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The Mistletoe Test
Felicity Pennington, still unwed after five Seasons in London, is simply not the sort of woman that men fall in love with. She thinks her sister Lulu may succeed where she has failed, and encourages wealthy Aunt Agnes to sponsor Lulu's debut. Aunt Agnes reluctantly agrees to try, but despite everyone's fondness for Lulu, she is the butt of every family joke: clumsy, over-eager, and shy. Luckless Lulu longs for love ... but should she try to overcome her awkward, tomboy nature--or find a man who will love her as she is? Set against the backdrop of Christmastime in Bath, The Mistletoe Test is a holiday charmer, a sweet and sparkling sugar plum of a book.
216 pages, Paperback
First published October 26, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
November 7, 2017
Yay. A new Diane Farr Regency Romance. She hasn't written any since the early 2000s and my favorites of hers are from 1999-2002. THE FORTUNE HUNTER, THE NOBODY, FALLING FOR CHLOE, and FAIR GAME are my favorites in that order. She had seemed to have stopped writing Regencies and taken up her pen for YA paranormals, so it's good to find this one available just in time to enjoy for the holiday season.
It's not all that Christmasy in tone but it does take place over that season and, obviously, mistletoe is involved slightly at the very end. We actually have two romances in this. 23-year-old Felicity Pennington lives in Bath with her widowed mother and three younger sisters. Her godmother Lady DuFrayne has sponsored several fruitless London seasons for her (no marriage proposals) so Felicity wants her sister Lulu to take her place this year. Lulu is a bit of a hoydenish tomboy, socially clumsy and she seems a hopeless case, so they're going to try to polish her up in Bath first before moving on to London.
Then we have the two Hs. Gavin DuFrayne, Lady DuFrayne's nephew and Felicity's childhood friend, is recently back in England after 5 years in the West Indies where his now-deceased father had a sugar plantation. Gavin has now sold the plantation and is back with a cause but little money to support it: freeing slaves on the islands. He would like to inherit his aunt's fortune for this purpose but Felicity and her family are, in his opinion, receiving too much of Lady DuFrayne's attention and money. How will this conflict work out, especially considering that Felicity and Gavin have always been friends?
Then there's the H for lovely but socially graceless Lulu. She meets up with him in the most mortifying (to her) but entertaining (to us) manner. She's struck with hero worship. He's enchanted by her freshness. Only gum in the works is that he's as close to being engaged to a family friend as you can be without it being official.
There's a great cast of characters here and an entertaining, rather fluffy story (although Farr adds a dash of seriousness with the discussion of slavery and abolition and the inclusion of Gavin's companion and freed slave David Ashanti). The dialogue is witty, the writing is polished and the characters, although not very deeply drawn, are engaging.
This is in the traditional Regency style. Only kisses. No sex or sexual innuendo. So it will appeal to those readers who can enjoy a super wholesome romance. I think wholesome is a very pleasant change of pace after too many books where I'm reading about all the bedroom antics of the H and h.
It's not all that Christmasy in tone but it does take place over that season and, obviously, mistletoe is involved slightly at the very end. We actually have two romances in this. 23-year-old Felicity Pennington lives in Bath with her widowed mother and three younger sisters. Her godmother Lady DuFrayne has sponsored several fruitless London seasons for her (no marriage proposals) so Felicity wants her sister Lulu to take her place this year. Lulu is a bit of a hoydenish tomboy, socially clumsy and she seems a hopeless case, so they're going to try to polish her up in Bath first before moving on to London.
Then we have the two Hs. Gavin DuFrayne, Lady DuFrayne's nephew and Felicity's childhood friend, is recently back in England after 5 years in the West Indies where his now-deceased father had a sugar plantation. Gavin has now sold the plantation and is back with a cause but little money to support it: freeing slaves on the islands. He would like to inherit his aunt's fortune for this purpose but Felicity and her family are, in his opinion, receiving too much of Lady DuFrayne's attention and money. How will this conflict work out, especially considering that Felicity and Gavin have always been friends?
Then there's the H for lovely but socially graceless Lulu. She meets up with him in the most mortifying (to her) but entertaining (to us) manner. She's struck with hero worship. He's enchanted by her freshness. Only gum in the works is that he's as close to being engaged to a family friend as you can be without it being official.
There's a great cast of characters here and an entertaining, rather fluffy story (although Farr adds a dash of seriousness with the discussion of slavery and abolition and the inclusion of Gavin's companion and freed slave David Ashanti). The dialogue is witty, the writing is polished and the characters, although not very deeply drawn, are engaging.
