Miss Prestwick’s Crusade - Anne Barbour

Miss Helen Prestwick has completed her arduous journey from Portugal to England determined to ensure the future of her nephew, the ninth Earl of Camberwell. Unfortunately, she has no evidence that the child is the son of Christopher Beresford--who died in battle--and knows her claim will enrage Christopher's cousin Edward, who currently wields the title.

Edward Beresford never wanted the Earldom to be bestowed upon him, nor the familial and financial responsibilities that came with the title after his cousin's death. But he's not going to surrender the title without verifying the legitimacy of Helen's claim. Although Christopher's mother and sisters are pleased as punch at the possibility of a new heir, Edward finds himself enchanted with the child's lovely guardian who's mission to usurp his title has also ensnared his heart.

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I have generally enjoyed Anne Barbour’s books, but I am afraid this was not one of her best efforts.

Miss Helen Prestwick, daughter of an art expert, leaves Portugal to return to England with her dead sister’s son William, the 12th Earl of Camberwell. The problem is, that William’s paternal relations do not know that Christopher - the 11th Earl – got married in Portugal, let alone that he had a son before he died, and the title has passed to Christopher’s cousin Edward Beresford. Helen aims to present William’s claim, so in essence oust the current ‘fake’ Earl. It is natural to think that the current Earl will not be happy and will do anything possible to hold on to his title. Especially since Helen has not been able to locate her sister’s marriage certificate which would prove her claim on behalf of William.

The hero, Edward Beresford, is a kind and fair guy though, and does not particularly relish being an earl. So he does not see Helen as his enemy, a fact that it takes Helen some time to realise. Also Edward is almost immediately smitten by Helen, a fact that it takes a bit longer for Helen to realise. But soon enough, these two are on good terms, and have a common goal to find evidence that William is Christopher’s legitimate son, and hence the Earl of Camberwell.

The obstacles thrown to their budding romance is the fact that Helen left Portugal under a cloud, that concerned a counterfeit painting. Helen is of course innocent, but would Edward believe her if she confessed ? Probably not (she thinks) so she keeps quiet. As usually happens in novels though, the scandal surrounding Helen is revealed, and Edward is angry at her and feels betrayed because she had not told him.

Overall Helen and Edward are likeable, and quite suited to each other. Edward is actually a very nice example of a beta hero. And I quite like the fact that he is not set against marriage or women in general, neither has he suffered an disappointment in the past and is bitter. On the contrary, he very early on thinks that he would very much like to marry Helen, which was a refreshing change as far as heroes’ attitudes go. Overall, Helen and Edward’s romance, while enjoyable and sweet at times, is not that engaging or passionate. It proceeds at a steady pace, and suffers minor setbacks every now and then, in the form of the villainous uncle’s interventions, or Helen’s guilt that she has not told Edward about the issue of the counterfeit painting.

All in all a useful book to help pass the time pleasantly if you have nothing more appealing to read. But if you like to try Anne Barbour, I recommend you read "A Pressing Engagement" instead.

Grade 3/5

Once Upon A Sofa - Myretta Robens

WILL A MINOR INDISCRETION

In a mad moment, Lady Isabel Ashby surrenders to a passionate kiss from the earl to whom she is betrothed. Then the door flies open and the rest of the party guests stumble in--and Isabel finds that she has kissed not the earl, but his brother! Major Sidney Chamberlayne is a dashing younger son without a feather to fly with, but he'll have to marry her now.

Still, it was an honest mistake and the room was very dark...can Isabel be blamed?...LEAD TO MAJOR HAPPINESS? Sidney is too much of a gentleman to do that--but they must marry in haste, though they know very little of each other.

Fortunately, his darling Isabel seems eager to learn everything she
can...especially when it comes to love...

I usually dislike cartoonish covers in books and I think that's why it took me so long to pick this one up. It just doesn't look like a traditional regency and I had never read Myretta Robens so it's been sitting there for a few months now.

I'm glad to say that overall it was a nice and funny story, definitely on the light side. Isabel Ashby doesn’t start as a very sympathetic character; in fact I had the idea that she might be a villainess being redeemed as she begins the story by planning to be caught in a compromising position with a man so as to force him to marry her. Things don't go according to plan because the man she entraps is not the one she wants but a penniless officer, albeit from a good family, that has just returned from the war.

I think the weakest part of the story is how they are forced to wed. Since Isabel is a widow it’s not like she is a virginal debutante with a reputation to maintain (especially as there are already rumours about her) and since Sydney doesn't hold a prominent place in society he doesn't really need to care about a scandal. And it is quite obvious to everyone that Isabel planned it so... why would he want to marry her? But so he does... it is unclear if he fell in love a little bit or if he feels it’s the gentlemanly thing to do or both but it seemed a bit too weak a motive for a life changing decision as is marriage.

Isabel accepts his proposal but only after her aunts convinces her that it is the best thing to do. She comes across as cold and selfish in the beginning and I was wondering where Robens would go with her character. In fact for much of the beginning of their marriage Sydney and Isabel remain strangers, and while his mother accepts her Sydney's brother is another matter altogether. As they spend more time together Isabel starts appreciating her husband's qualities and realising that she actually likes him and comparing him in a favourable light with the shallow youths she usually keeps company.

Unfortunately the past has a way of catching up with people and one of the fortune hunters that used to surround Isabel decides to pursue her sister-in-law which leads to trouble for Isabel. I didn't particularly like this part of the story and I felt the author had just introduced it to create conflict between the pair so has to bring them together. I really liked the parts just with Isabel and Sydney and so I think the HEA could have been achieved without (especially as Sydney's sister became a really annoying character) but in the end it didn't bother enough to keep me from enjoying the story.

