom, but all the original furnishings had been removed, apart from a great armoire that was probably to heavy to shift, although the doors had been taken, for some inexplicable reason.
This book was interesting. I really liked the beginning, but the middle was a bit long, and it could have belonged to a completely different book, in my opinion. Sovay was a likeable character, and so were most of the other characters in here. What I didn't like was that, first, I wasn't sure who Sovay had fallen in love with. There are about 5 different love interests, and it is utterly confusing. Also, the ending. I do. not. like. Celia rees' endings. Not. at. all. This one is incomplete. It makes me wonder what the heck she was thinking. True, it causes thought, but my thoughts are mostly "did Gabriel ever get free?" and "What happened to Virgil?" She wraps up Sovay's thread in an (in my opinion) rather unrealistic way, and she doesn't even start with the others. While this book was an okay read, and I do not regret picking it up (and I would not stop anyone from reading it, of course), I would have to give this book a rating of 2 stars. (I take points off for lousy endings.)
She stationed herself at the crossroads, adjusted the black eye-mask and green kerchief and loosened her weapons. The horses slowed as they toiled up the long hill, but as soon as they reached the summit, the driver cracked his whip, ready to make a speedy descent. Sovay rode out and the horses shied but showed now sign of stopping. 'Stand and deliver!' she shouted.