Customer Reviews

Belinda Goes to Bath (Lythway Large Print Books)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Book two; Miss Pym boards a stagecoach and finds herself involved in the sad situation of Miss Belinda Earle (heiress banished) who has decided NEVER to marry! Too bad for her; she's delightfully pretty and falls under the spell of an austere bachelor who disdains romance... Seems like a likely pair? Some people don't think so and make every attempt to squelch the relationship. Then...Miss Pym to the rescue. Highly entertaining !

In "Belinda Goes to Bath", the second volume in The Travelling Matchmaker, we once again meet Miss Hannah Pym, this time as she travels to The Bath, on the search of more Adventure. While others may think travelling on the stagecoach to be boring and uncomfortable, Miss Pym is delighted that she is finally fulfilling her life-long ambition!

This second volume I did not find as riveting as the first, although it was interesting and the book certainly did not let me down. Ms. Chesney has a talent for plot and characterizations - not for Ms. Chesney is the long drawn out explanations of emotions or detailed setting, rather there action, and lots of it, on every page. And we have Ms. Chesney's many (and "on the mark") observations of human nature. Through the person of Miss Pym - who fixes the problem of poor Mrs. Judd, while saving both her marriage and pocketbook, we get many pithy comments on the state of human nature in general. And, as to be expected by the title of the book, Miss Pym uses all her wiles and knowledge of human nature to get Belinda settled with the "right" man. (Goodness, doesn't she sound just like Miss Marple?)

But what about Miss Pym's life? Why does a life of Adventure on the Flying Machine seem suddenly to feel flat and dull - what is that emotion that is ignited in Miss Pym's breast as she watches the happy, newly wedded, couple? What about some romance for Miss Pym? I suppose over the next five books, we will find out.

An entertaining story, with lots of plot twists and Ms. Chesney's signature "tongue-in-cheek", sure to please any Regency fan.

Miss Hannah Pym sets out once again in search of adventure and a little bit of matchmaking on board the Flying Machine stagecoach. This time, her destination is The Bath, that famous watering town of the English ton. Miss Pym is much more eager for the prospect of people-watching along her ride, however, and hopes that this trip will be as exciting as her last. She is not disappointed; no sooner has she boarded the stagecoach than she is embroiled in the lives of the passengers, including a spunky and outspoken heiress named Belinda Earle, who is determined to remain a spinster after running away with a footman who repelled her marital advances! Adventure is not far behind, for the passengers find themselves at the hands of a very drunk driver who upsets the coach in a river when he falls asleep. They are rescued by the local marquess, who welcomes them into his home and soon, with Belinda, becomes Miss Pym's newest matchmaking target! Will he resist her maneuvering or lose his heart in the end? Only time (and a lot of ingenuity on the part of Miss Pym) will tell. Miss Pym is not immune to romance in her own life, finding that even her adventures on the stagecoach cannot completely fill the void in her heart. She yearns to enjoy the same bliss she sees in other couples, but the only man in her life to whom she finds herself drawn is one far above her station. She's destined, it seems, to remain a spinster forever.

I enjoyed this book, though not as much as the first, as the novelty has worn off a bit. However, Miss Pym's character continues to be a delightful mix of moral sense and romantic sensibility and her machinations are amusing to watch. Her observations about the people around her ring true and the ways she works to bring them each happiness are imaginative and insightful. I also enjoy the historical tidbits that Ms. Chesney throws in, like the treatment of concussions: shaving the patient's head and applying leeches! Like a spicier version of Georgette Heyer's novels, this series is perfect for anyone with a penchant for historical or regency romance.

Having read Books 2 & 5 of this series my feelings are M Chesney, or M C Beaton* is a mistress of the formulaic book format. And whilst the concept is good her characters are thinly sketched to the point that they are all caricatures. Whilst mostly everyone ends up happily paired up it all happens at such a speed that it feels oddly disatisfying. Possibly as everything appears to happen in a week the growth of characters and feelings simply is not there. However some might not see it this way.

An annoyance is where the tenor changes as a clump of information is dolloped into the story. It may be something on the desired hairiness of women, or an excerpt from a old coaching tale, or the formula for some beauty aid. One is left with the feeling there must be exactly the right number of pages and some padding has taken place. Some of the historical colour seems slightly wrong, such as playing croquet in 1800 roughly 50 years early, wearing a slouch hat eighty years early.

At 180 pages each they are pretty much 90 minutes reading. If I sound a bit peeved it is probably because she is as tenth as good an author as Georgette Heyer but the Kirkus Reveiw considers her the best Regency writer. She is not.

* I have read around 16 books of her various series. Moving across centureies and decades the formula effect lingers.

Could not be more pleased with this purchase. The book was even nicer than expected, the delivery was extraordinarily fast, and the packing looked like something they would do at the Louvre.

The Traveling Matchmaker series by Marion Chesney is the best of all the series in my opinion (but all of them are a very fun Regency read!) Ms. Chesney adds just enough historical information to make these stories educational as well, about dress, make-up, social thoughts, transportation, etc. It is fairly important that you read book 1 of any of her series and read all the books in order as they are all connected and wrap up in book 6 nicely. Enjoy!

Belinda Goes To Bath is another great installment in The Travelling Matchmaker series. It's fun to see Miss Hannah Pym, the 30 something former servant, who, after inheriting a modest income from her deceased employer, goes on her dream travel, via the stage coach all about England.


In this installment, Miss Pym's fellow rider that she takes under her wing is Belinda, who is forced to ride the coach, with her companion, to Bath, to cover up a "scandal". After a coach accident, the coach riders are forced to house at the hero's home, the Marquess of Frenton. A series of comedy of errors, scandals, and machinations develop-keeping the hero and heroine apart and Miss Pym on her toes.


4 stars-recommended.