Now, when Maggie makes these recommendations, the reviews are more of a girlfriend's thoughts than any journalistic review you'd get from some Yankee newspaper. So, I'll be honest with you on what I think. Yeah sure, I want you to buy the book (youngin's ain't cheap to keep) but, you should know what you're in for.
Normally when finding the next read, I'll avoid the regency titles as if a bad case of genteel could be caught just from touching the pages. But, the teaser on the back cover of The Chaperone Bride promised an interesting conflict of interest.
I've read it, and apparently haven't come down with any symptoms--as of yet.
My personal prejudice with the regency sub-genre is, I can't relate to the rich and lazy often represented in the main characters. Then of course there are way-too-many-more words than needed to tell a story. But, I suppose that's the appeal to those of you who love the regency titles, it's all apart of the romance.
When I first sat down to read The Chaperone Bride, I was looking forward to the story, but by the time I got to the bottom of page two, I was frustrated.
Of what I was reading, though I could see it was structured well and editor's had approved it, I felt like it was wrapping itself up in knots, and it was my job to untangle the mess.
Normally in a situation like this I'll just reread the pages, so that's what I did.
But, things weren't going too much better the second time around.
By page ten I only had a slight grasp on who everybody was, their place in the social group and what was going on.
I thought about re-reading it all again, but the idea was just too painful. So I kept on from where I was, hoping to have things sorted out by the end of the first chapter. And fortunately at some point in chapter two I had gotten into the rhythm of the story. That was after I had visited the Webster's four times and did a little on-line research to increase my vocabulary and knowledge of the Victorian era.
All that effort paid off in a story that I --enjoyed. Really!
I had respect for the heroine and the way she was conducting her life, and the hero although a rake, you could have empathy for him. The sensual content was not excessive and nothing popped up from the page into my face. There was also an interesting mystery wrapped in the tale, that not even I had properly guessed who was the mystery night rider. Maybe there were some clues in the first chapter I missed.
Synopsis: The Chaperone Bride
Lady Annis Wycherley, as a young widow began working as a paid chaperone to young ladies of affluent families to help guard their virtues and steer them toward eligible young men who would be appropriate (with titles and wealth) husbands. Though a beauty herself, she dresses the part of a matronly woman and disciplines her personal conduct to maintain proper appearances so that she will be employable for her services. Having once been very unhappily married, Annis treasures her personal independence and fears reliving the confines she once lived through in her marriage. Seeking marital matches for her charges, when she could also just as easily marry again, doesn't create longings for Annis on her own lonely path until she meets the man who challenges the passion resting quietly within her.
Lord Adam Ashwick, respected but of notorious reputation with the ladies finds himself unusually attracted to the dowdily dressed chaperone. An affinity he hasn't felt with any woman since before his wife's death. However the target of his affections isn't as easy to pin down as his other conquests. The woman has a lot to risk, should she be seen in his company. Finding her both a challenge and a potential place to rest his heart, Adam is determined to make this woman his own.
