Customer Reviews

Always a Lady

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Setting ? Ireland ? England 1838 --- In the third installment of the Marquess of Templeston Heirs trilogy, Christopher ?Kit? George Ramsey has grown up and come into one of his inheritances. Along with two of his life-long best friends he travels to Ireland to both claim his inheritance as the Earl of Kilgannon, and as he laughingly joked ?find his destiny?. What he did find along with his title, and a beautiful castle, was a newly acquired ward. Initially he assumed that the ward would be a young girl and all he?d need would be to hire a governess, etc. What he discovered instead, was that his ?ward? was a stunningly beautiful young woman. In addition, and according to Father Francis, Mariah?s dying mother had made him promise on her deathbed that he would see to it that Mariah?s guardian, the Earl of Kilgannon, make sure that her daughter be given a seasons debut. Now, this was going to be quite a feat since his ward had been raised in the convent, her only accomplishment was as a heavenly head baker and she had virtually no training at all in the society rules that governed the ton.

Having been brought up in a convent since the age of six, Mariah Shaughnessy, kept alive in her heart, the memory of young boy she?d met 14 years earlier. That young boy, who of course was Kit, at the advanced age of eight had then kissed her and promised he?d return to marry her when they were all grown up. Naturally, they did not recognize each other and he had never known her name and although she knew the boy?s name to be Kit, as a grownup everyone was now referring to him as Lord Kilgannon. Before they realized their bond and childhood connection Kit and Mariah were falling in love. It looked to be clear sailing until a buried memory of Mariah?s surfaced, both in her mind and in the flesh, that threatened their dreams of a happily ever after.

I believe that the author saved this third book, which really should have been the second novel in this trilogy, as the best for last. It would be hard to find two more deserving or sweeter protagonists. Kit?s boyhood and lifelong friends, who played wonderful supporting characters, were what everyone should wish for in true to life friends. The humor aspect, using Mariah?s frankness and confessions to Father Francis were a definite hoot! Disclosing the contents of letters from deceased parents of both Kit and Mariah ? both of these ?orphans? were apprised of the deep and abiding love of being wanted and cherished ? and yes, the reader can expect these letters to definitely bring tears to your eyes. Once again, the reader is treated to an enormously happy, sweet and very charming ?fairy tale? romance that most romance lovers certainly dream about. Bottom line ? this was an enormously satisfying and sweet romance sure to bring a little joy to your heart. --- Marilyn Rondeau, Official Reviewer for www.historicromancewriters.com ---

This book should have come second in the series. Read it after Once a Mistress; the second book occurs much later in time and this one finishes explaining all that took place in that first book.

Kit is SO sweet; what a wonderful young man! (Cakes--you'll understand when you read it) I'd let him marry my daughter. Mariah is also sweet, and innocent, and together they make, perhaps, the nicest couple in the genre. There's wit and heart and heartache here, and it all blends together extremely well. The minor mystery centers around the death of Mariah's mother; the villain is truly villanous, but he is dispatched too easily.

There are a few niggling errors, like "Here, here!" instead of Hear, hear!" But all in all, it's a delightful book. Very heart-warming.

Kit, the little boy from Once a Mistress, is now a young adult out to find his destiny. Little does he know what skeletons in his closet he'll discover in the process. In between finding out the truth of his birth and growing up to be his own man, he falls in love with Mariah, a girl he met long ago but doesn't recognize.

Mariah has a past just as twisted and uncertain as Kit's, just in a different way. Her parents both died when she was young and grew up sheltered in a convent.

The story is filled with characters that are easy to like and relate to. Humor and mystery are intertwined to keep the plot moving along quickly with little drag.

*** On a side note, I didn't care for Once a Mistress. I had a very hard time getting past the storyline and the major inconsistencies. However, this book clears up most of the inconsistencies from the other, so if you're like me and rolled your eyes when Kathryn kept calling Kit, Drew's heir presumptive, or wondered how the old Marquess could possible deed Swanslea to Kathryn or give the dowager cottage away, it has all been cleared up in this one.

I don't think it necessary to summarize "Always a Lady" for you. I probably couldn't do as good a job as some of the other reviewers. But I can tell you that I almost fell in love with this book. Both the main characters were unique and, while their backgrounds were not, they seemed realistic. I greatly appreciated that the author actually allowed the characters to fall in love rather than declare them that way and have them jump into bed. Kit and Mariah did belong together (even if he sometimes struck out at her and she spent a lot of time crying). And I really enjoyed that they fell in love on their own. No dead parents or misguided friend was pulling the strings. I liked the secondary characters as well and actually became interested in their lives. If Ms. Rebecca Hagan Lee could have wrapped up the love life of Dalton, one of Kit's best friends, in this book I may have bumped up my rating to 4.5 stars.
But notice I said I almost fell in love. The ending was like a bath of ice cold water that brought me to my senses. The climax was such a disappointment. The author just threw things in that didn't work with the rest of the story. And other things that were just obviously unimportant.
***Spoiler: At the end of the book it is revealed that one of the characters was sexually attacked many years ago. And yet she shows no symptoms. Even when she begins her only other romance and comes close to having sex again. It seemed too unrealistic.
And towards the beginning, the author made Kit legitimate. I don't have any problems with children born within the bonds of marriage but I liked Kit just the way he was. "Bastard" or not.
End of spoilers***

Undeniably, this novel was definitely the best in the series so far. I just think it could have been the best in a collection of series with a few minor changes. I do recommend reading it but not if you think you must read the entire series. The rest of the books were just okay.

The will of the Marquess of Templeston instructed his son the heir to discretely take care of his mistresses and offspring. As Andrew Ramsey went about cleaning up his father's mess he fell in love, married, and together with his wife raised his half brother Kit as his own son.

In 1838, an adult Kit inherits an estate in Ireland. Though his adoptive parents are saddened by his departure, Kit knows it is time to venture into the world. However, Kit may feel like a bit of déjà vu as he learns that along with his earldom, he is the guardian of a nearly twenty-one year old baker, Mariah Shaunessy. Kit realizes he must teach Mariah to behave like a lady so she can have a London season. However, she wants his love more than anything else she desires in the world. As they begin to bond and learn of their shared past, an unknown enemy has ugly other ideas for their future.

ALWAYS A LADY is an engaging historical romance starring two charmingly delightful lead protagonists. Though the return of the stars of ONCE A MISTRESS is short, fans of Rebecca Hagan Lee will enjoy seeing how gracefully they have aged together. The intrigue adds little but suspense to an enchanting early Victorian love story.

Harriet Klausner