Grade: 4/5

An Unwelcome Alliance - Ellen Fitzgerald

The Mistaken Mismatch
Beautiful Lady Belinda Deveraux and handsome Lord Gerald Courtenay were passionately in love when they were married. Unfortunately they were not in love with each other. Belinda's heart belonged to Lord Anthony Furneaux, whether or not he chose to accept the rest of her. Meanwhile, Gerald was totally devoted to the ravishing Felice D'Aubigny.

Though bride and groom vowed to remain faithful to their own true loves, they were surprised to find that marital duty led to unexpected desire - as their marriage of convenience became something entirely different!

The premise was good - a couple forced to a marriage of convenience who slowly develop feelings for each other. They were both in love with someone else in the beginning and I was looking forward to know how they would deal with that change of feelings and with getting to know each other.

I found that in the end none of that was really explored, the heroine just had a childhood attraction to another man and the hero had a mistress that he gave up when he found himself in love with his wife. There was no big analysis of their feelings and in the end I wondered why he fell in love with her, and why every other man seemed expected to do the same. She was bit too impulsive and naive which led to some bad decisions when she discovers the husband's mistress. After that I was hoping for some confrontation where they would bare their feelings but I didn't even get that as the husband is hurt in a duel and when unconscious speaks in his dreams and proclaims his love for his wife which is enough for her.

I was much more interested in her friend Cornelia who seemed a level headed young woman and fortunately also has a happy ending of her own. The author seems so determined to give happy endings to all that even the husband's mistress gets one. In the end I found too neatly wrapped and not emotional enough.

Grade: 3/5

Marriage a La Mode - Elisabeth Fairchild

A Scandal Over Love

The ton was in an uproar! The King was bringing divorce proceedings against the Queen. And Lady Melody Bainbridge was doing the same against the cruel lord she had wed a fey years before. Now forced to hide her face behind the veil of he fashionable leghorn hat, Melody found she could not stop Dunstan Hays, Earl of Erroll, from gazing at her. He had come to Kent to fetch a cherry-tree sapling for his home in the Highlands. It was perfectly logical for the sightseeing Melody to mistake the strong Scotsman for a gardener--his warm words made hope blossom again in her heart.

As for Dunstan, he was enchanted by Melody, whose voice sounded like a song. Once wounded by a fickle woman, he had sworn to remain a bachelor. Now he was rapidly falling for a lady no respectable gentleman dared court. Could the scandal of the season become a romance to remember as a man and a woman who'd sworn off happiness plunged--heart first--into love?

This book has an original plot. Set during the reign of King George VI Fairchild establishes a parallel between the attempt the king made to divorce his queen and the situation the heroine was suffering through trying to divorce her husband. In both cases the women's rights are gravely injured and are very different from the husband's. Fairchild shows a very sympathetic heroine to Queen Caroline's plight.

Other than that I found the main characters to be interesting and engaging, especially the hero who searches for a way to free the heroine and hopefully in a way that she can remarry. That can only be obtained in a somewhat tortured way as at the time divorced couples could not remarry. I found the way that their relationship, and later courtship, develops really nice and sweet.

There are not many secondary characters, the only major one is the Earl of Erroll's mother who at first doesn't seem very happy with the fact that her son as chosen such a scandalous bride. There seems to be a mystery attached to his cousin and his wife (Erroll's former beloved) and I was left wondering if they have their own book.

Grade: 4/5

From The Heart - Anthology

Another anthology with 5 regency stories, I find them the perfect reading material for when you have little time and want something short.

The Anniversary - Mary Balogh
No doubt one of my favourite Balogh short stories, she has a knack for providing us with enough back story and multi dimensional characters even in so few pages and it was a delight to read about a couple, estranged since their wedding, who come together on their second wedding anniversary. Thanks to Balogh wonderful writing one can feel their pain and fears and truly rejoice in the happy ending.
Grade: 5/5

The Wooing of Lord Walford - Anne Barbour
A young gentleman who needs to win a wager convinces one of his oldest friends that she must marry one of his old school mates. He teaches her everything about how to conquer him but in the process realises he loves her too and doesn't want to lose her. This was a funny story even if somewhat predictable.
Grade: 4/5

Cupid's Dart - Melinda McRae
Another friends to lovers story but this one with an older couple who have in the past enjoyed each other's company. The story takes place during a house party thrown to help the hero find a wife but he realises the one he wants is right there. I'm afraid it was my least favourite because it failed to engage me.
Grade: 3/5

Devil's Luck - Anita Mills
A gentleman wins a young woman's hand in marriage in a card game. In reality he has no intention of going through with it but only to teach an old irresponsible father a lesson. But as soon as he meets his prospective bride he is embroiled in the family's affairs and finds he may have struck gold after all. I did enjoy the storytelling very much but felt the ending was a bit rushed.
Grade - 4/5

The Impostor - Sandra Heath
The hero goes to visit his friend's unknown bride as a favour and ends up being confused with him and leading to a big misunderstanding while he and the heroine can't help falling in love. When the truth is revealed she believes herself betrayed and it will take him some effort to conquer her.
Grade: 4/5

Anthology grade: 4/5

Play of Hearts - Corinna Cunliffe

A MISTRESS OF MAKE-BELIEVE--IN A MARRIAGE OF LET'S-PRETEND

Miss Perdita Chase had been rescued from the scandalous world of the London theater, where her father reigned as king of actors. The wealthy parents of her well-born mother took her in hand and raised her to be the most proper of young ladies.Little did the lovely Perdita dream that she would have to play a role that would daunt any actress, in a real-life drama surpassing any on the stage.

For when the handsome and gallant Sir Jeremy Dole took Perdita as a bride out of duty rather than desire, she had to pretend to the world that her marriage was as perfect as it seemed. But behind her show of wedded bliss her secret heart cried out for the happy ending that only love could provide. It was clear to Perdita that she had been cast in a play that drastically needed a change of
direction....

