Customer Reviews

An English Christmas (Kensington regency romance)

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I hate writing a less than great review, but I was disappointed by this book, which contained a reprint of two earlier books. The first story, A Father For Christmas, had engaging secondary characters, but I didn't see much in the line of character in Mrs. Copley and Lord Wetherby until near the end of the story, and even then, their sudden decision to marry was a bit confusing considering that up to that point, there were (perceived or real) obstacles in their path. I thought it was just a bit too pat, it seemed almost rushed and thus cheapened everything the characters had gone through up to that point.

The second story, A Husband For Christmas, also showed a lack of character development, and a good portion of the book is spent with the hero and heroine apart. When they are together, the hero is in disguise most of the time, and one of his roles has him displaying a very unlikeable, dominant side that left me absolutely cold. I love an alpha male, but this guy--in that particular role--had few redeeming factors and no charm.

As with the first story, I thought the hero and heroine ended up together far too easily at the end. Despite very real problems of the time (his lack of station, her spoiled upbringing, etc.), I felt the author glosses over what would have been some great conflict, and provides readers with a too-easy ending that failed, at least for me, to satisfy. Coupled with some period inaccuracies of both stories (an earl could not adopt someone to be the heir to his title, women did not wear "suits," etc.), I was disappointed with what promised to be an outstanding read.

If you like an easy, quick Regency read with an emphasis on Christmas, you'll probably like this. Die-hard Regency fans might end up disappointed.

This is a reprint of "A Father for Christmas" and A "Husband for Christmas." Enjoyed reading them a second time, but thought that this was a new book... and was disappointed.

I spent a weekend trapped in a hotel with this book waiting for the weather to clear or I would not have read both novels. I am aware that Ms. Girard has an established career writing these books but I can't understand why. The plots are essentially good-enough silly confections if your standards are not high. However, there are significant problems: how does the really vile and hateful highwayman become the loveable hero with reasons and motivations for his otherwise horrible behavior? The "cute" children are tedious. The characters are not true to their times.

Ms. Girard really has no sense of the times in which her characters live. Lady Caroline (is that her name?) charges around the countryside by herself as if she were born in 1987 not 1797.(Recall in "Pride and Prejudice" that the Bingley sisters were shocked that Elizabeth walked a mile or so by herself.) Lady Caroline needed and looked for an "escort" for a ball. That would never happen. Regency ladies did not have "dates." I always dislike books which are set in the past but use contemporary conventions. Why don't some of these writers ask themselves how a free-spirited young woman who was willing to push the accepted limits a bit would act in 1810. There are plenty of examples in history and literature including true "wild women" who broke all the rules. Lady Caroline, however, I believe, was intended to be assertive and head-strong, not an outlaw, but her behavior in this book would have made her one. I don't think that that was what the writer intended, but it is what she wrote.

The greatest problem that I have, however, is the vocabulary that she uses in her dialogue. I think someone must have given her a dictionary of 19th century slang and, by God, Ms. Girard intends to use every word in it in every sentence. As a result her early 19th century characters end up talking like 21st century teenagers. They sound, frankly, like fools. There are plenty of novels, diaries, and letters from the period that tell us what words people used. If she must write, I would challenge Ms. Girard to write a story using no words that Jane Austen didn't. And never, never, never use the word "ton" for the fashionable world.