Review: Graceful writing + winsome characters = a story to savor not consume in one gulp. Bon appetit!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 05 10, 2014
A delightful traditional (clean) Regency romance by an author whose novella, The Wilder Heart, I really enjoyed. The writing, like the heroine in this case, Kristen, was restrained, deliberate, graceful and somewhat sedate. But I liked the characters and the impossible situation they find themselves in: our hero is a notorious rake and an earl, catnip to women, but in love with a widow above reproach and his touch morally. A naval captain, our earl's been too naughty a boy to be more than a friend to the upstanding baroness. She is appropriately leery of him and his attentions, keeping him at arm's length and chastising him at every opportunity--that is, until he manages to gain a toehold in her life and her children's hearts. Will she unbend? Will he reform? How things unfurl takes time, involves missteps, some strategizing and a touch of peril. Personally, I enjoyed the secondary characters and their brangling as much or more than the main pair, but both sets of lovers made this a fun, relaxing read. I'd compare her to Candice Hern, another author for Regency lovers to try.