Romances today seem to be getting
steamier and steamier. For those that
miss the old-fashioned romances of Austen and Heyer you will appreciate the
“Proper Romances” of Donaldson.
Kate Worthington never wants to
marry. She wants to be able to live her
life as she pleases, and she wants to live it in India with her maiden
Aunt. Kate’s mother will give her
permission to go to India only if she secures and refuses three proposals at
Blackmoore that summer. Kate agrees. It is her only chance to escape her
scandalously embarrassing family and live her life as she desires since her
family has already managed to mess up her chances at happiness close to home.
The story is well-plotted and the
characters are realistic and completely developed. I was drawn into this book from the start
wondering what the main characters problem was, why they didn’t realize that
they were perfect together. This isn’t a
simple case of misunderstandings, there is quite a bit keeping these two apart,
and the reader is left guessing if they will be able to overcome the obstacles
between them. (Thankfully we know
starting out that it is a romance so it has to end happily!)
