Miss Wonderful (Carsington Quartet 1) [Paperback]

Loretta Chase (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 4, 2007 | Series: Carsington Quartet 1

Alistair Carsington really, really wishes he didn't love women quite so much. To escape his worst impulses, he sets out for a place far from civilisation: Derbyshire- in winter, where he hopes to kill two birds with one stone: avoid all temptation, and repay the friend who saved his life on the battlefields of Waterloo. But this noble aim drops him straight into opposition with Miss Mirabel Oldridge, a woman every bit as intelligent, obstinate, and devious as he - and maddeningly irresistible. Mirabel Oldridge already has her hands full keeping her brilliant and aggravatingly eccentric father out of trouble. The last thing she needs is a stunningly attractive, oversensitive and overbright aristocrat reminding her she has a heart - not to mention a body he claims is so unstylishly clothed that undressing her is practically a civic duty. Could the situation be any worse? And why does something that seems so wrong feel so very wonderful?

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Due to his history of expensive romantic entanglements, Alistair Carsington now has six months to find either a useful occupation or a wealthy heiress to wed. To prove he is not an idle fop only concerned with sartorial pleasures, Alistair agrees to help his old friend, Lord Gordmor, by traveling to the wilds of Derbyshire to convince Gordmor's neighbors to support the nobleman's proposal to build a canal. Upon arriving, Alistair, a famous war hero and eligible bachelor, finds everyone couldn't be nicer, everyone except for respectable, practical, spinsterish Mirabel Oldridge. The last thing Mirabel wants is for her tranquil little corner of England to be destroyed by a noisy, nasty canal, and she is prepared to use every weapon at her disposal--including her disheveled coiffure and unstylish wardrobe--to stop Alistair. RITA Award-winning Chase presents a splendidly written tale of two people trying desperately not to fall in love. Chase's beguiling blend of deliciously complex characters, potent sexual chemistry, and sparkling wit give this superb romance a richness and depth readers will treasure. John Charles
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.

Review

"'wickedly witty, simply wonderful' Stephanie Laurens 'One of the finest romance writers of all time' Julia Quinn 'Miss Wonderful is a delicious pleasure; we can welcome Chase back with a rousing cheer and heartfelt thanks for a superior read.' ROMANTIC TIMES"

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Piatkus Paperback; New edition edition (January 4, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0749937106
• ISBN-13: 978-0749937102
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 7.8 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (37 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,545,820 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Loretta Chase holds a B.A. from Clark University, where she majored in English and minored unofficially in visual art. Her past lives include clerical, administrative, and part-time teaching at Clark and a Dickensian six-month experience as a meter maid. In the course of moonlighting as a corporate video scriptwriter, she fell under the spell of a producer who lured her into writing novels... and marrying him. The union has resulted in more than a dozen books and a number of awards, including the Romance Writers of America's RITA® Award.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

73 of 75 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Oh, frabjous day!, March 10, 2004

By 

Faith Freewoman "free woman" (Trinidad, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Miss Wonderful (Carsington Family Series) (Mass Market Paperback)

At last!!! I've been reduced to re-reading my complete collection of Loretta Chase's witty, passionate and beautifully written books for years ... there's literally no one quite her!

She has Mary Jo Putney's passion and willingness to look unflinchingly at tough emotional issues; she has the vivid and endearing characters of Georgette Heyer; the sheer sexiness and emotional impact of Mary Balogh and Gaelen Foley ... but no one, NO ONE can match her sly, sharp and absolutely irresistible sense of humor.

If you're in the market for an intelligent, sexy and emotionally fulfilling historical, I have GREAT news for you! All of her books are being re-issued, including my absolute favorite, Sandalwood Princess, over the next year. If you've just discovered Loretta Chase, prepare yourself for an absolute feast of insights, giggles, snickers, sighs and smiles.

That said, this book is quite different from the last several which she wrote, including Lord of Scoundrels, which has made the top 5 of every "Greatest Romance Ever Written" list I've seen ... the characters themselves remind me more of her earlier work, but with the more complex plot and depth of the more recent work.

