What I've Read This Weekend

What I've Read This Weekend . . .

Celia's Grand Passion by Lynn Kerstan -- Regency Romance
Lady Celia Greer, recently widowed is determined to cut a dash in London for the first time in her life. Her plans include taking a lover, and not just any lover, but the handsome widower, James Valliant, Early of Kendal, who has been the object of her fantasies for many years. Lord Kendal's first meeting with Celia is awkward and embarrassing and she asks him to forget it ever happened. He believes that will be an easy task, however, forgetting Celia is not easy. Celia's moment of Grand Passion is thwarted by a misunderstanding and masculine pride and James runs back to the Continent and Celia back to the country to settle her late husband's estate. In the country, Celia makes the acquaintance of Christopher "Kit" Valliant and a charming little boy, Charley, Lord Paxton. Celia soon falls in love with the emotionally starved boy and the boy with her until James returns to find Celia has interfered with his strict regimen he has planned for his son. Celia discovers Valliant family secrets and tries to set things right, regardless of her interest in Lord Kendal. James can't help being drawn to the charming, outspoken young woman, yet their past and his pride could prevent Celia from experiencing the passion she's long dreamed of. This story has all the trappings of a Lifetime movie. It is incredibly cliched, and if I had known that the hero was a widower, I could have predicted the plot without even reading the book. Celia is a great character and I admire her for her actions and recognizing her desires, however, I hate James and don't understand why Celia loves him. Attraction/desire is not the same as love. I prefer stories where there's courtship and romance. The story has more depth than most novels with the same plot and it may bring the sentimental types to tears. I would recommend this book if you prefer the spice and melodrama of Regency Historicals.

Lucy in Disguise by Lynn Kerstan -- Regency Romance

Companion to Celia's Grand Passion

Lucy is desperate to help her friend Diana escape her foolish guardian who wishes to marry Diana off to a man she can not stand. The pair hide out in a cottage on the Dorset coast trying to evade Diana's wood-be captors. Lucy capitalizes on a local legend to try to scare away the locals. She happens upon a smuggling adventure gone wrong and rescues a horse from drowning and his owner from injury and certain death. Kit is a charming, flirtatious man and Lucy does her best to convince him that she's a boy and Diana is a mute widow. Kit sees through their disguises offers to help rescue Diana with some help from his brother, the Earl of Kendal. Kit invites Lucy into his brother's home, under the pretext of a betrothal. In fact, Kit considers the masquerade to be the truth, but how to convince Lucy is the difficult part, for she wants nothing to do with him other than his help rescuing Diana. This

is more companion than sequel to Celia's Grand Passion and a far different story. This one has adventure, intrigue and villains and one handsome, charming rake. Christopher is so utterly charming and amusing that I dare one not to fall in love with him. Lucy is a determined, resourceful woman and I admire her for trying to help a girl she barely knows. My biggest problem with this book is that the story ends with lots of loose ends. It doesn't resolve the mystery of the thugs who shot Kit or where Sir Basil Crawley's money came from. The so-called villains only briefly appear, act buffoonish and then exit too quickly and easily. I loved the romance plot and adore Kit and Lucy together. Their witty banter makes me laugh and chapter 13 is my favorite. It is great to know what happened to James and Celia too. This book is a blend of sweet Regency, Traditional Regency and romantic comedy. I recommend it for fans of the comedic variety of Regencies.