Liza O’Connor’s Troublesome Apprentice

True story
of a woman who lived her life as a man in the Victorian era.

I realize for some, it is hard to
believe a woman could successfully pretend to be a man in the 19th
century, but I give you a well-documented case of one woman who became a
physician, (making her England’s first woman surgeon and doctor, although no
one realized it at the time.)

Standing less than 5’ with a high
pierced voice, Mary Ann Bulkly, took the name of a dead relative, James Barry,
dressed as a man to enter medical school, and became a physician. She then
JOINED THE ARMY, where she remained for 44 years of service. She acquired a
black servant who remained with her throughout her long career. Each morning he
would lay out six towels in which she would use to disguise her curves and
broaden her shoulders.  She had a
reputation as a lady’s man, no doubt to disguise the truth. During her time in
Africa, she performed, on a kitchen table, the first ever successful caesarian
in which both mother and child survived. She rose in the ranks to become the
HIGHEST RANKED DOCTOR of the army.

But that doesn’t mean she was liked
by all. In fact, she was thrown out of great many islands the army sent her to.
She was prone to dressing down anyone who did not snap to her wishes, or God
forbid, outright disagree with her. She would have made a terrible woman. Thank
God, she chose to be a man where her bad behavior could be overlooked due to
her excellence as a doctor.

Eventually she/he was forced to
retire from the army. Upon returning to England, Dr. Barry soon after died
during an epidemic of cholera. She attempted to hide her gender even upon
death, by asking no post mortem be done and to bury her in the clothes she
wore. However the charwoman paid to prepare the body, ignored the request and discovered
the truth, which the British government kept hidden until recently. The
high-minded Victorians would have been most upset to know their finest doctor
had been a woman.

Clearly to be a man in the Victorian
era, you only needed to

THEN YOU MUST BE A MAN

                     -End of Discussion

…actually I have more to share on this
topic in the matter, so stay tuned.

Right now, let me share a bit about my
own Victorian young woman who has decided to live a more interesting life as a
man.

While
investigating the death of a friend and client, Maddy Hamilton, Xavier Thorn
(reputed to be the greatest sleuth in England) is greatly impressed with
Maddy’s nephew, Victor, and offers him a job as his secretary. Aware of Xavier’s
history of firing secretaries, Victor garners a promise that for three months
he cannot be fired. Vic then proceeds, in Xavier’s view, to be cheeky and
impertinent at every turn. Xavier endures the impudent pup because Victor is
most skilled in extracting the truth from clients and intuiting facts with
little evidence to assist.

As they
solve a string of cases, Xavier discovers a few more important details about
his troublesome apprentice, such as her true gender, and the realization that
she has awakened his long dormant heart.

Vic remained huddled in her closet,
consumed with grief beyond anything imaginable. It was one thing to lose her
aunt, but for her to die over a pair of shoes was unbearable. She had thought
the truth of Aunt Maddy’s death would help her come to terms with the loss, but
not this truth. It was a thousand times worse than not knowing.

Xavier gently extracted her from the
closet and provided a shoulder to cry upon.

“It is not your fault, Victor,”
Xavier said. “It was simply a cruel chance of fate. I can provide you one
comfort. Maddy’s death was not a meaningless sacrifice. Many people would have
died, had she not bought those shoes and obtained the key. I know it is hard to
discover she died for no other reason than fate, but even in death she changed
the world for the better. Mark my words, whatever the key opens is of vital
importance. She is a hero who died in service to her country. I am certain she
will derive great pleasure in heaven knowing she stopped the sale of government
secrets, but only if you can accept the randomness of fate. She cannot enjoy
her achievements until you are whole again.”

Xavier’s words comforted her a great
deal. Still, she made no effort to pull away from his embrace. His arms
surrounded her with strength and security. She did not wish to give either up
quite yet.

***

Xavier had embraced Victor to give
him support but, to his surprise, he found the act provided him comfort as
well. He took pleasure in the young man’s head resting on his shoulder and this
enjoyment disturbed him.

His unsettling self-discovery did
not cause him to pull away and abandon his employee. He would hold the boy
until he stiffened his spine and showed his magnificent Hamilton courage once
more. He would see Victor safely to solid ground before he left. If he had to
embrace him for the few remaining hours of darkness, so be it.

As for his own pleasure taken from
this physical contact…he would evaluate the matter later. Right now, the
country had bigger problems. The worst crime lord of London, Seth Sojourn, had
turned his clever mind and substantial resources to the sale of state secrets
to foreign spies.

The Troublesome Apprentice

AMAZON

I’m tired of
telling my proper bio. So you get the improper bio.

Liza O’Connor
was raised by feral cats, which explains a great deal, such as why she has no
manners, is always getting in trouble, and doesn’t behave like a proper author
and give you a proper bio.

She is highly
unpredictable, both in real life and her stories, and presently is writing
humorous romances. Please buy these books, because otherwise, she’ll become
grumpy and write troubled novels instead. They will likely traumatize you.

Mostly humorous
books by Liza:

Saving Casey – Old woman
reincarnates into troubled teen’s body. (Half funny/half traumatizing)

Ghost Lover—Two British brothers fall in love with the same young woman.
Ancestral ghost is called in to fix the situation. There’s a ghost cat too.
(Humorous Contemporary Romance)

A Long Road to Love Series: (Humorous Contemporary odd
Romance)

Worst Week Ever
— Laugh out loud week of disasters of Epic proportions.

Oh Stupid Heart
— The heart wants what it wants, even if it’s impossible.

Coming to Reason
— There is a breaking point when even a saint comes to reason.

Climbing out of Hell — The reconstruction of a terrible man into a great one.

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