This is in the traditional Regency style. Only kisses. No sex or sexual innuendo. So it will appeal to those readers who can enjoy a super wholesome romance. I think wholesome is a very pleasant change of pace after too many books where I'm reading about all the bedroom antics of the H and h.
November 9, 2017
A traditional Regency romance with quite a few humorous moments and some witty dialogue. A nice way to spend a few hours during the holiday season.
October 30, 2017
A charming Christmas tale
Just in time for the holidays! Diane Farr (Once Upon A Christmas) delivers another sweet, heartwarming holiday story. Set in Regency Bath, The Mistletoe Test is replete with sparkling dialog, engaging characters and wintertime fun. A perfect read in front of the fireplace with a cup of cocoa.
(Full disclosure-I'm as far from an objective reviewer as ine can be. I'm Diane's critique partner. But it's still a fun little book that's you'll enjoy).
Just in time for the holidays! Diane Farr (Once Upon A Christmas) delivers another sweet, heartwarming holiday story. Set in Regency Bath, The Mistletoe Test is replete with sparkling dialog, engaging characters and wintertime fun. A perfect read in front of the fireplace with a cup of cocoa.
(Full disclosure-I'm as far from an objective reviewer as ine can be. I'm Diane's critique partner. But it's still a fun little book that's you'll enjoy).
June 12, 2023
I’m having a good run of reads at the moment, all of older books or, as in this case, a newer book by an established author. Diane Farr wrote some of my favourite Regencies from around twenty years ago, so it was a real treat to discover this newer work that’s very much in the same vein. It’s a lovely, light read, although with some serious moments when the subject of slavery arises. Very much one for the traditionalists.
Here’s the premise: Felicity Pennington is being threatened with a sixth season in London by her rich, indulgent Aunt Agnes, better known as baronet’s widow Lady DuFrayne. Felicity wouldn’t mind, but it’s surely time her younger sister Lucille, aka Lulu, had her chance. She’s a bit of a madcap hoyden, but perhaps she could make a smaller debut in their home town of Bath over the winter to prepare her - nothing could go wrong, could it?
Aunt Agnes reluctantly agrees, and instantly Lulu gets into trouble at her debut event, managing to tip a water-filled vase over herself. But all is not lost, for appearing miraculously on the scene to rescue her from total ignominy is Oliver Stanhope, who’s everything that’s desirable in Lulu’s eyes, and isn’t at all censorious, despite being the son of a bishop. There’s only one problem - he’s already as good as betrothed to the humourless Miss Almeria Bliss, an inapt name if ever I heard one.
Into all this arrives the person of Sir Gavin DuFrayne, the inheritor of Aunt Agnes’s husband’s baronetcy and the estate but not the fortune, which went to Aunt Agnes. Now that his father has died, he’s sold the plantations in Barbados and has returned home to try to wrest some of that fortune for himself, or at the very least, stop his aunt blowing the whole lot on the deeply unworthy Pennington family. Although he has to admit that Felicity Pennington is good fun, with her sharp mind and willingness to spar with him.
It’s obvious at this point where the story is going, and so it does, with few surprises, but every step of the way is filled with charm and humour and a delightful lightness of touch. The only darker note is the discussion of slavery, where Gavin tries to recruit Felicity to his cause of helping his own freed slaves to come to England, which he isn’t able to do because he stupidly tied up all his money for several years (which is the only misstep in the entire book, because he’s far too smart to do that before he’s done what he promised for the freed slaves; serious plot manipulation there).
Apart from the main characters being anti-slavery (which is a very common theme in modern Regencies and barely worthy of comment, even though there was far more controversy about it at the time), the book is actually quite subversive. For one thing, Aunt Agnes’s husband leaves only the entailed property to his heir, and gives all his money to his widow. Nor does she have it only for her lifetime - it’s hers absolutely. She could give it all to the Penningtons if she wants, or an orphanage, or spend every last penny, leaving the baronet in relative poverty. That would be regarded as wicked in an age when male primogeniture was everything, and a man with a title was expected to live expensively. We’re not really told why he did this, although it’s hinted that Gavin’s father was something of a reprobate, but it’s still a drastic step to take.
The other unusual arrangement is that Oliver Stanhope is his father’s heir, despite being the middle of three brothers. Again, it’s almost invariably the eldest son who inherits, but here it’s shown as an agreement between the men of the family. The eldest and youngest sons wanted to follow their father into the church and Oliver didn’t, so he gets the money. Although I have to say that his delight in his new estate and the enthusiasm with which he threw parties there were delightful. He has so much joie de vie, it’s obvious he’s a perfect match for the exuberant Lulu.