I have realised this past few weeks that traditional regencies are my comfort reading material. Whenever I feel down this is invariable the genre I turn too. Although there are less stories being published there are still a huge number of authors and stories for me to discover. This was my first read by this author Corinna Cunliffe and while it wasn't a favourite it had some attractive points and I want to read more by her.

Perdita Chase has been raised by her aunt since she was a little girl, her mother died when she was young and her father is an actor and so considered unsuitable to raise her. She has grown up surrounded by her cousin and 2 of the neighborhood boys, Sir Jeremy Dole and his brother. Perdita is secretly in love with Sir Jeremy and always has been but always feels overwhelmed and tongue tied in his presence.
One day, while out walking alone, she is kidnapped by mistake by ruffians who believe her to be a great heiress. Sir Jeremy proceeds to save but they end up having to spend a night at an Inn where a gossipy old Lady sees them and reaches the wrong conclusions. To protect Perdita's reputation Jeremy pretends they have married and the next day proposes to her.

It is clear from the beginning that Perdita and Jeremy do love each other. However they both believe the other loves someone else. Acting on that presumption they are cold and distant with one another and the misunderstanding just grows bigger and bigger till Jeremy, after behaving awfully towards Perdita decides to stay away.

Unable to conquer him Perdita, who has found her father, decides to join the theater company and perform in the play she herself wrote and that reproduces somehow her problems with her husband. It will take the handiwork of friends to bring Jeremy to watch the play and finally realise the truth.

While I always appreciate books full of heart ache and this one certainly has a lot of that going on I never felt immersed in the story and in the characters to the point where I was suffering along with them (which I like!). They felt believable and interesting but somewhat cold to me. There is a secondary love story that develops that I enjoyed too although we see little of it and it also contributes to the problems between Jeremy and Perdita. Their main problem was one of communication and I would certainly have liked more dialogue between them. The only thing that sounded to me a bit unrealistic was that Perdita would take to the stage so well and without fear of creating a possible scandal. Wouldn't that be odd in that period?

But I did enjoy the book as a whole and thought it well written and am now curious to read more (I have another one in the TBR pile). The ending seemed a bit rushed after all that heartache though.

Grade: 3.5/5

Yuletide Match - Margaret Westhaven

No Place for a Lady

Caroline Percival was born and raised a lady--but family financial disaster forced her to take the unsuitable position of governess in the hellish household of the odious Brangley clan, and the coming of Christmas made her position especially impossible. Even this low rung on the social ladder was threatened by the amorous intent of the lascivious Lord Marchton. Caroline was willing to pay the price to repel this offensive rogue--but his half brother, Mr. Guy Constant, posed a far greater danger to her defiant pride. Where Marchton used his title and brute strength, Constant used wealth, good looks, and charm. And while Marchton had the power to make her lose her post, Guy Constant had the presence to make her lose her head and her heart...

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Although of good birth, our heroine Miss Caroline Percival has been forced to work for her living after her father died and left her penniless. At the start of the book, she works as a governess and suffers the advances of Lord Marchton a visitor of the Brangleys whom she works for. In true regency novel fashion, she is of course blamed by Mrs Brangley for the incident and is fired. That was an inauspicious beginning for me as I really don’t like the martyr heroine type. However the book rapidly improved after this with a change of plot and setting. Our heroine goes to Bath to stay with her mother while looking for work. There she meets by accident Mr Guy Constant who happens to be the guardian of a little girl, Harriet, who was staying with the Brangleys, and to whom Caroline was genuinely attached. Mr Constant also happens to be the odious Lord Marchton’s elder half-brother. Seeing her in Bath after the incident with his brother, Mr Constant assumes she is after all a lady of loose morals, following him to Bath to extract money from him, in return for her silence about Marchton’s behaviour. So their first meeting in Bath does not go well. However he soon finds out that Caroline is in Bath to stay with her mother, and realises he accused her unjustly.

With the initial misunderstanding resolved quite quickly, Guy and Caroline’s relationship progresses and blossoms without further mishaps. I quite liked the fact that there were no contrived obstacles, misunderstandings and difficulties. So there is no much drama and emotional upheavals in this book. Guy and Caroline get to know each other better in Bath, and are both involved in taking care of little Harriet, who is an engaging little girl, not at all spoilt or annoying (another plus of this book).

All in all a very enjoyable read, with very likeable characters, light, refreshing and sweet. But if you want lots of drama, tormented characters, anguish and pain, then maybe the book is not for you. Otherwise, I heartily recommend it.

Grade 3.5/5

Second Thoughts - Sandra Heath

Although Lord Carismont is dashing enough to take any girl of the ton for his wife, the widower has only his daughter's best interests at heart. When Carismont interviews Kate Kingsley for the position of governess, he believes he's discovered a suitable mother for his little girl and readily offers Kate more than she ever expected: a marriage of convenience.

A charming young widow with a son to care for, Kate hesitantly accepts Carismont's proposal and all the security that comes with it. But when she arrives at his castle off the coast of England and learns that someone—or something—is determined to keep them apart, she begins to have second thoughts about their union that only the magic of true love can put to rest.

I have greatly enjoyed some of Sandra Heath's books in the past but I seem to have some trouble with the ones that have magical elements.

In this one a young widow agrees to a marriage of convenience to help an orphaned little girl. But from the beginning she starts to see things, namely a cuckoo determined to help her. When they arrive at her husbands estate it soon becomes obvioous that there is a world of magic from which his first wife came and she not only is still alive in that other world, but keeps wanting to come back to join her lover. To accomplish that she will have to convince her daughter to go to that other world and there's a struggle between the h/h trying to keep the child safe and coping with falling in love and the villains.

Bigger fans of magic and paranormal will probably enjoy it more than I did as that is the most important part of the story. The widow agrees too readily to the marriage of convenience and then they proceed to fall in love too quickly and I really couldn't see the attraction.

Grade: 3/5

An Unconventional Courtship - Dorothy Mack

MISS LATHAM'S LABORS

For one of her tender years, Miss Cleone Latham had a great number of things to do.

