Mrs Westlake does not want her only daughter to marry well. She wants Alicia to make the brilliant match that will secure their places in fashionable society – the society that once shunned her. Determined to succeed, the ambitious widow is not above a little scheming in order to get what she wants.
But Alicia has other ambitions. She is more interested in character than connections. Having witnessed the misery that can arise from an unequal marriage, she is determined not to make the same mistake as her parents. She wants to marry someone whom she can both love and respect. She is not looking for a brilliant match – she is looking for a perfect match.
Written by the author of the Regency History blog, A Perfect Match is a story of romance and adventure set in late Georgian London and Weymouth, when Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire, was queen of fashionable society.
A slight deviation from the norm, this debut novel from Regency History blog author Rachel Knowles takes place in the final years of Georgian England. With lots of historical context and backdrop sure to please era history buffs, A Perfect Match also manages to deliver a satisfying, well told story.
Its definitely more traditional, with a slower pace than mass market and clean/little intimacy. However, there is also something special about the pace that reminded me a lot of reading Austen contemporaries. I think in part its the way the history is woven throughout the narrative, given a strong sense of time and place, rather than thrown against the page to see what sticks. I also think there is a great balance of descriptive passages and dialogue that doesn’t favor one style of storytelling over the other.
We have an academic leaning heroine with a match making minded mama, a couple of would be suitors, parties, plays, and even an eventual villain. The secondary characters are strong and make needed foils for the H/h…the mothers are wonderful studies in how to write sympathetic yet machinating characters. I also liked the drama between the political parties and the way Knowles makes it accessible. The tension with an ailing King and the would-be Regent is well presented and the stirring of unrest abroad in France gives a strong undercurrent of a the political discord.
I didn’t love the romance portion, but in a lot of ways I think the novel is more a coming of age in an age that is coming of age. That is not to say that the romance is not present or not sweet in its own right. I thought the H/h were nicely paired (a perfect match, of course) and their love story was told carefully and believably. If what was wanted was maybe a bit stronger conflict, then its a small point that in no way diminished my enjoyment of the book. I also think those true Austen purests will like the streamlined non-melodramatic approach to romance. It certainly was a deviation from the norm.
Although it is a nice, long book with a steady pace it read pretty quickly and was enjoyable. I definitely look forward to more from Knowles and her amazing research.
There are some Christian themes towards the end of the book, but I am not sure it qualifies as inspirational.
4.5 out of 6 Fantastically researched, clean with a traditional pace that speaks to the Georgian era
| Content Rating/Heat Index | |
|---|---|
| Mature Content |   |
| A couple of mentions of mistresses | |
| Intimacy | |
| A couple of pretty chaste kisses. | |
| Violence | |
| Fight scenes, murderous villians | |
| Overall | |
|---|---|
| Clean with broad story and characters that will appeal to wide audience. | |
*A review copy was provided by the author. No other compensation was provided.
