Review: Modern story disguised as a Regency
Rating: 2 out of 5
Date: 08 23, 2013
This kind of book is my pet hate since I can't work out why the author decided on a Regency setting. The premise of the story is a good one and if the execution had been up to scratch, the book could've been really good. Basically the H is forced to marry the h, who is a commoner because of an agreement his father made with the h's father over a gambling debt. The H is very angry when they marry and abandons her for a few months on his country estate. He returns to fetch her and take her back to London with him. There are problems with a villain and the h's dreadful family.So what was wrong with the book? ***Spoilers***Very little was authentic to the period and it grated on my nerves eventually. I'm certainly not a stickler for period details but honestly so many things were wrong. I hated the way the H and h called each other 'Duke' and 'Duchess'. There was no observance to any of the rules of that period and characters behaved in very modern ways. Some of the scenarios were incredibly unrealistic like the h going to a few balls and then the H declaring her to be an established figure in the Ton. Extremely unlikely as she was a commoner and hadn't done anything to establish herself. The H and the villain dueling at the ball on the terrace was ridiculous. The story with the h and the puppy was unrealistic too. The dialogue was very simplistic and modern too. I could go on and on and I don't want to be unfair but I suggest that the author read some Kleypas or Balogh before she writes another Regency.