Jessica Franklin came to Bath to marry a rich man–and she was delighted to find handsome Matthew Walsingham with every qualification. Matthew, however, had come to Bath for the same purpose, regarding Miss Franklin as the perfect wife–wealthy and beautiful. When they discovered the truth, they had to reassess the situation–and their hearts.
This may be the mother of all masquerade trope Reg Roms, with both the H/h ‘guising as richies on the marital hunt in Bath. It wasn’t quite as funny as I had hoped, but there were some definite close-calls-create-comedy schtick in there to keep the pace pumping.
The heroine is a managing sort of female, largely independent and running an estate because she has had to. Her brother has returned from deployment in the States to find their finances in a perilous state due to a rent hikes (the family doesn’t own their estate, its been a long standing lease). Jessica’s idea is if they can launch themselves in polite Society, maybe they can both land wealthy matches and literally save the family farm.
The hero, Matthew, is also a returning veteran with a bit of a limp who stands to inherit from his Uncle. Due to a few too many larks upon returning from war, however, his volatile relative decides to cut him out of succession.
His solution? Marry a rich woman.
Both sets of masqueraders descend on Bath to mix in with the other gentry doing the do. There are some supporting characters that are actually, in my opinion, more interesting than the H/h and make this book enjoyable, although I doubt I will reread. This includes a chaperone that is obsessed with the Roman baths and a love interest with a very boisterous old jeweler father who reminded me of some of Heyer’s Cit daddies.
Altogether the plot and romance are pattern card for the traditional Reg Rom and comfortable in that respect.
Carola Dunn also knows her stuff and the details shine particularly in this book–I love some of the architectural elements that come to life on the page, as well as the descriptions of some different parts of Bath than we (Reg Readers) usually “see”. The romance is likable enough and although most of the plot is centered around misunderstanding, at least the masquerade element makes it fun and not frustrating.
This was a quick read for those looking for something to burn through that is familiar and clean.
3.75 out of 6 A masquerading match create some funny scenes in this trad. Reg Rom set in Bath
| Content Rating/Heat Index | |
|---|---|
| Mature Content |   |
| Limited adult themes | |
| Intimacy | |
| Some kissing | |
| Violence | |
| Not much | |
| Overall | |
|---|---|
| Clean with limited mature content great for most ages. | |
