Customer Reviews

A Rather Curious Engagement (PENNY NICHOLS)

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

 

 

What's not to like about C.A. Belmond's new romantic novel, A Rather Curious Engagement? I was hooked by the end of the first page. The author wastes no time plunging us directly into the action, developing a sense of intrigue, and creating an aura of the exotic. Not until the second chapter do we learn the name of the main character, or how she inherited a huge fortune and began forging plans with Jeremy, a nominal cousin and her co-inheritor.

What fun to get a first-hand view of the experience of Penny Nichols, whose spunk and sass counterbalance pure sweetness as she simultaneously grapples with the logistics of learning to responsibly manage a huge fortune, follow her heart into a developing relationship with Jeremy , determine her professional future, and pursue breathtaking adventure.

Following Penny and Jeremy between London, Nice, Antibbes, VilleFranche, Lake Como, and Corsica, Belmond gives enough descriptive detail to make these places come alive for readers without overplaying the exotic locales. Each delicious vista is intimately connected to the plot, seen through the narrow focus of Penny's dedication to purpose. Belmond uses the same economy of words in scenes featuring Jeremy's upper-crust friends. His ex-wife-from-hell merits more attention, as she connives in ever more creative ways to sabotage the developing relationship, and adds suspense to the story.

I doubt I ever would have heard of aquamanilia, Corsican mazzeri, or corniche roads if I had not read this book. Nor would I have such a clear sense of the work involved in restoring and operating a premium vintage yacht. And I am unlikely to visit the elegant interior of an occupied castle on the shores of Lake Como. Learning about new things is always a bonus in a book.

A Rather Curious Engagement is a delightful summer read--fun, light, and something you can pass through the generations. With the lack of sex scenes (although Penny and Jeremy share quarters, there's no behavior racier than a kiss) and violence (nobody died!), this book is appropriate for anyone from teenagers to great-grandmothers.

by Sharon Lippincott
for Story Circle Book Reviews
reviewing books by, for, and about women

Penny and Jeremy are the kind of couple you'd like to buy the house next door. Pleasant, honorable and (good grief, will I really use this word?) plucky, they advance their relationship while solving "problems". What do you do when you inherit a boatload of money? Buy the boat, of course, and solve the mystery that comes free of charge. Blissfully, we are able to follow their romance without following them into the bedroom. As sleuths, they remind me a bit of Agatha Christie's Tommy and Tuppence, a couple unashamedly fond of each other while keeping up a feisty dialogue. If you are a fan of Dame Agatha, you will enjoy what I hope will be a lengthy series.

Since becoming an American -heiress (see A Rather Lovely Inheritance), Penny Nichols has seen her lifestyle radically change. She lives in a luxurious London apartment, weekends in France, has a classic automobile and enjoys living with her flatmate Jeremy.

However, on the down side is everyone wants a handout so Penny is constantly being accosted by gigolos, paparazzi, sales people and even a former wife. Penny the snoop and Jeremy the legalese decide to have a big summer fling before putting their money aside for the year to live somewhat normal. They attend an auction on the French Riviera where they buy a 1920s yacht only to have someone boat-jack it and damage it when it is found. Unable to resist the former freelancer investigates the theft which leads them to the previous owner, Count Hubert von Norbert, in Lake Como, Italy and a fifth of Beethoven (without Walter Murphy and the Big Apple Band to guide them).

This is a rather entertaining sequel as the adventures of an American heiress in Europe continue. Penny and Jeremy are wonderful dodging gold-diggers, con artists, and peddlers when they just want a little fun before deciding what to do with their nouveau riches. Instead they end up playing amateur sleuths tracking the mystery of the purloined yacht which leads them into all sorts of other escapades including a centuries old still burning continental feud. Fans will relish the return of Penny and Jeremy as they tour Europe.

Harriet Klausner

Ever wonder what it would be like to suddenly inherit enough money to be able to do anything you wanted? How about a villa in France, a classic car, and a good looking lawyer boyfriend named Jeremy with a sizeable inheritance of his own thrown in for good measure? Sounds like a win-win situation, doesn't it? Just ask Penelope Nichols, heroine of A RATHER CURIOUS ENGAGEMENT who has come into this windfall courtesy of her Great Aunt Pen and she might tell you that the grass is not always greener.

The story is narrated by Penny and told from her perspective. Of course, as we all know, nothing in life is absolutely perfect, so of course there are a few rather pesky flies in the ointment. First there is Jeremy's ex-wife, Lydia, a master manipulator and a real pro at insinuating herself into his new life with Penny. Then there is Cousin Rollo. Is he basically a nice guy seeking a way to redeem himself for prior transgressions or is he a greedy little user, following in his mother's footsteps?

When Jeremy suggests that he and Penny pool some of their assets and "SPLURGE" on a 1920's yacht that has come up for auction, our co-inheritors find themselves involved in a rather unusual mystery involving a missing cast metal aquamanilia called The Beethoven Lion. Their search for the Lion and the truth concerning its beginnings takes them from London to Nice to a visit with a Count living in a castle on Lake Como and finally to the island of Corsica where all becomes clear.

This book is a joy to read, and an educational experience. Prior to reading C.A. Belmond's novel, I had no idea what an "aquamanilia" was, nor was I familiar with Isola Comacina, the only island on Lake Como......and who knew that Barbarossa was really the German King, Frederick the First. Not I, I can assure you.

This is no great epic like War and Peace, but if you enjoy books featuring light romance, a bit of mystery and a story that carries you off to far away places, you should definitely consider moving A RATHER CURIOUS ENGAGEMENT to the top of your reading list. 3 ½ stars

American heiress Penny Nichols and her boyfriend Jeremy Laidley are on their second adventure in what is now a trilogy of art theft, mayhem and intrigue by C. A. Belmond. While "A Rather Curious Engagement" was neither as engaging or witty as Peter Mayle and Sophie Kinsella, it did provide an interesting story that takes Penny and Jeremy from London to the South of France and beyond in search of the happiness that a rather large inheritance promises to bring them. Along the way, they find themselves the victims of robbery when their yacht disappears. This instance plunges them into their previous role as amateur detectives, driving them to sort out the mystery surrounding an obscure piece of art, whose sordid history sounds something like the old tale of the Hatfields and McCoys.

The book had just enough of the South of France and its underworld intrigue to remind me of Peter Mayle, with the high jinks of an American heiress, reminiscent of the adventures had by some of Sophie Kinsella's best known characters. However, I think that the story tried to tread a fine line between chic lit, and a serious mystery and ended up missing the mark on both accounts. While I was drawn in initially to the plot very easily, I found the book hard to finish, with so many tangents, and characters that sort of just float in and out of the book at will.

In the future, I think I'll just stick to Peter Mayle, who can write a tale of the South of France like no other, and Sophie Kinsella for her chic lit.

I liked this better than the first in the series. Maybe because the first one set the characters and the base of the story, this one just told a good story. The story zips along, no drag at all, with a delightful cast. Highly recommended.

If you're not into chick-lit, this book will be nothing but a narcotic.

I wanted to find out what chick-lit is all about so I googled "best chick-lit" and came upon this title. For me, it justified all the complaints about the genre: shallow, cliche, emasculated. Penny and Jeremy are already settled into their romance in this book, which is a sequel. I should have read the first book first, since it is a mystery to me what these two see in each other. I guess I'm supposed to enjoy the fantasy presented by their life, which consists mainly of vacationing and shopping while trying to figure out how to spend their massive inherited fortune. But I was soon skimming. I couldn't care less.