The Riddle of the Deplorable Dandy: A Novel of Georgian England
Elspeth is a Lady of Quality. Gervaise is a Foul-tempered Fop. Both are entangled in a Georgian melodrama of international intrigue surrounding Madame Pompadour and the overthrow of a king. Elspeth's brother, a soldier of fortune in the employ of Pompadour, has been taken prisoner and threatened with torture for information about the insurrection. Gervaise is in need of a nursemaid to accompany his aunt to France. Elspeth is in need of an escort to France to rescue her brother from certain execution. The two avowed enemies join forces to make the journey and attempt the rescue, and along the way there is much huffy bantering, teeth gnashing, arrogant proclamations, and some swashbuckling. The marginally witty badinage between the hero and heroine is laced with vitriol, and the reader may have difficulty believing these two can overcome their disdain for each other to fall in love, as expected. A frothy gentle read for fans of Regency and other drawing-room romances but not an essential purchase otherwise.Kaite MediatoreCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved