Demelza Carlton
“I had difficulty putting this one down - and I don't read romance, as a rule.
So to find Peter Francis - a character I already liked from the beginning - wasn't a man at all, I thought of my favourite Shakespeare play, Twelfth Night. Yet the style was more like something out of one of Jane Austen's books, as the title tells you exactly when it's set - Regency England.
While maintaining a careful balance between description, romance and action, Vera Loy kept me riveted from start to finish.
Poor, confused Richard Carleton...ah, but I won't spoil it for you, as this story does have surprises in it that I certainly didn't expect.
I think the bit that disappointed me most was discovering that Peter Francis wasn't a man, for he was the character I loved most throughout the book. For that I blame Ms Loy - she wrote the character far too well. It didn't detract from the story in the slightest, though, as the gender contrasts are clearer in this book than in any of Austen's and make for some very funny plot twists.
Well worth reading, I'm pleased I purchased this book, so I can read it again.” --Demelza Carlton (author of the Ocean's Gift series)
