Regency Marriages by Elizabeth Rolls

Summary:

Something had a wrought a change in Thea Winslow
As a girl, Thea had been bubbling over with mischief. As a woman she seemed half lost in shadow. Richard Blakehurst couldn't mistake the desire between them. But Thea must tame her wayward thoughts because she could never secure Richard's good opinion of her if he ever learnt the truth...

Marrying the governess...
Lord Braybrook urgently needs to hire a governess and companion, and the beautiful, headstrong Miss Christina Daventry is conveniently available. There is something so endearing about her that Julian quickly forgets how scandalous it would be to give in to the mounting attraction for his penniless governess...

Two classic and delightful Regency tales!

Reviewer: Fashionta
A Compromised Lady

I cannot say I was carried away by the first book. It was not so much the story in itself but rather the way it was told that bothered me.

For eight years Dorothea Winslow has been buried alive and forgotten in Yorkshire, when her father suddenly summons her to London in order to marry her off! Despite the fact that she wants neither a Season nor a husband she has no choice but to accept. At the beginning we are told that her betrothed died in a sudden accident but very quickly we are given to understand that she'd been compromised. In my opinion the unfolding of the story is too slow and I felt bored more than once. It has a lot to do with the fact that Rolls implies things after things about Thea's past without revealing it of course. At one point withholding information can become very irritating!

Step by step we discover Thea's traumatic past. When she was sixteen years old she'd been tricked and raped, after that - despised. banished and ignored. Fortunately her brother was able to shield her somewhat from the ugly aftermath. She learned to lock everything inside, both her painful past and her emotions. We will not know the whole truth until the very end.

She has a way to deal with her problem which is rather depressing and for me she is very difficult to like. Maybe it is because I wouldn't have in a thousand years reacted the way she did . She has been brought low by circumstances and by her father in particular. Nevertheless considering what she went through I can say she is strong and has honor, maybe even too much of it.

Mr. Richard Blakehurst is a second son (younger twin brother to Lord Blakehurst, hero of His Lady's Mistress) He and Thea were childhood friends but parted ways and he wasn't familiar with her drama. When they meet again eight years later he still doesn't know the truth.

Very quickly he starts feeling protective towards Thea and decides to help her any way he can. Their friendship slowly develops into something else. But it seems that there is no future for them. Each time, Thea has good reasons to refuse his love. Her past, which is her own fault, so she always says - and her constant feeling of unworthiness! But Richard is caring and very patient.

But again, just before the end, a last revelation will nearly keep them apart for ever.

I give 3.5/5.

Lord Braybrook's Penniless Bride 

This book could have been better. It began really good but when it hit the second half the plot just lost pace and started to drag on.

Lord Braybrook belongs to the fake rake type. Rakish ways or not, he has four half-siblings and an invalid stepmother in his care. And he doesn't appreciate it when his seventeen year old half-sister falls in love with a Mr. Daventry who's too poor to be considered suitable for the spendthrift Alicia. What's worse. Mr Daventry and his sister Christiana are soon to be evicted from their home

Lord Braybrook jumps at the opportunity and hires Miss Daventry as a companion to his stepmother and as a governess to his half-siblings. His intention is to show Alicia the life she might lead were she to run off with Christy's brother. And it would be a life without the luxuries she had grown up with. Nothing like a right dose of reality to quell the ardent impulses of a young romantic heart!

He is not a bad man but doesn't always know how to deal with people. Like a lot of his peers he has serious prejudices against illegitimacy which was the rule at the time. Christy and her brother being the bastard children of a Duke rather complicates the situation. Understandably she takes offence at this attitude and sparks fly between them.

Because of her parentage Christiana has a huge chip on her shoulder, she's understandably very guarded with her emotions but never at a loss for words. I liked her very much.

Unfortunately, I found the ending a bit rushed and overall the story was quite uneven. I give 3/5.

Expected Publishing Date: Nov. 4, 2011
Publisher: Harlequin UK
Review Courtesy Of: NetGalley

See the original review on goodreads
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/229982608