The Gypsy Heiress

by Laura London (Pseudonym), Sharon Curtis, Tom Curtis

They were as different as a falcon and a butterfly: he, the subtle, soaring hunter; she, vulnerable and trembling with fear; he, the arrogant, iron-willed Lord Brockhaven; she, the ragged gypsy girl dragged from the woods to be jailed as a poacher, or -- worse still -- handed over to the pleasure of Robert, the young master of Brockhaven's domain.

The gold medallion around her neck was Liza's only protection -- the key to a new life and a fortune beyond her wildest dreams. But what was the worth of life as a fine English lady ...what was the use of a fortune if her wild gypsy heart forever longed for a love that could never be?

Genres: Historical Romance, Romance, Historical, Historical Fiction, Regency, Adult, Traditional Regency

240 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1981

About the author

Laura London is the pen name for the husband and wife writing team Tom and Sharon Curtis. Married more than forty years, Tom and Sharon published ten historical and contemporary romance novels from 1976 to 1986, many of which have come to be regarded as classics in the genre. The daughter of a petroleum geologist father and historian and magazine editor mother, Sharon was raised overseas and lived in Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, the Canary Islands, Turkey and Iran, and attended high school in London. As an adult, she worked in bookstore management. Tom attended the University of Wisconsin in Madison and has worked for a public television station as a writer and on-air reporter. He is currently employed as a semi truck driver for a chemical company and plays guitar with a Celtic band that includes a son on bodhran and a daughter on fiddle. Together they have played eighteen years of annual performances at the largest Irish musical festival in the world.

Reviews

[Misfit · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is at heart a very simple story. Liza is a young half-gypsy woman left alone in the world after her grandmother's death, and is mistaken for a poacher when she tries to release an animal from a trap and delivered up to Lord Brockhaven. Luckily, Brockhaven spots the medallion around her neck and realizes she's the lost heir he's been looking for.

Of course there's more than that, but that's all you need to know going in. This being a romance you know Alex and Liza are going to fall in love, but it takes a while to get there, plus the mystery surrounding the 'beast' in the forest.

“My grandmother would have said it was one of the Demon People, a man doomed by the evils of his life to rise from the grave and walk the land as a wolf.”

Dun dun dun dun. You won't guess though.

I loved this to bits, I loved the writing despite being first-person narrative - how refreshing to have the narrator set the scene and the get you to know the other characters and not spend time hiding behind keyholes and in cupboards. Or worse, the all too common heroine carrying on and on in the first-person about her beauteous creamy breasts and silken hair. How refreshing. I liked the relationship between the H and h, and it was allowed to develop naturally without instant bed-hopping and heavy petting. And the quips between the two were just out and out funny at times.

“Or maybe I did. Your body was so strangely familiar,” he said softly.

I said, “Like an old shoe you thought misplaced.” “And would still like to slip into...”

And this favorite:

“Do you want the front or the back?”

“The front or the back of what?” I asked.

“You wouldn’t be so alarmed by my question if you hadn’t spent your time reading smutty books. You know what they say about the wages of sin. I meant, do you want the front or the back of the horse.”

I loved the secondary character of Ellen as a foil for Liza, nice job writing her as such a loveable ditz without going too far and making her so silly you have to strangle her (her attempts at making a feather picture for some aging aunt - priceless!). I don't know which escapade was my favorite, sneaking out of the house to observe the May Day revels or stealing a bottle from the apothecary to drug the meat to catch the mystery beast in the forest or...

Really a darned near perfect read, and for those weary of over-sexed romances, this is a tame one - no consummation at all, just a bit of heavy kissing (no second base though). My only quibble (and a minor one) is the broken leg at the very end and everyone catching up on back history and eating dinner and then start talking about setting the bone. For realz?

Oh well, I had a blast reading it and laughed a lot and looking forward to more from this husband and wife pair now that these oldies have been digitalized. Purchase requests for more pending since I found the others in the Overdrive catalog.

[Naksed · Rating 1 out of 5]

The gypsy girl happened upon a trapped fox, who happened to come to the attention of the gameskeeper, who happened to drag said gypsy girl back to his Lord's castle just as the Lord's younger, rapey brother happened to be returning from a horse ride and happened to be in the mood for some gypsy raping, so the gypsy girl was taken to the castle's rapey reading room where she happened upon the castle's reigning Lord, who happened to glimpse at a gold locket round her neck, which happened to bear the coat of arms of the Lord's neighbouring marquis, causing the Lord to investigate further, so that when the gameskeeper happened upon the gypsy girl's wagon left out in the fields, and he returned it to his Lord's castle, the intrigued Lord searched it and happened upon the irrefutable proof of the gypsy girl's noble birth in the form of a signed bible hidden under the planks of her wagon, and thus making her not so much a gypsy girl as a rich, aristocratic, English heiress who would usurp her hateful cousin's right to the lands and castle bequeathed by the marquis, a scandal worsened even more by the fact that the hateful cousin happened to be the ex mistress of the Lord who happened upon the gypsy girl/heiress, to whom he by now had developed more than a fancy for, and she for him, and it just happened that the late marques had a codicil to his will naming the Lord as his granddaughter's guardian should she happen to turn up even though there was no proof of her existence for the past twenty years, but there was the dilemma of how to explain the former gypsy girl, now rich heiress's presence in the Lord's castle without tainting her reputation, which dilemma was promptly solved by the arrival of the Lord's aunt who happened to have heard the news and rush right over to offer herself as a chaperone.

