BOOK INFO
Publication Date: April 21, 2020
About the Author: Erica Vetsch is a New York Times best-selling author and ACFW Carol Award winner, and has been a Romantic Times top pick for her previous books. She loves Jesus, history, romance, and watching sports. This transplanted Kansan now makes her home in Rochester, Minnesota. Learn more about Erica at http://www.ericavetsch.com.
MY REVIEW
When Evan Eldridge returns from the Continent, a wounded war-hero, he has no idea what kind of reward the Prince Regent has in store for him. Having saved the life of the Regent’s godson, Evan finds himself in the bizarre position of being elevated to the peerage. And along with the title of earl and a broken-down manor house, the Regent is also bestowing on him the hand of a girl he’s just met. As Evan goes to the countryside with his new wife, he begins the herculean task of preparing the old ruin for a royal visit, recovering the memories he lost on the battlefield, and learning to know just who is Diana, the woman with whom he will be spending the rest of his life.
Diana Seaton had been looking forward to the escape that her London debut would bring from an abusive father, a malicious brother, and a life of closed doors and endless reproaches. When the Prince Regent (who, as everyone knows, cannot be refused) enjoins that she marry a commoner who has just been made the Earl of Whitelock, Diana finds an avenue to escape from her father’s manipulations and brutality. But even though she has been bred to be the perfect helpmeet for a lord of the manor, Diana may still be a liability in her husband’s eyes. How long will it be till he discovers the secret that she is bringing with her, and will they ever find love once he realizes her deceptions?
This adventure-filled romance contains all the tropes that make Regency novels so delightful. Although the reader must use a little suspension of disbelief at the beginning of the story, once the improbable set-up is established, the plot continues at a breakneck pace full of burgeoning romance, veiled mysteries, Napoleonic espionage, and attempted murder. The villains were quite easy to loathe, and the romantic couple quite easy to love. This book was a wonderful introduction to a new author, and I look forward to reading more by Erica Vetsch.
Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.
Evan was the best sharpshooter in a regiment of sharpshooters–or at least he had been. Again he held up his hands, noting the tremors. How could he shoot straight if he couldn’t even hold his hands still? What if he never regained his ability? God, You wouldn’t do that to me, would You?“
– The Lost Lieutenant, by Erica Vetsch
Rosanne E. Lortz 