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A Fine Gentleman
Lady Caroline Carruthers has no intention of falling for Lord Hartville, despite his mother's schemes to bring them together, but the arrival of a mysterious girl at the Hartville home claiming to be the Hartville's daughter will bring lord and lady together.
220 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published November 1, 1999
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
July 31, 2024
A fun and interesting story with plenty of romantic moments. The plot is unique and twisty, with a hint of mystery and lot of humor. Good chemistry between the hero and heroine, a believable villain, and charming side characters make for a good, satisfying read.
July 13, 2011
Nice characters, mostly enjoyable plot. Heroine thinks she's in love with someone else. Hero is opposed to liking her as a knee-jerk reaction to thinking his mother is trying to match-make. Would have liked it better if the romance/fondness between the hero and heroine had developed more clearly throughout, rather than springing up somewhat abruptly toward the end.
December 9, 2018
An enjoyable traditional Regency
with the aspects of poor relations, a barely concealed villain, a delightful hostess, an innocent child, and a hero whose positive characteristics are not readily apparent.
with the aspects of poor relations, a barely concealed villain, a delightful hostess, an innocent child, and a hero whose positive characteristics are not readily apparent.
December 28, 2018
This story seemed a bit scattered for a while then came together abruptly at the end.
Violence, no sex, mild language
Violence, no sex, mild language
February 29, 2024
Disappointing. First, the storyline around the little girl just didn’t hold up. Second, I didn’t warm to most of the characters. In theory, I should have liked the h. Instead I found her mildly annoying. In some aspects she came across as too perfect, in others as too naive for a 24-year old. (How are we expected to believe that she never once questioned where her unemployed brother’s income came from, considering that she was the responsible sibling managing their living?) I especially disliked her brother, who is supposed to be charming but comes across as a selfish leech. (Somehow, no one ever suggested/considered that he should find some gainful employment!) This leads me to what I consider the silliest aspect of the plot. It was hardly believable that the H (or anyone) could/would fund over 30 poor relations in perpetuity, with no questions or strings attached.
November 13, 2020
At times I was glad Female lead was not mentioned as smart person. Sometimes she said or thought such stupid things I was surprised it was even possible. But all in all I liked the story. It was fast to read and very interesting.
December 30, 2022
Not much romance going on in this one and the denouement is kind of a letdown.
November 24, 2023
I enjoyed this book. It was a quick read.
February 7, 2024
Not bad. It felt like I'd read it before and I may have!
February 13, 2024
Oh, I loved this book so much. A heroine with gumption and a sparky (ie not bland) character. The fairly conventional grumpy hero who melts relatively quickly. And things that go bump in the night. What’s not to like?
Here’s the premise: Impoverished distant relation Caroline Carruthers is invited to be a temporary companion to the widowed Lady Hartville. Her son, Lord Hartville, the grumpy hero, is very well aware that his mother wants him to marry Caroline, but he finds her too meek and insipid. Besides, he’s quite happy to be a bachelor. But then a child of about five years of age appears at the estate and calls him ‘papa’. He’s quite sure the child isn’t his, but Caroline seems determined to hold him to his supposed obligations. And then Caroline’s frivolous younger brother appears, together with his worldly and very attractive friend Markingham, and strange things start to happen.
Let’s deal with the ‘mystery’ first. The parentage of the child is the big mystery of the book, but the resolution really isn’t that difficult to guess. The problem with a book of this era is that the cast of characters is very limited, so there aren’t very many possible villains to choose from. I spotted the culprit within seconds, so it isn’t difficult. Nevertheless, the author milks the suspense for all it’s worth.
The romance is also never in doubt. There’s some lovely back-and-forth dialogue between hero and heroine, which isn’t frivolous enough to be called banter, but also isn’t intense enough to be unsettling. They are drawn to each other, not quite from the start, but certainly from around the midpoint of the book when the open hostility morphs into something else altogether. There are some lovely set-piece scenes (like the storm, for instance) which develop the relationship nicely. I was less enamoured of the line that she has a voluptuous body and a certain innate awareness of sexuality that serves to move things along. I wasn’t entirely comfortable with the scenes where she is less than properly attired, and exposed to his appreciative eye. Yes, he’s a gentleman and the hero, but still, I would have preferred it if he’d shown more restraint at those times.
The resolution is both predictable and very satisfactory, and (unlike many books of this era) there’s a proper ending to the romance, too. There are a number of Americanisms which distressed me (gotten; wooden walkways outside village shop; ready-made dresses in village shop; straightaway (straight bit of road); cream in the tea; allergic (not used before 1908)). I also wondered greatly at the number of indigent relations that Lord Hartville is supporting (I think the number thirty-two was mentioned at one point). If he was giving each of them the five hundred pounds mentioned for one pair, he’d be flat broke in five minutes. It’s far more usual to hand out fifty quid a time, and even that would mount up. Despite all that, I enjoyed the book enough to give it five stars.
Here’s the premise: Impoverished distant relation Caroline Carruthers is invited to be a temporary companion to the widowed Lady Hartville. Her son, Lord Hartville, the grumpy hero, is very well aware that his mother wants him to marry Caroline, but he finds her too meek and insipid. Besides, he’s quite happy to be a bachelor. But then a child of about five years of age appears at the estate and calls him ‘papa’. He’s quite sure the child isn’t his, but Caroline seems determined to hold him to his supposed obligations. And then Caroline’s frivolous younger brother appears, together with his worldly and very attractive friend Markingham, and strange things start to happen.
Let’s deal with the ‘mystery’ first. The parentage of the child is the big mystery of the book, but the resolution really isn’t that difficult to guess. The problem with a book of this era is that the cast of characters is very limited, so there aren’t very many possible villains to choose from. I spotted the culprit within seconds, so it isn’t difficult. Nevertheless, the author milks the suspense for all it’s worth.
The romance is also never in doubt. There’s some lovely back-and-forth dialogue between hero and heroine, which isn’t frivolous enough to be called banter, but also isn’t intense enough to be unsettling. They are drawn to each other, not quite from the start, but certainly from around the midpoint of the book when the open hostility morphs into something else altogether. There are some lovely set-piece scenes (like the storm, for instance) which develop the relationship nicely. I was less enamoured of the line that she has a voluptuous body and a certain innate awareness of sexuality that serves to move things along. I wasn’t entirely comfortable with the scenes where she is less than properly attired, and exposed to his appreciative eye. Yes, he’s a gentleman and the hero, but still, I would have preferred it if he’d shown more restraint at those times.
The resolution is both predictable and very satisfactory, and (unlike many books of this era) there’s a proper ending to the romance, too. There are a number of Americanisms which distressed me (gotten; wooden walkways outside village shop; ready-made dresses in village shop; straightaway (straight bit of road); cream in the tea; allergic (not used before 1908)). I also wondered greatly at the number of indigent relations that Lord Hartville is supporting (I think the number thirty-two was mentioned at one point). If he was giving each of them the five hundred pounds mentioned for one pair, he’d be flat broke in five minutes. It’s far more usual to hand out fifty quid a time, and even that would mount up. Despite all that, I enjoyed the book enough to give it five stars.
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January 8, 2010Fictionwise multiformat ebook
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January 9, 2010Fictionwise multiformat ebook
August 12, 2016
first read 10/22/15; re-read early August 2016
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews