Sensible Cecily

by Margaret Summerville

She was the poor cousin of Lady Prunella Throxton, brought to London as companion to the flighty teen- age heiress. Perhaps in such moneyed company even Cecily Camden could find a suitable husband. Tall, slim, red-haired, and unfashionably freckled, Cecily was hardly a conventional beauty. And she didn't even have a fortune to sweeten the chase.

All the more reason for astonishment when the dashing Marquis of Ashford sauntered into her life. "He's not to be trusted!" they said. "Merely a summer dalliance," they whispered. But try as she might, Cecily couldn't put Ashford out of her mind. Was it love or madness? Playboy or prince, he was the only man she wanted. Nobody else would do!

Genres: Historical Romance

Paperback

First published May 1, 1980

About the author

Pseudonym for Barbara and Pamela Wilson.

Reviews

[Claire S · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've no idea who writes the back cover blurbs for books but this one is pretty off. It makes Cecily look like a lovelorn fool when she is, indeed, very sensible. Cecily is a 25-year old spinster. She goes to live with her aunt when her great-aunt (who she lived with) becomes infirmed and needs to move in with a nephew. Contrary to most books about impoverished spinsters, Cecily is treated well by her family. Prunella is rude to her on occasions but it's more because Prunella is spoiled and immature (she's 18) rather than treating Cecily like a poor relation. Cecily's aunt believes Cecily to be a good influence on Prunella and has her attending social events with the family.
On one of these occasions, she meets Lord Ashford. He is approached by an estranged nephew, Reginald, to introduce him to the ton. Reginald is told that his father (who's in trade and the cause of the estrangement) has lost most of his money and that Reginald needs to marry an heiress (Prunella is the chosen one). Lord Ashford is not aware of this but he wants to annoy his other sister, who's a piece of work as well as his other nephew, and decides to help the boy out. This is the only part that didn't look right. I believe the other nephew is mentioned as Ashford's heir presumptive, but he's the son of Ashford's sister and, therefore, not in line to inherit.
So the bulk of the story is about Cecily becoming acquainted with Ashford and the madcap machinations of Reginald and his friend trying to attach Prunella. What I really liked about the story is exactly what makes the back cover blurb so wrong. Cecily is very level-headed and does not fall in love with Ashford right away. The same is true for Ashford. They develop an acquaintance, then a friendship and we get to see them becoming closer to each other and wanting each other's company. This is not a book that tells you, for example, that they had a good time in their outing. It actually shows them spending time together, having conversations, and enjoying their time together. Towards the end, Cecily starts suffering from a case of "does he love me-itis", but it was not enough to annoy me. My only issues with it were that the first part of the book spends too much time with Reginald and his friend. The friend is pretty funny in a loose-screw kind of way, but only in small doses. Also, the ending is rushed and I wished it had extended the declaration/protagonists coming together plot a bit more.
All in all, this is the kind of Regency romance that I don't find as often as I'd like: sensible, mature protagonists and a believable romance (instead of insta-love). It was also interesting that neither Cecily nor Ashford were described as attractive in the common way. Cecily was tall and thin with red hair and Ashford "was neither tall nor particularly handsome." Highly recommend if you enjoy the same.

[Adrianna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow I discovered a new romance line called "Candlelight Romances" . These have a low emphasis on sex and more on witty dialogue--very similar to Pride & Prejudice and other actual regency novels. Lots of house parties, walks in the parks, a few moments of tension. I loved how the hero and heroine laughed and joked and were kind to each other. The dialogue was good and characters interesting. A bit too much time spent on Reginald and Jeeters (the villians) but very pleasant read.