Review: Enjoyed this! 4.5 out of 5
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 08 23, 2013
Francesca Hartwell adores cats of every kind. Lions, leopards, tigers. And they all love her. Good thing she gets to see them every day, since her father is their caregiver in the Tower of London's Royal Menagerie. She'd love to find a man with whom she could share her love of animals, but so far, no one has stolen her heart. And there's the added snag that whoever she marries must not have anything to do with nobility, as her mother had left her and her father for an earl.John Fairgate has three rules given to him by his uncle. Inherit the title of baron upon his uncle's death. Give up ornithology. And marry a childhood acquaintance. The first two, John will abide by, but won't like. But the third, marrying a shrew who makes his skin crawl, he simply cannot do. Meeting Miss Francesca Hartwell at the zoo, however, has given him other ideas for a wife. But she's not titled or wealthy. How will he be able to convince his uncle that she's the woman of his heart?I just read this book by Ruth Hartman and I must say I enjoyed it! It took me back in time and I got to see how Zoo's worked. I enjoyed seeing how Francesca or Franny interacted with the animals and seeing how much they loved her. I know that the way they interacted is highly unlikely but I enjoyed it anyways because books are supposed to stretch the imagination. Franny helps her father take care of the big cats at the London Tower Zoo. When one day John comes to the zoo to look around. She is intrigued by him and gets to know him better with her father's approval. That is until her father learns that he is a soon to be Baron. This story was great I enjoyed getting to see these two people interact all throughout the book and I was so glad when Jezebel Cartwright got put in her place....hated her! Well it was a love hate relationship in the aspect that I loved to hate her. She was a terrible person and deserved everything that happened to her. I would recommend this book to anyone that enjoys historical romances or stories about cats.