If you have read the rest of the Rothschild Trilogy you will
be wondering what fate might have in store for Frank Ingram.
When we last saw him he was recuperating at the Earl of Westwood’s
home having just received some astounding news. It doesn’t
take him long to fall for the elder Westwood daughter Constantia,
but he fears that the wounds that nearly cost his life will
give a horror of him if she sees them. Unknown to him, she
has a secret of her own,,,
I confess to being sad when the last page was turned, and
I hope that the publisher will make more of Ms Dunn’s
excellent Regencies available. This is what I have in mind
when I open a Regency romance; a love story of course, one
where the players get to know each other well throughout the
book. I also look for plenty of historical background with
the characters living in a well-realized world, some mention
of events of the time, a dash of humor and a light, escapist
touch. You can find all that and more in these books, as the
Ingrams get to visit their inheritance, meet more than one
relation, endure a very amusing house party and more. It is
a slim volume, but feels like a much longer book due to being
crammed with incident. The only alloy in all this is perhaps
the first few chapters that repeat, almost exactly, the last
few chapters of the previous book, only from Frank’s
point of view. This gives the reader a bit more of an insight
than if it was omitted, but as I had only just finished the
second book I felt I was being told the same tale twice, albeit
only for the first part of the novel. Ms Dunn’s characters
are largely black and white, heroes or villains but in this
type of novel I for one don’t mind that too much. If
you have read all Georgette Heyer’s oeuvre and are looking
for something similar look no further.
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