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70 of 74 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Unusual Male Leads -- Brain Damage and Asperger's Syndrome, November 23, 2011
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Olivia Lytton is caught between two men, both suffering from serious psychological problems. She was betrothed as a child to Rupert, Marquess of Montsurrey, who was severely injured during his traumatic birth, leaving him with the intellect of a charming and earnest 11 year old boy. Rupert has been drilled to present an adult appearance, writes poetry, and volunteers for the British army, but marriage to him will compel Olivia to function as his caregiver and estate administrator. Her secret love, Tarquin, Duke of Sconce, is a handsome, brilliant mathematician, who has already lost one wife and a child due to his inability to read other peoples' emotions correctly, predict their emotional reactions accurately or express his own emotions. An isolated mathematical genius with almost no friends, Tarquin's life is managed for him by his overbearing widowed mother, who wants to marry him off to Olivia's extremely proper bluestocking sister. An alert modern reader will quickly grasp that Olivia is facing a lifetime coping with either an intellectually disabled spouse or a spouse with Asperger's Syndrome. Olivia herself is atypical of Regency heroines, describing herself as fat, loud and fond of risque jokes. Not your standard Regency romance novel lead characters, to put it mildly. Part of the allure of the novel is wondering how the author can produce a HEA ending from these unpromising elements. Despite the tough medical problems of the male leads, the plot is surprisingly humorous and filled with genuinely romantic sexual episodes. If you are interested in a Regency romance that takes parts of the genre's conventions and stands them on their heads, you'll like this novel. I gave it four stars instead of five stars because I felt that the novel took too many liberties -- during the last third of the book -- with the actual history of the Napoleonic wars and the British army's real life behavior. But if you are not a strict history buff, such liberties will not be a problem. I am now rereading the novel, after a first reading where I rushed through it. I am savoring it at leisure.
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57 of 70 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Like a blueberry muffin, November 26, 2011
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Grasp your "disbelief" with both hands. Stuff it in a shoebox. Use a roll of duct tape to secure the lid. Place the box in the back of a closet. Now you are ready to read this book. The story is rather like a blueberry muffin. There are good bits here and there, amid the bland parts, and there are occasional air pockets. The characters and dialog are sometimes too cute for their own good. The conversations are filled with 21st century phrases (a reference to "wardrobe malfunction," for instance, brings to mind Janet Jackson rather than ladies of the 1800s). Lapses in logic pop up -- for instance, the very micro-managing mother of the two sisters has devoted her entire life to getting her girls married off to dukes, but when the younger has a chance to achieve this goal, mother stays home and sends the girl off with her unconventional, rowdy sister? The plot is a re-imagining of the fairy tale "The Princess and the Pea," although only a few elements of that story appear and seem thrown in as an afterthought with little to do with the story. Most of the book is entertaining, until the plot seems to veer off the reality chart completely at the end. Readers who enjoy stories with as much realism as a fairy tale will love this book. There is some amusing conversation, as well as an abundance of batty characters. Such readers will find this tale a good way to spend a chilly winter evening, but I'll hold out for an eclair of a book rather than a blueberry muffin.
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29 of 36 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best historical romance I've read in quite a while, November 23, 2011
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Olivia has been engaged to The Duke of Canterwick since birth. While Rupert is off winning glory for his family in the war against France, she falls in love with the Duke of Sconce, who is supposed to be considering Olivia's sister for marriage. Sounds like a typical cast of characters? Think again. Rupert, the future Duke of Canterwick, has been brain-damaged since birth, and while he has a sweet disposition, he has the maturity of a twelve year old boy. Olivia is mostly resigned to her fate- which is to produce an heir, be the care taker of her mentally incompetent husband, and to run his estate. That is, until she meets Quin, the Duke of Sconce, who is allowing his mother to choose a bride for him. The two sisters come for a visit (or interview) and the dowager Duchess of Sconce loves Georgina, and hates Olivia- which shouldn't matter really, since Olivia is engaged to another Duke. Georgina thinks Quin could be her handsome prince- unfortuantely so does Olivia. This very little not to like about this book. The characters are beautifully written. I couldn't help but like Olivia's hapless fiance, his forthright father, her dutiful sister, and willful future mother-in-law. Olivia herself was lovable and believable, and Quin's character was revealed in more depth throughout the story- the reader gets to know him gradually as Olivia does. The dialogue was well done and at times laugh-out-loud funny. The story even took an adventurous turn towards the end. The romance between Olivia and Quin was beautifully written- there was just the right amount of tension between them. There is usually some sort of device in romantic novels keeping the hero and heroine apart- in this case it was a particularly believable one. Olivia didn't want to be in love with her sister's beau- I can't imagine anything worse. The whole book was very compelling and enjoyable- I read it in one sitting because I simply didn't want to put it down. This is a rare romance novel that I will keep to read again- highly recommended.
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