Review: Two Nerdy Characters Have a So-So Rather Than Grand Romance
Rating: 2 out of 5
Date: 03 24, 2013
To start, I think this book would have benefited from sharper demarcation (more spacing or even a graphic line) in the narrative shifts within the individual chapters.  The narrative shifts were often confusing, abrupt, and frequent between the two main character viewpoints and I think reading this novel on a Kindle exacerbated the less-than-smooth shifts in point-of-view.Also, I would recommend reading the first book in the series, which I did not, because I think it probably contains some important background information about the relationship between Lady Muriel Worth and Sherwin, as well as some of the other characters, like Lord Sir Samuel who has a secondary romance within the novel.The basic plotline is that Lady Murial, who is nicknamed Moo, is in London for a season and she runs into Sherwin, with whom she has been secretly corresponding with for the past four years.  They become inexplicably angry with another because neither had indicated in their letters that they were going to be in London and that they are both presumably there to find spouses.  I used the word inexplicable because you would think that two very fond correspondents who haven't seen one another in four years would consider it a happy coincidence that they are both in London, particularly since their correspondence was of a more academic, rather than personal nature.  They are both rather young, so perhaps the anger is the consequence of immaturity.Muriel, though, appears to be aggravated (I'm not entirely sure why she was aggravated) with Sherwin because he failed to inform her that after the death of his father and two older brothers he had ascended to the title Earl of Amhurst. She seems more annoyed about his new title and the fact that he used her nickname Moo loudly in public rather than concerned about the fact that seventy-percent of his immediate family had recently died.Misunderstandings aside, Moo is not actually in London to look for a husband, but is pretending to enjoy the Season for her father and Aunt's benefit so that she can covertly further her scholarly tendencies.  A significant mover of the plot is Moo's efforts to orchestrate secret meetings with her tutor.  I suppose her secret tutoring sessions and subsequent completion of the tutor's homework was the Grand Deception.  The remaining third of the book is taken up with an unnecessary plot complication orchestrated by Sherwin's mother to sabotage his relationship with Moo and I starting skimming the rest of the book around that point.The set-up for the book is good and has some great characterization - Sherwin was an endearing, sweet, and nerdy hero.  Though he appears somewhat pathetically weak in the beginning, he gains some spine throughout the book.  Moo, in contrast, was unappealing to me.  We are told many times how intelligent and clever and unique she is, but I can't say that those qualities were ever depicted on the page.  She actually seem rather boring, arrogant, and snobbish to me.  She isn't particularly empathetic towards Sherwin who is having a hard time and sort of piles onto his problems by giving him an attitude in the beginning of the book instead of reaching out to him, the way her brother does.Additionally, there was too much emphasis on how much she disliked dresses, parties, and having beaus.  Her contempt came off a little heavy because it is not incongruous that a girl of an academic nature could also  enjoy getting a new dress and going to balls.  I consider myself smart, but I still like pretty dresses.  Not Moo, though.  I'm not sure why many romance authors who create bluestocking characters feel they have to throw out their character's enjoyment or desire for love, clothing, beaus and parties.  Seems sort of clichéd and one-dimensional to me.The dialogue and narrative were a little stilted, and as I said abrupt.  It seemed like some parts of the narrative were not fully fleshed out, and I would have enjoyed much more interaction between the heroine and hero, rather than them running into one another and then not speaking.  There was a lot of thinking about one another, but not a lot of talking to one another.  Additionally, it seemed like the only reason they loved one another was because they both have a fondness for the classics.  Though it would not have worked well within the confines of the series, it seemed like hapless Sherwin would have better benefited from a romance with a capable and managing woman, rather than a female version of himself that is somewhat lacking in compassion and maturity.