Review: An Enchanting Read!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 03 22, 2012
I found this book while searching for a historical romance set in the late Georgian period of English history, (a pre-regency).It is a very good read. The writer is obviously talented and I look forward to her next book in this series.The setup at the beginning was very intriguing to me, a masked ball at Vauxhall Gardens, where at midnight, the dancers must remove their masks and reveal themselves to their partners.The heroine, Grace, is a widow. She is staying with her married friend in London. Grace is not a social butterfly. She likes her life in the country, but has come to town to spend time with her friend, who seems sad and distracted due to some marriage difficulties. Grace is a very sensible, intelligent heroine. She has a tragic past in which it seems her husband may have committed suicide 18 months earlier due to some nefarious doings regarding critical state secrets.His death was ruled an accident, but Grace suspects it was an intentional accident to spare her the scandal and to die with honor.While dancing at the ball with a very charming, attractive masked man, Grace finds herself deeply attracted to him. He kisses her while they are still masked, and she is literally 'swept away' by his expert kiss. I found myself wishing I was that lucky woman in that scene. Wouldn't you just know it--when the Marquis removes his mask at midnight, she finds out he is the one she believes may have been responsible for her husband's death as he and her spouse had words the night before her husband died.This sets the stage for the pair to be at odds for much of the book. I must say, I am very pleased with the way Grace was portrayed. She was not immature nor pouty, or even willfully ignorant and nursing a grudge, as would be the case in many such romances with the same set up. She is attracted to the Marquis and at the same time holds him in disgust due to her husband's mysterious death, yet she acts like an adult about it. She may dislike him, but she does not fly into rages or act like an emotional, irrational teenager (a failing with many romantic heroines).In Georgian England, as in the Regency, it was expected that one be civil to their 'enemy' at social functions, but within that civility, one could be quite clever in exchanging veiled barbs of insult and innuendo. Ms. Harper's use of dialogue excelled in conveying this trait.The Marquis, for his part, is decidedly delicious! I found him to be everything a gallant hero should be. He is handsome, intelligent and bored with life in society. He went to the ball merely to escort his younger sister there and longs to leave early. Once he discovers Grace, he is determined to have her, and endeavors to overcome her dislike  of him throughout the novel. In this case, the pair work out their differences through conversation and this is accomplished in a timely manner in the book so as not to be drawn out and become tedious. Ms. Harper avoided the cliches of many a romance because she did not have the misunderstanding and attraction/dislike drawn out for too long. When the Marquis explains what actually happened with her spouse, Grace believes him and they move forward. Believable! And also refreshing. The plot was not contrived, not one bit, and that is something to praise Ms. Harper for.Aside from the blossoming romance between Grace and the Marquis, the plot revolves around Grace's longtime friend, Lady Hester Woodward and her marital problems due to her incessant gambling. Grace tries to help her and discovers that her friend has lost a lot of money at cards to a loathsome man and is being blackmailed by him. The villain is a sinister society man who preys on women through gambling at cards and thus he is able to manipulate many society ladies to do his bidding and grant him unusual favors as a result.As the plot unfolds, Grace and Hester become caught up in more than just the quest to return an necklace. The villain blackmails Hester into stealing something of great importance to England's security that is in her husband's possession. Hester, and Grace, are faced with the prospect of betraying state secrets as England is on the brink of War with France. This adds a much deeper layer of intrigue and suspense to the seemingly simply dilemma of marital problems due to secret gambling debts and a pawned necklace.In the climax, we return to Vauxhall Gardens and a masked ball once more, with sinister and surprising turns.I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it to others. My only fault would be that it is too short. I wanted a little more romance between the Marquis and Grace--but that is the test of a great book, the reader wishes there were more to the story!