Review: Maddeningly Delightful
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 06 13, 2013
Gwendolyn "Gwen" Adams is about to propose to an earl - on his deathbed.  It's not for avarice, or for the title of countess either.  For Gwendolyn it's more for altruistic purposes - for the chance to study a man who has been diagnosed as `mad' with a disease of the brain, which will soon kill him.  In truth the earl's family were behind the idea so that an heir might possibly be begat before he kicked off. However, Gwen hadn't realized that the earl was so darn good looking, and not only is Gwen a great nurse, but historically her family is famous for producing male children.  The wild stories she'd heard about the `mad earl' riding naked through the moors - well, quite intriguing but frankly after seeing how gorgeous he was Gwen was actually looking forward to the sight!***  First appearing in Three Weddings and a Kiss, Loretta Chase's short novella  THE MAD EARL'S BRIDE is featured here in its' very own Kindle edition.  Both humorous and sweet the length of the page count shouldn't matter to the reader at all when the writing and plot are so well-done with a smart pacing, wonderful characterizations, and witty dialogs.Gwen is totally ready to marry the earl sight unseen, for the love of science and to expound upon her medical education.  However the Earl of Rawnsley wants only to be left to himself as he prepares to lose his mind (as his mother did) and die in peace and quiet. However, his busy-body female relatives are pushing for him to sire an heir before he kicks off, seeing as he is the last of the line.  And Gwen truly is a lovely bundle of femininity, regardless of her oh-so scientific and practical mind.  The more time the earl and Gwen spend together, make it quite possible that Gwen is the cure he's been looking for his entire life.Bottom line: I generally don't read short novella's but found the length perfect because I was immediately drawn into THE MAD EARL's BRIDE with a story so well done and fleshed out combined with great characters, and a very imaginative plot.  I loved this!Marilyn Rondeau, for www.ck2skwipsandkritiques.com