Series: Agents of the Crown, #2
Traits & Tropes: spies; hidden identity; titled hero; class difference; working heroine; lessons
Publication Date: 04.09.99
Genre/Setting: Historical; Regency; Surrey, England
Heat Level: 2
Rating: 3/5
Narration Rating: 5/5
Elizabeth Hotchkiss is certain the book she found in her employer’s library, How to Marry a Marquis, is someone’s idea of a cruel joke, but with three younger siblings to support and no one to guide her, she does need to marry well. She could use all the help she can get, even if it is from a silly book, surely a peak won’t hurt.
James Sidwell, the Marquis of Riverdale, has answered his aunt’s summons to help her uncover a blackmailer. This means posing as his aunt’s new estate manager and her companion is his first suspect. James finds himself intrigued by Elizabeth and when he discovers her attempts to learn from the silly book, he offers to help her find a husband by allowing her to practice on him. All too soon, the practice makes James realize that Elizabeth must truly marry a marquis: him.
This book was a fantastic romp, and I loved the development of the dynamic between James and Elizabeth, all the way up until about the 75% mark when her behavior nearly ruined it for me. Ultimately, James just wanted to have a loving marriage that was completely unlike what his parents had. Since he was in disguise at the time he met Elizabeth, the illusion of his having a lower social status and no title enabled him to get to know her on a deeper level quicker than he otherwise might have done. Yes, he was hiding his true identity, but ultimately all he was hiding was the title; he’d been true about himself with Elizabeth in every other aspect, even confiding things to her that he’d never spoken of to anyone else. Despite this deep connection they’re clearly both feeling, when she does learn who James really is, Elizabeth becomes completely unreasonable, insisting that she doesn’t know him at all and cannot possibly marry someone so far above her in station. As a baronet’s daughter, even impoverished, her thinking made little sense and her later proclamation that she’d marry James for financial security was a complete slap in the face to him. Her hysterical behavior was utterly nonsensical and went on for entirely too long with her refusing to be quiet and truly listen to his very valid and sensible explanation. She was much too self-righteous there at the end and it didn’t seem to fit her character as she completely disregarded her siblings and how her actions might affect them, along with seeming to forget every encounter she’d had with James and everything they’d confided in one another. Thankfully, I was listening to this as an audiobook otherwise I might’ve thrown it down and failed to return to it for some time. Fortunately, Lady Danbury completely stole the show and her machinations saw everything set to rights in a satisfactory and adorable way, but without her this book would definitely not have worked for me. Nonetheless, despite that third act hiccup with the heroine, this was a cute story and I’m glad to have checked another backlist title off my TBR.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2137213874
https://www.bookbub.com/reviews/3498581287
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