THE EARL TAKES A FANCY – Lorraine Heath
A Sins for All Seasons Novel – Book 5
Avon
ISBN-10: 0062951904
ISBN-13: 978-0062951908
ASIN: B07TV5YB3X
March 31, 2020
Historical Romance

London 1873

Matthew Sommersby, the Earl of Rosemont, wants to escape the season. A letter from his deceased wife praising his attributes as a husband has been published by prearrangement in the newspaper and is bringing him to the attention of marriage seekers. The fact is, he despised his wife. She had trapped him into marriage and shown him little respect let alone affection. He never wants to get married again. The letter in the newspapers brings him unwanted messages from debutantes or their mothers who would like to meet him. He decides to escape the season and rents a place in an area of London recently renovated by Mick Trewlove. A place with only one hired woman to clean and cook for him. He visits the bookstore across the street from his dwelling. He soon feels an irresistible draw to the young woman owner.

Fancy Trewlove will not let her illegitimate birth hold her back. Her mom had taken in four other homeless children and raised them before she gave birth to Fancy. Her older brothers and sisters have all beat the odds and grown into wealthy, successful adults, even marrying aristocrats. They expect Fancy to marry at least an earl when she starts her first season in a few weeks. While she wants to please her family, she is content running her bookstore in her brother Mick's remade neighborhood. She also teaches children and adults to read in an upstairs room. A man enters her shop and buys a book. By chance she bumps into him again that evening when she goes to her sister's tavern for dinner. They share a table, and soon conversation. She learns his name, Matthew Sommersby. After a few balls, Fancy finds she doesn't like any of her prospects as much as she likes Matthew. However, her mother has high expectations for her as do her brothers and sisters.

Part of the story's charm is how Fancy and Matthew overcome their differences to share friendship and intimacy. Fancy is an independent, free thinking woman, and Matthew enjoys her conversation and that she helps so many people learn to read, including his housekeeper; but they face problems. Can Matthew ever overcome the experience of his last marriage? Or that he has deceived her about his social position? Can Fancy dismiss her family's expectations? As events progress many incidents will impair their prospects.

Robin Lee