This all happened within the first two chapters. I am sure this is someone's cuppa but it ain't mine.

[daemyra, the realm's delight · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Kindle cover is so stock image, wish they kept this beautiful cover!!

I like Romani and English couple trope so I think that’s how I came across this book.

I quite liked this writing style but it took me a long time to read this because I didn’t believe that the heroine was half a Romani. I understand they were going for fish out of water but I would have bought the heroine more if she was just a shy foundling heiress who was raised poor or something like that. Too many times her worldview aligned too closely to the English. She liked the grandeur, she felt shy… I will share quotes later. Also impressed by how the ending was so civilized? Like the villain was clearly a bad dude but the way they treated him it was like he was having a bad day.

I’m honestly shocked by how sympathetic and normalized his revenge plot was and how he just peaced out after explaining his reasons. Like you don’t just get to go to the Americas after trying to kill your first wife with a wolf dog you trained to kill anyone wearing a red mantle with gold coin-like fixtures, in order to forcibly marry another woman! 😂🫠

Alex, Lord Brockhaven, can get it tho. I love a distant, detached, can’t be bothered lord ugh 🥵

[Kathleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Talk to me, Liza. What possessed you to swim this morning in the dower house pond?”

“It was the bog bean. I wanted to make a tonic for my loss of appetite.”

“Really. An appetite tonic.” His lips seared over mine, washing my being in a hot, shuddering wave of pleasure. “How does this compare with bog bean?”

Yippeeeeeee!!! This historical romance -- and several others by the same amazing author team -- are finally available in ebook format. I love Sharon and Tom Curtis, aka "Laura London" -- not to be confused with Laura Landon.

I still have my much loved, well thumbed paperbacks, including this book (memorable scene with the hungry wolf). These books must have been published at least 25 years ago, or more. Sharon and Tom Curtis are highly skilled writers. They never beat you over the head with anything. Instead, they let you draw your own conclusions -- letting actions speak for themselves. Pacing is good. Dialogue is divine. No instant love, but instead we get relationship and characterization, along with some suspenseful murder and mayhem. Whatever happened to this couple?

"“You know, dear,” he said, “one thing our cultures have in common is the button mechanism.” His mouth covered the fullness of my lips and lingered there while he said, “You know how to do it. Why don’t you?”

“Do you mean that I should— your shirt?”

“Yes, that’s what I mean.” His lips touched the hollow at the side of my neck, below my earlobe. “Yes. Yes."

Other HRs by this dynamic duo in this Candlelight Regency line: Love's a Stage, The Bad Baron's Daughter, Moonlight Mist, and A Heart Too Proud. They also wrote a lengthier and sexier book, The Windflower. None of the books connect. All are stand alone novels. I liked them all.

Mainly, they wrote sizzling but clean historical romances, but also a few contemporaries -- for example, Sunshine and Shadow -- and even a paranormal, like their "magical" novelette in the anthology When You Wish.

[Lynn Spencer · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars I knew the Curtises (aka Laura London) were legendary so even though I don't normally go for "gypsy" characters because they often seem stereotyped, I gave this one a whirl. Here's the basic setup: heroine is trying to free a fox from a trap so a passing gamekeeper naturally takes her for a poacher and arrests her. When the Earl of Brockhaven sees her, he recognizes her medallion and eventually sorts out that Liza is really half-English; half-aristocrat to be more precise. And naturally he must be her guardian.

The romance between Liza and Brockhaven didn't really do much for me. The hero never really came to life and Liza spends way too much time sounding like a textbook on Roma lore and culture. I did like the backstory, with all the evil machinations of the jealous neighbors. Brockhaven's hostess/chaperone and her endearingly awkward daughter also have some fun scenes. The end result? I liked parts of the story in this book, but the romance didn't do much for me.

[Mary - Buried Under Romance · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars

I really like the writing, though the story is a predictable one. :)

Review to come...

[Jamie R · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, I'm doing research on romance novels for an exhibit. I'd never read any before starting the project (I thought I had, but it turns out they weren't actually romance novels).

This is the first I've actually enjoyed. There are no embarrassing sex scenes (not that I think sex scenes are embarrassing by nature, just that they're so often poorly written in romance novels), I like the characters, especially the heroine's best friend who stutters, it's set in Jane Austen-era England and it has gypsies and intrigue. Perfect!

My only two problems with it are that at the beginning, a male character hints at raping the heroine before he knows she's a 'Lady', but after she's rescued from the situation, it's completely forgotten about and he becomes a good guy in the novel who hooks up with the heroine's stuttering friend. This of course bothers me immensely.

My second problem is that the heroine's a gypsy with tanned skin, and in order for her to be accepted as a Regency-era Lady, she needs pale white skin, so a maid gives her some sort of scrub to make her skin white. I understand this a symbolic character makeover, but it's so insulting to anyone with dark skin.

[Sophie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first Laura London book and I really enjoyed it. This is the kind of book that made me fall in love with historical romance way back when. The kind of book written by an author (or in this case, authors) who cares about historical accuracy and making sure characters are representative of their era. Unfortunately, that art has been lost along the way, and today's "historical" romances are just contemporary novels with muslin window dressing. I'm glad that these older novels are being transferred to electronic versions so that I can still get an occasional historical fix.

[Xee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought I was about to read a bodice ripper with the way this book started and I wanted to brain both Alex and Robert.

by the end of the book I was madly, deeply in love with everybody.... even Vincent. If that doesnt speak to the onion of my mind if, I dont know what does.


This book is delicious. DELICIOUS, I tell you. It reminded me of a old school Barbra Cartland style of writing and world and characters. I was hooked by chapter 3 and the ride had me immersed. This isnt a gothic romance but the feel was slightly dark, slightly sinister and gothicy.
Our hero has the goergette heyer, older(in time ) , more accurate portrayal of regency hero feels and our heroine is literally a soft, shy little thing that I wanted to protect!

Look, i just loved this book and i cant find the coherency in me to describe just how damn MUCH!

[Maike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining!

Nice little story, very entertaining.
Not nearly as good as the Windflower but still pretty awesome.

Witty dialogue, some mild suspense, some adventures, a kinda ridiculous love story but regardless, wonderful, lively characters.
Except for a couple of kisses, no sexual content.

[Mermarie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cutesy and in suit with Regency etiquette.

[Kerry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hilarious.

[Zena Davison · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not great

Not as good as previous written in the first person . Not much of a deep story. Cannot recommend it.

[Lena · Rating 2 out of 5]

THE h seemed meek to me

[Cathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was looking to be 4 stars and then it went off the rails.

[Griffinyarn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the third book I've read by the husband and wife writing team of Tom and Sharon Curtis and even though this book is not my favourite so far, I do like their writing style.

Liza's character is very endearing, and the first-person narration works really well to convey the strange environment she finds herself in. I loved the little snippets of Gypsy vs Gorgio idiosyncrasies.

"If you weren’t too distressed to eat, what would it be?”
I thought it over. “A gooey, perhaps.”
“A gooey. Splendid. What is it?”
“There are different ones. Some are like pudding, some are like pie. Grandma’s favorite was oatmeal pounded with goose’s blood and suet.”
“I’m afraid I haven’t laid in a stock of goose blood. Can you think of anything a little less revolting?”

The interactions between the hero and heroine were fun, although more screen-time together wouldn't have gone amiss.

Overall, a sweet and light-hearted read.

[Lexi · Rating 3 out of 5]

** I received a copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased and honest review**

Review:3.5 stars

General: This book was a little hard for me. I enjoyed it once I got into it but it took longer than I like to get my attention. It was not exactly what it appeared and I that’s what drew me in. However, I want to point out the blurb doesn’t properly indicate what type of readers would like this book and I found that to be the biggest issue- that I went in thinking this was a historical and it turned into something else entirely. I found that once the new element was brought it I enjoyed it much more. It changed from a slow paced into something dark and dangerous that sucked me in. I loved the romance in the book, the characters were perfectly matched for one another. The writing and characters were strong I just can’t say I loved this book because it wasn’t what is marketed as and what I was expecting to read.

[RIF · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like these older books by the husband and wife partner writing under the pseudonym Laura London. The dialogue is good, I like that we get to know multiple characters and I'll probably read all the back catalogue on kindle. But this is the second in which the hero, whom I really believes ends up treasuring the heroine, starts off with ignoble intentions until he discovers her heritage. Very dated, that.

[penelopewanders]

My edition indicates this as being written by Laura London. I read this slowly as it was such a nice compact book to carry in my purse, so I was only reading it while I was out and about! Setting aside a lot of probability, this was a fun read, although I would have preferred it if Lisa weren't constantly referred to as a child! The elements of gypsy lore seemed to correspond with what I've read, and I always find that fascinating.

[Onelovestorie · Rating 3 out of 5]

ONly had female POV. Somewhat draggy and the characters were underdeveloped. I am still lost about how and when they fell in love. There were barely any interactions between the main leads to give me proper reason for their so called love.

Two stars for the story and one star for how well this author describes things.

[Lyndol Burns Parrish · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delightful whimsical novel.

Wonderful somewhat short little novel with plenty whimsy and romance. Was a little apprehensive that it would be too much of a fantasy novel with all the mention of werewolves in the reviews but that thankfully came out to have a nice practical reasoning. Definitely a must read for others :)

[Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good Gypsy romance. It has a couple rot spots, but is mostly clean. It is also highly amusing and rather out of the ordinary!
Gypsy girl inherits an estate and a fortune, and has a most confusing time trying to fit into English society.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can never decide if this book or The Bad Baron's Daughter is my favorite of this regency series. Both are fantastic. Love their writing. Sweet, emotional, witty romance.

[Shakira · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Cambria · Rating 5 out of 5]

REVIEW COMING

[Reforming · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pleasant little story without graphic sex.