As a grateful poor relation in an aristocratic household, she had to manage affairs so that her great-uncle, Lord Brestwick, would not topple over the abyss of financial ruin.

As a fond cousin, she had to help headstrong Philip Hardwicke escape the dreadful consequences of his folly at the gaming tables.

And as a young lady of good conscience, she had to make the enamored Earl of Altern see the selfish, shallow nature that lay under the surface of her ravishing cousin Emerald Hardwicke.

Of course, lithe only way to save Altern from Emerald's clutches was to take this heart quickening gentleman in hand herself, it was a task that Cleone was happy to undertake. It was, in fact, a labor of love...

This was a very enjoyable traditional regency mainly because of two things, a very sensible heroine and an interesting and determined hero. Although the blurb suggests that Cleone is against her cousin's pursuit of the Earl that is not true. She does feel that her cousin and too young and of a shallow nature but she never tries to steal her beau from her.

In fact what one feels is that she almost too good for her own good and determined to not be in the way of her cousin's happiness.

Of course Altern is not stupid and soon realizes that Cleone is a lot more mature and interesting than her beautiful cousin but to woo her he will have to adopt a strategy not to make one woman feel jilted and to convince the other he really loves her. He was a wonderful hero in that sense that he was determined to marry Cleone no matter what and I was left with a happy feeling in the end.

Grade: 4/5

A Highly Respectable Marriage - Sheila Walsh

THE OFFICER’S DAUGHTER

Lovely young Pandora Carlyon was the daughter of a gallant colonel--but now her father was dead, and Pandora was left unprotected in London, far from the battlefields of Europe where she had been raised.

It was up to Pandora to map out a campaign of survival for herself and her two brothers in this strange and scandalous world of English society. It was also up to her to defend her reputation and honour with every weapon at her command when the maddeningly handsome, shockingly notorious Duke of Heron proposed a most unthinkable alliance.

Pandora was about to learn that in love as in war, all was considered fair, every move was fraught with peril, and surrender could be so very tempting...

This book features a young and outspoken heroine and an older jaded rake. It's not that I don't like these types of stories but sometimes it seems to me a bit unbelievable the love story between such different people.

Pandora is an orphan and lives with her brother in the house of her half sister. They are treated like a charity case and since her young brother is always in trouble there's talk of sending him to a severe school. To avoid that Pandora decides to find employment . After a conversation with her godmother, she decides to visit the Duke of Heron who is apparently looking for a governess for his charges. Heron has no idea what Pandora is talking about and thinks she is proposing to become his wife thus creating a misunderstanding and some harsh words are spoken. On learning the truth he finds Pandora and starts to feel attracted to her. His attraction is almost immediate and maybe that is what made it a bit unbelievable to me.

Pandora was a nice girl, very trusting, naive and wanting to help everyone around her while Heron is the consummate rake. In a way I felt he rushed her a bit towards marriage and she might need more time to adjust to marriage, to him and to her new station.

Grade: 3.5/5

Lord Dragoner's Wife - Lynn Kerstan

JUST ONE NIGHT

Six years ago, Delilah was wed to Charles Everett, Lord Dragoner, a man she'd loved from afar. But after only one night, he fled England for France, and was gone from her life... Now the handsome lord has returned, surrounded by scandalous rumors. Although he cloaks his explanation in wit and laughter, Delilah discovers her husband was forced into their marriage by cruel and manipulative parents - and soon understands why Lord Dragoner wants to cut his ties with the past...He assumes his estranged wife wants the same. But Delilah has other plans - for she truly loves her husband, and dreams of a life together, if he could give them a chance at happiness. Only two things stand in their way - Dragoner's bitter past, and his present occupation, which promises danger for them both....And when Delilah resolves to face that danger beside her husband, a fragile chance for love begins to bloom...

I had read Lord Dragoner’s Wife a few years ago but I had never reviewed it so as I found another copy I thought I should reread and write about it. Plot wise it has two of my favourite themes – it’s a marriage of convenience and a marriage in trouble story.

Six years previously Delilah, a tradesman daughter, and the present Lord Dragoner were married. He appeared on church drunk and disappeared right after the wedding night. For five years, Delilah has waited for him to come back so they can form a relationship but when he returns is to speak of a divorce.

While Dragoner believes theirs was only a marriage of convenience, trading a title for money that his parents immediately managed to spend Delilah had in fact examined several candidates and decided to choose him because she was attracted to him. It’s with considerable distress that she finds what he plans when the only thing she wants is to start a family.

It seems divorces are much easier to come by in France and that’s where Dragoner has been living so he assumes it will be as easy in England. When he sees it is not so he lets Delilah persuade him to postpone a decision. While he goes back to France where he performs undercover work for Wellington she decides to follow him and see if his bad reputation is well deserved and if she should indeed forget him and any chances of saving their wedding. But she is welcomed with open arms in Madame de Stael’s salons and given a lot of information on her husband as well as a makeover.

What follows is Dragoner still trying to do his job as a spy but finding his wife in the middle of the action. Delilah is quite a strong and determined woman in her own way and tries her best to help him even if some wrong assumptions do lead to some funny and unexpected scenes. And of course, in the end Dragoner can’t help himself and does fall in love with his wife.

A very enjoyable story where my only complaint is that Delilah was a bit too good, too kind, too intelligent, a business genious… but I still liked it very much!

Grade: 4/5

A Regency Christmas Eve - Anthology

Celebrate the most joyous of seasons with these original stories of holiday romance from five of today's most beloved award-winning Regency authors. Each tale is set on Christmas Eve, capturing the season's true spirit of charity and goodwill, proving time and again why love is the greatest gift of all. This special collection is a perfect present for friends and lovers who find themselves looking forward to the holiday with delicious anticipation, wondering what awaits them under the tree--and under the mistletoe .…

Little Miracles – Barbara Metzger
My favourite story in the anthology this one is about two rodents trying to save a very poor church by sharing the secret only they remember and bringing love and happiness to the vicar and the local lord. I thought the mice were a cute device, the story seems to lack some balance though as they only appear in the beginning and the end.
Grade: 4/5

Marriage Stakes - Allison Lane
Miss Sophie Landess is returning home with her widowed and very pregnant sister when they have a carriage accident and are saved by the Earl of Westlake and soon Sophie finds herself helping him finding the right bride after they are invited to stay at his home during the holiday season. I thought it was odd that Sophie went spying for him and I never really felt the attraction between them.
Grade: 3/5

The Gift of the Spoons – Nancy Butler
A man, desperate to save his son, goes in search of a healer he has heard about but finds her daughter instead. The enmity between the two is immediate but she eventually agrees to go and see his son leading to healing the rift between father and son and the developing of warmer feelings between the two. It was too brief for real development and I was unconvinced by their relationship.
Grade: 2/5

The Reckless Miss Ripley – Diane Farr
A road romance in which the hero finds himself helping Miss Claudia Ripley reaching Bath safely. Miss Ripley is a bit too trusting, naive and sometimes silly for my tastes and after him being so exasperated with her I couldn’t understand how his feelings changed so much. It was actually supposed to be a humorous story but I failed to be entertained by it with humour being such a personal thing.
Grade: 2/5

The Christmas Thief – Edith Layton
The hero, a former captain in the army, believes to have lost all his fortune due to an embezzler and tries his best to arrange a happy Christmas for his niece, even if the means stealing a doll or pawning his hat and boots. He also frees his fiancée from their commitment due to his financial situation but in the end it was all a misunderstanding and all is resolved in the end. The hero is a really nice character but the misunderstanding annoyed me.
Grade: 3/5

Anthology grade: 3/5

Knaves' Wager - Loretta Chase

"I need no further proof that you are despicable!" Lilith Davenant's sensibilities were appropriately offended. How dare the brazen Lord Julian Brandon kiss her when he knew full well the man she was to marry was in the next room! It mattered not that the cad was handsome, charming and witty...unlike the staid, auburn-haired young widow's fiancé. Lilith's repute meant all. Never did she imagine the blackguard's amorous pursuit was the result of a wager to sully her flawless reputation. Nor did she dream that one day she would yearn for Julian's irresistible embrace-and that a reckless gamble would cause the notorious rake to lose his heart...just as Lilith discovered her own!

Knaves' Wager must be one of my favorite Trad Regency books, just after The Sandalwood Princess also by Loretta Chase. Since I was much in need of a comfort read this week, I immediately thought about rereading this story again. It’s always a pleasure to revisit Chase’s characters again and again.

I’m one of those readers who immediately shy away when I see a wager plot. Maybe it’s the abundance of this kind of story in the romance gender, but, for me, they all follow the same steps: virtuous heroine, rake hero, he wagers to compromise her, she tries to keep her distance but fails miserably after tasting the hero’s charms. At the end, after a big confrontation, everyone gets together and all problems are solved. I confess that what made me read this book for the first time was the author. Most of Loretta Chase books are hits for me and this one was no exception, even if some aspects of the story are not entirely to my taste. Chase still managed to pull it off!

Lilith is a young widow who is determined to marry her nieces well. When faced with some economical troubles, she knows the only solution is to get married. Her fiancé is a member of the aristocracy, a pleasant and reliable man, very in agreement of what Lilith wanted for herself. While virtuous and sensible, she is also respectable without being a moralizing tight up kind of heroine who would constantly judge everything and everyone. She’s a charming woman who tries to give the best to her nieces and she actually surprised me since I was all ready to dislike her.

The charming scoundrel, Jillian was a bit of a disappointment. He starts as a delicious, even if sometimes scandalous womanizer and towards the end, he completely changes, as if a new man was born. A repentant rake can be believable sometimes but not to this point. He entered the wager to try to save his nephew from a tricky situation and actually drags himself in a complex relationship with a woman who turned out to be everything he didn’t believe anymore. While I had no hard time seeing these two together, I didn’t understand how he had to change so much to allow himself to be with Lilith.

Something I truly enjoy in this story is the fact that the characters aren’t all perfect; there’s no cardboard villains, just normal people with their flaws and qualities who sometimes don’t make the best decisions. This creates some very real situations and this along with the witty dialogues between Lilith and Jillian is what makes it a favorite. Certainly a must read for any Trad Regency fan.

Grade: 4/5

St. Martin's Summer - Diana Brown

Miss Josephina Trafford was quite happy tolive a safe distance from the fashionable frenzy of Regency London. Not only was she a young lady of good breeding and even better sense, she was busy enough trying to save her family estate, curb the extravagance of her flighty mother, and provide for the marriages of her two charming but helpless sisters.

But if Josephina would not go near the temptations of the city, they came to her--in the devilishly handsome form of Lord Conniston Venables. Venables was on an unwilling visit to the countryside, but the sight of Josephina made him eager to stay until he conquered her. He could not imagine she could resist a man who knew so well the ways of the world--until Josephina began to teach him how much he had to learn about the ways of a woman's untamed heart...

After her father’s death, Josephina Trafford became the head of her family. Left with considerable debts, she does everything she can to put her state in perfect order and settle her sisters dowry as stipulated by her father’s will.

When a problem arises, she seeks her new neighbor, Lord Conniston Venables, to help her solve it. Both Conniston and Josephina seemed intrigued by each other. But he has a wicked reputation with the ladies and is even accused of compromising the sister of a friend. Everything seemed to set them apart and yet, they are intensely drawn to each other.

