A Foreign Affair (Signet Regency Romance) [Paperback]

Evelyn Richardson (Author)

Book Description

Series: Signet Regency Romance | Publication Date: March 4, 2003

Miss Helena Devereaux has just come out for her first season and fallen for the dashing Major Brett Stanford-only to find competition from her own mother.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

In a city obsessed with politics and seething with spies, Princess Louisa von Hohenbachern stands out, an elegant lady interested only in maintaining her beauty and enjoying the social swirl caused by the Congress of Vienna. For Major Lord Brett Stanford, flirting with the lovely princess, who seems to be the one woman who wants nothing more from him than to enjoy his company, provides a much-needed respite from his duties as an observer and translator for the British delegation. It is only after he meets the princess's daughter, Helena, whom he first mistakes for her maid, that Brett discovers a woman capable of distracting him from his duties. With her interest in politics, serious, intellectual Helena could not be more unlike her mother, but Brett is determined to show Helena that there is more than world affairs about which a lady can be passionate. Richardson deftly incorporates historical details and superbly nuanced characters into this quietly compelling, beautifully written, and wonderfully satisfying romance. John Charles
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Signet (March 4, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451208269
• ISBN-13: 978-0451208262
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.1 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,263,076 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Too much history, not enough romance., March 17, 2003

By 

Detra Fitch (USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Foreign Affair (Signet Regency Romance) (Paperback)

It was a time of unrest. Sovereigns, diplomats, and ministers from all over Europe gathered in Vienna to reestablish order after years of war and upheaval. (In simple terms, everyone gathered to redraw the map after the depredations of Napoleon.)

Miss Helena Devereux was the stepdaughter of the Prince von Hohenbachern. She was in Vienna with her mother, the lovely Princess von Hohenbachern. The two women were different in their looks, as well as, their interests. While Helena was intelligent and kept very close tabs on politics, her mother was downright beautiful and wanted only to have fun again now that travel was no longer dangerous. The prince was not in Vienna. Instead, he remained with his armies on the Saxon border.

Major Lord Brett Stanford was in Vienna as Wellington's aide. He was a war hero many times over and was constantly on the look out for possible spies. Brett and Helena meet, learn they share views on politics, and become partners, of a sort.

** No real danger or intrigue begins until shortly after the first 110 pages. Until then everything is setting up all the players, making sure the reader understands the political happenings, having Brett and Helena meet, and then begin to trust each other. Since so much is required to set up the plot of the book and the players, I found the first half of the novel very complex and often tedious to read through. I had to make sure I understood everything and everyone, which required much back tracking to re-read several sections to be positive I did not misunderstand something. The author did a wonderful job of explaining it all so that people, such as myself, who know little or nothing about the setting's era can understand it all. Yet I could not relax and just enjoy the story until the last half. I had to study history until then.

If you are looking for romance, light reading, or a bit of humor, pass on this one. However, if you are a European history buff you will adore this novel. **

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars bit of a slow read but nice, March 14, 2003

By 

tregatt (Portland, Oregon) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Foreign Affair (Signet Regency Romance) (Paperback)

The Congress of Vienna is in full swing as diplomats, politicians and heads of state flock to the city in order to reestablish order after years of upheaval and war. Of course social butterflies have also swooped down to enjoy the dizzy round of balls and entertainments that are bound to ensue once dusk has fallen. But the city is also humming with a different sort of energy, that of political intrigues and secret machinations...

Tired of the dreary isolation that the war had forced upon her, the beautiful Princess von Hohenbachen has decided to sample the giddy pleasures that Vienna has, currently, to offer. And she has insisted that her elder daughter by her first marriage, the quiet and serious Miss Helena Deveraux, accompany her. No mother and daughter pair could be more unlike -- for while the princess enjoys flirting and flitting from one social function to the other, her daughter, Helena, prefers political discussions, reading and riding. But all that changes when Major Brett Stanford catches both the eyes of both the princess and her daughter...

