Adventure. Mystery. Romance.
Anne Deveril broke with Felix Hartford years ago–when her father died, plunging her mother into limitless grief…when Anne became the sole prop to her mother in her sadness…when Felix failed to understand what Anne needed and grew resentful instead. But now, six-and-a-half years later, she needs a favor from Felix. She needs a gentleman to escort her and her mother to visit her friend Julia and check on her welfare….
Just because his parents are mortal enemies with the Burton-Smythes doesn’t mean that Ivo Beresford shares that prejudice. When Ivo encounters shy, stammering Meg Burton-Smythe while out riding, he is drawn to her as a friend…and perhaps something more. But matters become tangled when Ivo’s parents and older brother discover the secret connection. And how will Meg’s father react when he finally discovers his daughter’s betrayal?
When Sir James Morgan returns from Transylvania to England, his reclusive ways and strange behaviors give rise to rumors in the village. The man must be a vampire, and the mysterious deaths of sheep and cattle with their throats slit only confirms the matter. Rosa Edwards, daughter of the village librarian, is the only one open-minded enough to reject such superstitions….
Retired from the military, Charles Heywood is determined to reconcile with his parents and obtain a piece of property important to his family history. But a chance meeting with audacious Kate Beresford in London upends all his peace. Convinced that Charles is the hero she needs, Kate pursues him determinedly. Is it possible that the one man she wants is the man she cannot have?
Julia Wychwood has led the life of an invalid for as long as she can remember. Her parents, obsessed with tonics and bedrest and bloodletting, refuse to let her live a normal life, and whenever her social anxiety causes her to seek solitude and a good book, she must then contend with the unsavory remedies of the family doctor….
This set of three Victorian novellas were loosely connected by their seasonal setting and the fact that they are romances, but other than that, they felt very distinct in atmosphere and theme….
Evelyn Maltravers has come to London aware that she can only afford to have one season and that she needs to make the most of it. While she would easily be outshone in the ballroom, her best asset is her horsewomanship (pretend that that’s a word). To accentuate her equestrian skills, she needs a riding habit with style and panache. She needs a riding habit to die for. She needs a riding habit made by London’s most up-and-coming tailor, Ahmad Malik….
A writer for her aunt’s Marriage Gazette, Miss Amelie Hampton is a hopeless romantic who has fallen for one of the newspaper’s clients, Mr. Harold Radcliffe (or should I say, Mr. Dashing?). When police detective Michael Baker approaches Amelie about an investigation on Mr. Radcliffe, Amelie agrees to go undercover to help him in order to clear Mr. Radcliffe’s name. But the closer she gets to her dashing suitor, the more questions are unearthed…
Lord Farnsworth is sentimental about one thing–the house that belonged to his mother. But when bankruptcy threatens, he comes up with a plan of assured brilliance: he will sell the estate to the charming young lady who wants it, and then charm her into marrying him so he can have it back. What follows is a wooing of horrific lengths and hilarious proportions….
See my review and book club questions for Fair as a Star by Mimi Matthews, a “short but perfect novella” set in the Victorian Era.
Rosanne E. Lortz 