Josephina is a strong-willed, independent and very intelligent heroine. Her family’s state is on her hands and she knows it’s their only source of income. She has no troubles refusing extravagances and childish requests to her vapid mother and foolish younger sister, Amelia. They both blame her constantly for not getting what they want and for living so above their station. In fact, everyone around Josephina seems to think her savings and care for her lands are exaggerated and those matters are not fit for a young lady like her. This annoys our heroine quite often, but she just ignores them all and does what she thinks is the best. How can we not admire someone like her?

Now, Lord Conniston Venables is another matter. He doesn’t seem a nice person when we first meet him. He sounds too arrogant, careless and too libertine. In other words, the perfect rogue. His reputation precedes him and he is clearly “persona non grata” among the local gentry. They all seem eager to see him go. He has other plans, especially after meeting Josephina.

The dashing Lady Eliza Coningsby reminds me a lot of Miss Caroline Bingley from Pride And Prejudice. The remarks about the locals, the lack of sophistication, Josephina’s manly occupations… Everything seems not good enough for her and when she learns our heroine has never been to London, she is absolutely shocked. Venables arrogant sister is no better with her concerns after Jo’s lowly social status might damage her own and worst, her son’s. What a pair of utterly despicable young ladies we have here.

The scene of the proposal is intense and filled with excruciating distress. This scene and even some details made me think sometimes about Pride and Prejudice. The arrogant handsome man who moves in different social circles, the local intelligent and witty young lady with a crazy family, the 1st refused proposal. Of course, here Jo is in love for Conniston and well aware of it, but his snobbish sister took care of any hopes she might had of a possible relationship.

I quite enjoyed the characters but felt somehow the upcoming marriages were just there to create some additional and unnecessary drama. Why suddenly someone so level headed as Jo would make something so rushed up?! She was hurting, saw herself alone and took this decision, but for me it just didn’t sound like Josephina Trafford.

Despite my opinion of the end, this book is a very pleasant surprise and certainly another recommendation for all the Regency fans out there.

Grade: 4/5

You can also read Ana T.'s review of this book here.

The Wood Nymph - Mary Balogh

One of Mary Balogh's older titles and one I knew little about before starting and I'll admit I was a bit worried after reading a few chapters.

Heartbroken at the loss of Elizabeth in A Chance Encounter, William Mainwaring retreats to his country estate and meets the unworldly Helen Wade in the woods one day. She soothes his soul until he flees in panic after seducing her. He then faces the almost impossible task of redeeming himself in her eyes.

Lady Helen Wade and William Mainwaring came together in the woods and forge a relationship without knowing much about each other. Helen, or Nell as she tells him, is attracted to a man who seems to understand her and share her love for poetry. William finds her refreshing and is warmed by her interest in him while he tries to mend his broken heart.

They end up being intimate without really talking about who they really are and William, upset with his feelings for someone whose innocence he used and he doesn't feel he can give a whole heart to (not to mention that he believes her to be a village girl), leaves for his scottish estate. Helen, totally in love with him and planning to tell him the truth of who she really is, is left alone without understanding exactly what happened except that the man she idolized has abandoned her after using her.

In Scotland William can't forget Nell and decides to go back and offer for her but first he goes to London to meet old friends. That's when he finds Nell again, in town with her family for the season. He is shocked when he finds out who she is and wants to do the right thing and marry her but Nell is too hurt by his betrayal and behaves atrociously towards him and his friends.

While their behaviour and problems is certainly a proof of their lack of maturity when Nell finally has a revealing conversation with William's friend I was almost in tears because of how she must be suffering knowing he could be the solution to her problems but unable to accept him because of what she felt was his despicable behaviour.

It couldn't have been an easy choice to know that to restore your honor you must marry the man who ruined you and disappointed you in the first place and I think Balogh shows that inner struggle of Nell very well. If you love intense and poignant reads I think this one fits in that genre very nicely.

Grade: 4/5

Tokens of Love - Anthology

This is an anthology with a Valentine's Day theme. I've read many with a Christmas theme but this was my first with this theme. The short stories are:

Mary Balogh, "The Substitute Guest."
A young lady is invited to a house party during St Valentine's. It's actually a rendez vous for lovers to meet but when one of the women declines the invitation a vicar's sister is invited in her place and wins the heart of the gentleman selected to court her for the weekend.
It was a nice story the hero was a bit bland, either we needed a stronger hero or a bigger story. 4

Margaret Westhaven, "Saint Valentine's Eve."
A second chance at love story when lovers separated 10 years before meet again. It's set in India which his different and the heroine was a young girl shipped to Calcutta for find a husband (I was curious to know if indeed this was common). A pleasant story but nothing to make it stand out. 4

Carol Proctor, "The London Swell."
Hero travels to the country to court and propose the girl he wants to marry. There he meets an eccentric young girl who mistakes him for someone else and speaks about how she is going to marry the London gentleman that is due to arrive. Not badly written but the heroine was too childish. 3.5

Sheila Walsh, "Dear Delight."
Another second chance at love. The hero and the heroine were separated 10 years before when her father rejected his suit and he left without telling her why so she things he abandoned her. They meet again at a christening of one of her nephews but there's a woman determined to separate them again. It was nice and the strong point for me was that the author cleared the misunderstanding pretty early. 4

Sandra Heath, "February Falsehoods."
And the anthology ends with another second chance at love. This time the heroine has jilted the hero after finding out he had a mistress and her friend and her beau (the hero's friend) try to bring them together again. Not bad but nothing memorable. 4

Grade: 4/5 with the Balogh and the Walsh being the favourites. Although nothing really stands out this is the kind of anthology I save for a rainy day, a comfort read.

A Prudent Match - Laura Matthews

A Marriage of Convenience

Desperate to settle a debt regarding his estate, Baron William Ledbetter marries Prudence Stockworth in a hasty ceremony. The wealth she inherited in the wake of her fiance's death is enough to mend his financial affairs. But even if he didn't need the money, he finds himself entranced by her innocent beauty... Prudence remains brokenhearted over the death of her fiancé, but knows the time has come to marry rather than die a spinster. Although she is aware that Ledbetter has wed her only for her money, his forward advances frighten her pure sensibilities. And it will take all of her courage to trust this man whose passion knows no bounds--and find a
love that is the greatest fortune of all...

I found A Prudent Match a very interesting story, not something extraordinary but a solid story to spend an afternoon with.

Following a quick courtship of just two week Prudence and Baron William Ledbetter are married. He needs the money her dowry brings him and Prudence feels it’s time she marries as she is 22 and had been engaged for a few years to a gentleman who, after dying in India, had left her his fortune.

When the story opens, the marriage is already happening so we don’t really get to know them before that. We do however follow them as they start to know each other. Prudence does seem to have a bit of a temper and, what surprises William even more, she is very shy about her body and in fact pretends to be unwell on her wedding night just to avoid him.

Even if this is a marriage of convenience, William is determined to have a good relationship with his wife and after confronting her about her fears proposes a plan to help her overcome her fears. They will sleep together in the same bed but nothing will happen until she is used to him and decides to do it. I thought this was an interesting plot for traditional regency because there’s usually no sex, or very little of it, and this time sex was spoken of all the time as William tried to convince Prudence that it was a very normal thing and that their bodies reactions were just what they were supposed to be.

There was also a mystery subplot about why William’s late mother had left instructions for a huge organ to be bought for the local church and about who the young organist who looked so much like William was but the main story was about William and Prudence and their relationship.

Apart her fear of the bedchamber Prudence is quite a sensible woman and in fact she seems to be able to do everything from organizing a house party, delivering a baby and solving the mysteries, I previously mentioned. My only complaints with the story was that there didn’t seem to be a particular motive for her fears and it seemed just like a convenient excuse that they had met each other at her come out 4 years ago and been attracted to each other. At least it seemed unlikely to me that four years on William would have felt compelled to look for her and offer marriage.

Grade: 4/5

The Second Lady Southvale - Sandra Heath

GAMBLE ON LOVE

Miss Rosalind Carberry defied all warnings when she accepted Lord Philip Southvale's proposal. Her father distrusted the breathtakingly handsome, fabulously wealthy Englishman. Rumors ran riot about his persisting passion for his beautiful first wife. And war fever was rising between his country and Rosalind's America. Nonetheless Rosalind believed Philip's warm words and her heart's ardent answer. Alone she set sail to England to join with him in wedlock. It was only when she landed that she discovered the awesome odds against her--as she faced a rival who seemed to hold all the cards in a game of love with no rules and all risk...

Miss Rosalind Carberry met Philip, Lord Southvale at a ball at her parents’ house in America. They fall in love at first sight and despite her family’s fears that Phillip might not have forgotten his first wife, dead at sea a year earlier, she decides to have faith in him and accepts his proposal. However just a few days before the wedding Lord Southvale is forced to return to England and they decide Rosalind will meet him in London for a Christmas wedding. But the war is very close and Rosalind decides to depart a bit earlier to join Philip before the boats stop crossing the Atlantic.

On arrival, she stays at an Inn in Fallmouth where she knew he had friends. Her maid is sick but they are very well received and in fact the inn keeper’s wife doesn’t hesitate to tell her that Phillip’s first wife was not the paragon he thought and that he was the only one who couldn’t see it. Rosalind eventually continues to London but she finds Philip away from home and if she is civilly received by his aunt and sister the same doesn’t happen with, Celia’s, the dead first wife brother, who thinks she is a fraud at first and then proceeds to tell her that Phillip will never marry her.

Rosalind is always very composed and tries to understand the odd fact that Philip doesn’t seem to have mentioned her to anyone of his family. She spends some time with his aunt and sister and the ladies do get along very well. So well that the sister soon tells her that Celia was an evil woman who ruined her relationship with a young man just to get her revenge on an imagined slight.

When Philip finally comes home his first reaction on seeing Rosalind is quite disagreeable. He had written her a letter saying he couldn’t marry her after all but she left America before the letter arrived so she is quite surprised by this turn of events. While at first Philip doesn’t want to explain anything and just wants to send her away he eventually tells her that Celia is still alive and that’s why their relationship is impossible.

But with all that she has found out about the other woman Rosalind and Philip’s sister eventually find a way to prove Celia’s infidelity and provide Phillip with the motive for a divorce.
I did like Rosalind for the start and found her a very levelheaded heroine, I could see where the story was going but it was such nicely told but I didn’t mind it at all. I think the main weakness of the story was that everyone knew Celia was an egocentric and selfish woman who had never loved her husband nor been faithful. Had she been less of a black character I think we would have felt that Rosalind’s place was more threatened and that would have made for a more poignant read.

Besides we are told several times that Philip was completely blinded to her faults and believed her the best woman on earth. However, when he explains to Rosalind that Celia is alive we see that he finally sees her for who she is, but we never find out what made him change his mind. I think that would have been interesting and made for a more intense read.

Grade: 4/5

A Sea Change - Caroline Brooks

ONCE BITTEN

Miss Augusta Webb was a chit of a girl when she fell in love with handsome, dashing Robert Darnley. She believed his vows, steeled herself to defy her family for him -- only to have him vanish along with her faith in love and her dreams of happiness. Augusta was a woman now, beautiful, sophisticated, an author of enthralling romances, and pursued by suitors she scorned. She told herself that she detested Mr. Darnley and would never let herself be hurt by such a man again. But when she fled the distractions of London for the calm of a seaside cottage to finish her latest romance, she found herself face to face with Robert Darnley again -- and now there could be no escape from testing the strength of her proud resolve against the strength of his hold upon her heart...

I found the back blurb of this book very misleading. Although the book alludes to the events that took place 10 years ago it does so only briefly. Besides the reference to it when the two main characters first meet again, there is no more mention of it except on a very guarded conversation where, to my view, nothing really is explained.