In this story, our hero Alistair is the second son of an Earl, a celebrated hero of Waterloo, a dandy, and a man who loves women hugely and impulsively. Mirabel is far too busy managing a vast country estate for her fuzzy-headed father to care much about her appearance, but she certainly *does* care about the fact that the fabulously handsome, beautifully turned out Alistair is threatening everything she's worked for all her life ... and she's not going to let him get away with it!

Sound like a familiar plot? Well, maybe, but I won't tell you more, except to say that what you see is not what you get! Naturally you'll fall in love with them both, and with all the secondary characters (well, not ALL of them ... some are absolute villains!), while learning from them about solving the challenges of the heart, mind and community.

Oh, YOU know what I'm trying to say. Run, do not walk, to your Amazon.com cart and BUY THIS BOOK!

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars an engaging and entertaining read, March 10, 2004

By 

tregatt (Portland, Oregon) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Miss Wonderful (Carsington Family Series) (Mass Market Paperback)

For as long as he can remember, Alistair Carsington, has caused his father, the Earl of Hargate, a great deal of trouble and money. At first, it was his tendency to fall in love at the drop of a hat; but now, since his return from the Peninsula Wars, it is the tremendous amount of money that he has spent on clothes. This time, however, the earl has had enough, and has issued an ultimatum: marry an heiress in six months or else the earl will settle the money he would have left Alistair's younger brothers on Alistair himself. Fortunately for Alistair, his best friend, Gordmor has a scheme. Gormor would like to build a canal that would allow him to move the coal from his coal mines more easily. And he invites Alistair to be a partner in this venture. Alistair's part will be to persuade a few land owners as to the desirability of the scheme. And so, even though it is the middle of winter, Alistair makes for the wilds of Derbyshire, only to find that the biggest stumbling block to his plans and riches lies in the shape of a maddeningly attractive but unfashionably dressed gentlewoman, Mirabel Oldridge, who has been running her father's estate for more than a decade now. This time, Alistair is determined to keep his mind on the prize and not fall in love. But the distracting Mirabel has sneakily stolen his heart. Will Alistair be able to keep his head planted firmly on his shoulders, or will love make his forget his resolve?

After what seems like a very long absence, Loretta Chase is back again, and all I can say is that the wait has been well worth it. "Miss Wonderful" is one of the wittiest and more charming novels I've read in a long while. The storyline is a basic one (hero meets heroine, both are powerfully attracted to each other, but there is a stumbling block to their developing relationship -- they both want different things), so that what really sets "Miss Wonderful" head and shoulders above other Regency-era romance novels of similar stripe, are 1) the prose style (witty and humourous); and 2) her engaging character portrayals of Alistair and Mirabel. Both characters are likable and sympathetic. While Mirabel was a strong, intelligent and resolute heroine, she definitely was not one of those feisty, totty-headed and bad tempered heroines who wouldn't be able to think her way out of a paper-bag but who seem (for some reason or the other) to people this genre an awful lot! While Alistair was a gem of a hero: honest and passionate and immensely nice. Both characters want an end result that seems to be in direct opposition of each other, and the authour's even handed stand on the issue of the canal, so that you got to see both sides of this arguement, made the novel all the more compelling and interesting. All in all, "Miss Wonderful" proved to be an engaging, entertaining and passionate romance novel, and if you're looking for a well written and wonderfully romantic novel to unwind with, I'd urge checking "Miss Wonderful" out.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Almost Wonderful, March 28, 2004

By 

A. Santiago "ardith" (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Miss Wonderful (Carsington Family Series) (Mass Market Paperback)

I've waited a long while for another novel from Loretta Chase. This ones is enjoyable, but not quite as good as her last two novels - The Hellion and Lord of Scoundrels.

The characters in Miss Wonderful are fun, though. The dialogue is whitty and quick and you do feel attached to them, but for some reason the spark is not as bright as her previous books.

It is definitely worth taking a look at, so please give it a try. If you do, read her other novels.