A fine read – why have I never come across this author before? There’s a lot of sex in it, but it’s appropriate for the story and the characters.
Here’s the premise: Marina Winslow is the old maid of her family, at twenty-six, but when Justin Ransome, the Earl of Mortenhoe, calls on her brother to agree terms to buy his family’s old home from him, Marina finds herself unexpectedly on the receiving end of a very determined courtship. The reader is under no illusions about the reason for this. Marina’s brother, Charlie, wants to sell the house to Justin for as high a price as he can get, but he also wants to marry off the spinster of the family. So the deal is money and marriage, or no house. Marina can’t resist the charming, handsome Justin, so married they are and off to Knightshaye, gambled away by Justin’s father to Charlie’s father some twenty odd years ago, and now restored to its original owners.
But the house and the entire estate has been let go to rack and ruin, the tenants are surly and suspicious and the servants are new and unsure of themselves. It’s quite a challenge for the newlyweds, and Marina now knows the truth of her whirlwind courtship, let slip by her stupid brother. How can she ever trust Justin, knowing how easily and glibly he deceived her? The two tiptoe round each other, trying to find an accommodation, Justin hating the secret he’s promised not to reveal to Marina, and she coming to terms with what looks like betrayal, which includes a seeming lie regarding an old flame of Justin’s who married someone else. It’s made even harder for her by their rampantly enjoyable sex life, and the inconvenient fact that she’s fallen in love with her husband.
So there are rows and apologies and the usual, just like real life. Eventually, things come to a head, and the old flame’s machinations push Marina over the edge and she does something pretty stupid. Why not actually *talk* to your husband, dear, instead of assuming and ricocheting off the walls? Happily, Justin has realised belatedly that he’s in love with his wife and not only goes after her, but dares her to put their marriage on a different footing. The ending is pitch perfect and absolutely lovely. Sigh.
I do have a few quibbles. Firstly, in the marriage scene, there would be no veil and definitely no kiss, and they would sign the register before walking down the aisle (just as brides do today!). And no, you could not get an annulment for non-consummation, not in England, anyway. I was amused by Marina ordering service a la russe for their intimate dinner for two, as being less intrusive than service a la francaise. Service a la russe involves the butler and footmen serving each individual dish as a separate course, so they’re constantly in and out, whereas service a la francaise means plonking all the dishes on the table at once. With a single course and no removes, the servants aren’t needed at all, which is just like a normal family meal in most households. But that’s a trivial detail.
None of my quibbles stopped this being a terrific read. I loved Justin, and Marina is (mostly) sensible and likable. Five stars.