Besides that, Augusta, who I feel should be at least a bit upset and demanding explanations, seems to forget the matter as soon as her brother tells her their father must have had a hand in the fact that she waited in vain, with her bags packed, for Darnley to appear so that they could run away to Gretna Green. At the very least I would expect a full explanation of Darnley on why didn’t he show up and why he never even contacted her later on… after all he was supposed to love her.

However, the book ends up not being about their past. When they meet again Darnley is the guardian of Lady Towson, a nineteen year old girl who is a lady in her own right and owns the cottage where Augusta is staying with her brother and companion. Since they now move in the same social circles and Augusta’s brother is quite taken with the girl they are thrown together often. A perfect opportunity to explain the past I thought, but no, they just pretend nothing happened and deal civilly with each other.

There’s a convoluted mystery about some secrets sold to Napoleon and a French relation of Lady Towson who comes back to woo her and maybe something more. I must say I was never very interested in the mystery and it seemed to me just another plot device to have Augusta and Darnley working together.

In the end we don’t even see them falling in love again, I was unsure if the author was trying to convince me that they had never been out of love or if they suddenly just fell in love again. There was no tension and I never really felt the attraction.

I think the most funny parts were with Augusta writing her new book about a heroine named Horrida. The name just makes me giggle. Still not good enough.

Grade: 2.5/5

The Emerald Necklace - Diana Brown

A tragedy of errors. The first error was one of pride - pride that made Lady Leonora spurn the loving attentions of her commoner husband for the frivolous company of her aristocratic friends. The second error was one of vanity - the kind of vanity that made a beautiful young woman an easy victim for the flattery of an all-too worldly admirer. The third error was one of loyalty - loyalty to a father who would sell anything, even his daughter's honor, to save his own. For Leonora and Etienne Lambert, those were just the opening errors in a battle royal of willful misunderstanding that would give the word marriage a whole new meaning.

Lady Leonora Fordyce is a young lady sure of her place in society. She spends her days in leisure with her friend Penelope Oliphant and her brother Francis, to whom she imagines being married in a near future. After an exciting day in the park with her beau, she arrives home to find her father in deep conversation with an unknown man. Immediately she sees he is not from her class and dismisses him as a commoner and certainly someone without much interest. To Leonora’s deep shock, some days later, her father announces her that she is to marry the young man, Etienne Lambert, so he can help him with his heavy debts.

A convenience/forced marriage to help the family is not really an uncommon theme in traditional regencies, but this one was written with mastery. The first (and biggest) problem here seems to be the heroine, her father and even her dearest friends. All insufferable snobs filled with deep scorn for anyone who isn’t from their class. Leonora repeats many times how unworthy Lambert is of her. When she learns about her marriage, her first thought is that her father certainly refused the offer since it was unthinkable that someone like her would marry a tradesman. But in the other hand, it is completely acceptable for her father and other society members to be indebted to their necks and accept money from those they despise.

It’s impossible to like this little chit in the first 200 pages. She is everything I hate in a heroine: narrow minded, arrogant, stupid and selfish. I was so mad with her that I even thought of drowning her in the Tames several times. It’s not often I feel like this about a character, but I rarely stumbled upon someone so annoying. But then, with time and thinking with a bit more logic (which is not always easy while listening the heroine burping so many silly things), not everything was her fault. It’s true she was a brat, but she was bought by a man and forced into a marriage she never wanted, no matter her reasons. Her father and her husband never really tried to know her feelings about it.
Lord Fordyce was mostly interested in paying his debts and getting a monthly allowance from his son-in-law, while completely forgetting about Leonora’s happiness; and her husband was not really better. What was he thinking to buy a bride like this and expecting her to immediately love him without any suspicions and even some hurt pride?! Etienne was not always honest with his wife and despite their differences and their quarrels; the responsibility for their failed marriage was not solely Leonora’s.

After months of obstacles and misunderstandings, they finally take their separate ways, after a very dramatic situation, and, I must confess, I completely understood Leonora’s attitude and cheered her up. This girl was finally taking some action and making a life for herself. A new Leonora is born and I can’t help but admire her. She takes refuge in Yorkshire and there she builds a life for her. It’s the turning point of the story. Not only we actually see her changing, but it’s clear she wants to become someone different too. She becomes involved in the local activities and she impresses her neighbors and even her servants and workers with her interest for her estate affairs and even her wisdom.

It’s not often you follow a character grow like in this book. Slowly, and sometimes painfully, the spoiled brat becomes a strong woman, someone who knows what she wants, even if her relationship with her husband is still on the rocks and it’s climbing towards the unthinkable – a divorce. From a profound dislike for Leonora in the beginning of the story, I ended up suffering for her (and even Etienne) and the agony of some moments was quite powerful.

Etienne St. Clair Lambert was not an easy man. Born in the wrong side of the blanket, his upbringing was not a conventional one and he is a tough self-made man who never stops until he gets what he wants. In this case it was Leonora. He saw her once and it was all that it took. He marries her and never really expects to fail his conquest. We know he loves her but, at the same time, he never trusted her and there was absolutely no intimacy or even a desire to share his life with her.

As I said before, both characters had their flaws but he was a very guarded man. The only time he seems to loosen up was in company of another woman or when Leonora was not around. Each time she was present, he acted like he was expecting the worst from her. Nonetheless, he was the one who started to give Leonora’s some well deserved lessons about money and responsibilities. Something she knew nothing about since her father was not a good role model for anyone…

I spend the last 200 pages of the book holding my breath, dreading for the worst and ended up with a slight pain on my chest but a big smile on my face. I really must say I was very surprised with Diana Brown’s The Emerald Necklace which goes immediately to my Top 10 list of Best Traditional Regencies.

A little note, the book is written in the 1st person, which is something it often puts me off. Here it worked perfectly well, even if sometimes, I would have liked to know other characters perspectives of the story.

Grade: 4.5. / 5

You can also read Ana T.'s review of this book here.