While Major Brett Stanford has been given a diplomatic assignment to assist Lord Castlereagh, his main brief (given to him by Wellington) is to keep an eye on the ladies -- like the Princess Bagration, the Duchess of Sagan and the Countess Edmond de Talleyrand-Perigord -- social hostesses of power and with an eye for political intrigue. A handsome and dashing lady's man like Brett Stanford would be the ideal candidate for what Wellington has in mind. And when Brett first meets the beautiful Princess von Hohenbachen and realises that the lady has a delicious flirtation in mind, he decides that he has been given the ideal opportunity to mix some pleasure with business. That is until he meets the princess's enigmatic daughter, who bewilders and intrigues the young soldier. Suddenly the urbane and sophisticated lady's man finds himself involved with two ladies from the same family! How to extricate himself from such an embarrassing situation? And how to indicate to one lady that he wishes to pursue a relationship with her without angering and alienating the feelings of the other?

For me, "A Foreign Affair" suffered from poor pacing. Evelyn Richardson did a fantastic job of developing the relationship and attraction that was growing between Brett and Helena, and she does a rather good job of showing why these two are a perfect match as well. Where things feel apart for me was when the authour suddenly remembered that there was supposed to be a spy-intrigue plot too, and when Brett began to wonder if Helena and her mother were actually very clever and devious spies. Up until that point, even though the plot was a very basic one that was moving at a somewhat sedate pace, the authour's natural storytelling skills and her brilliantly sketched in historical and descriptive tidbits, made this book rather good reading. I really didn't think that the story needed a boost from the spy/intirgue subplot and felt that it was a mild distraction for no good reason. Fortunately, it only went on for about a chapter or two, but it did spoil the smooth flow of the story for me.

On the whole, however, "A Foreign Affair" was a rather nice story about a serious minded wallflower and the dashing major who captures her heart.

3.0 out of 5 stars Slow and Subtle Wins the Race, March 28, 2010

By 

AUPoohBear "aupoohbear" (New England, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Foreign Affair (Signet Regency Romance) (Paperback)

The Princess Louisa von Hohenbachern and her daughter, Miss Helena Deveraux have come from their minor German principality to Vienna for the Congress of Vienna. Hoping to enjoy herself while her husband is away, Princess von Hohenbachern strikes up a flirtation with the handsome Lord Major Brett Stanford, in town as a French translator on request from Wellington. Helena eschews the social scene, preferring instead to study politics. Helena also enjoys racing her horse in the park, where she happens to spy Lord Major Stanford practicing tricks on his handsome stallion. Helena discovers that the Lord Major is her mother's latest flirt when he mistakes her for a maid in her own house. She takes delight in watching his discomfort when he learns her true identity and soon the two are discussing politics and horses, forming a close relationship that may be more than Helena is prepared to admit. Helena is determined to be independent and self-reliant. She has seen too much of what happens when passion burns out and refuses to allow that to happen to her. When Napolean escapes from Elba, their entire way of life is threatened and Helena must realize the truth of what is at stake. This is a quiet, better than average Regency. The heroine and hero slowly come to terms with their feelings for one another. The beginning of the book is very slow with entirely too much politics. As one who doesn't remember her European history class, I found the discussions confusing and tedious. I really liked the romance, though. It developed slowly and realistically over time as the characters share a passion for politics that develops into something more. The downside to the plot is the little bit of intrigue that never really develops. I really liked Helena and could relate to her a lot. She's a modern heroine, typical of Richardson's novels, but she's also a Regency heroine with realistic expectations about relationships. Brett is a softer, quieter hero than Richardson's usual rakes and tonnish gentlemen, but I kind of liked the change because it made the romance develop better when he wasn't lusting after Helena or visiting his mistress. The political tensions add a nice element to the story and move the romance forward. The writing is really good, aside from the boring political elements and I think this is one of the better Regencies out there, but not one of the best.