The story eventually winds its way to Christmas and the mistletoe test of the title about which I will say nothing except that it’s all lovely. I would have liked a little more followup with Gavin and Felicity, who were supposed to be the main characters but got pushed into the background by Lulu and Oliver far too often. I liked that the minor characters got their turn in the spotlight, but I wanted to see a bit more of the majors. In particular, I wanted to see a lot more of them falling in love. But that’s not really a complaint. This was a lovely traditional read that put a smile on my face almost from start to finish. Beautifully written, with lots of humour and charm, I can’t give it less than five stars.
Here’s the premise: Felicity Pennington is being threatened with a sixth season in London by her rich, indulgent Aunt Agnes, better known as baronet’s widow Lady DuFrayne. Felicity wouldn’t mind, but it’s surely time her younger sister Lucille, aka Lulu, had her chance. She’s a bit of a madcap hoyden, but perhaps she could make a smaller debut in their home town of Bath over the winter to prepare her - nothing could go wrong, could it?
Aunt Agnes reluctantly agrees, and instantly Lulu gets into trouble at her debut event, managing to tip a water-filled vase over herself. But all is not lost, for appearing miraculously on the scene to rescue her from total ignominy is Oliver Stanhope, who’s everything that’s desirable in Lulu’s eyes, and isn’t at all censorious, despite being the son of a bishop. There’s only one problem - he’s already as good as betrothed to the humourless Miss Almeria Bliss, an inapt name if ever I heard one.
Into all this arrives the person of Sir Gavin DuFrayne, the inheritor of Aunt Agnes’s husband’s baronetcy and the estate but not the fortune, which went to Aunt Agnes. Now that his father has died, he’s sold the plantations in Barbados and has returned home to try to wrest some of that fortune for himself, or at the very least, stop his aunt blowing the whole lot on the deeply unworthy Pennington family. Although he has to admit that Felicity Pennington is good fun, with her sharp mind and willingness to spar with him.
It’s obvious at this point where the story is going, and so it does, with few surprises, but every step of the way is filled with charm and humour and a delightful lightness of touch. The only darker note is the discussion of slavery, where Gavin tries to recruit Felicity to his cause of helping his own freed slaves to come to England, which he isn’t able to do because he stupidly tied up all his money for several years (which is the only misstep in the entire book, because he’s far too smart to do that before he’s done what he promised for the freed slaves; serious plot manipulation there).
Apart from the main characters being anti-slavery (which is a very common theme in modern Regencies and barely worthy of comment, even though there was far more controversy about it at the time), the book is actually quite subversive. For one thing, Aunt Agnes’s husband leaves only the entailed property to his heir, and gives all his money to his widow. Nor does she have it only for her lifetime - it’s hers absolutely. She could give it all to the Penningtons if she wants, or an orphanage, or spend every last penny, leaving the baronet in relative poverty. That would be regarded as wicked in an age when male primogeniture was everything, and a man with a title was expected to live expensively. We’re not really told why he did this, although it’s hinted that Gavin’s father was something of a reprobate, but it’s still a drastic step to take.
The other unusual arrangement is that Oliver Stanhope is his father’s heir, despite being the middle of three brothers. Again, it’s almost invariably the eldest son who inherits, but here it’s shown as an agreement between the men of the family. The eldest and youngest sons wanted to follow their father into the church and Oliver didn’t, so he gets the money. Although I have to say that his delight in his new estate and the enthusiasm with which he threw parties there were delightful. He has so much joie de vie, it’s obvious he’s a perfect match for the exuberant Lulu.
The story eventually winds its way to Christmas and the mistletoe test of the title about which I will say nothing except that it’s all lovely. I would have liked a little more followup with Gavin and Felicity, who were supposed to be the main characters but got pushed into the background by Lulu and Oliver far too often. I liked that the minor characters got their turn in the spotlight, but I wanted to see a bit more of the majors. In particular, I wanted to see a lot more of them falling in love. But that’s not really a complaint. This was a lovely traditional read that put a smile on my face almost from start to finish. Beautifully written, with lots of humour and charm, I can’t give it less than five stars.
January 15, 2025
Awesome! But I hate that cliff hanger (though I can probably guess what happens next but I need confirmation! :P) Nice banter with a dash of sweetness. So good!
01/2025:
Downgraded the stars because I didn't like the Felicity-Gavin pairing that much in this reread. I do like Lulu and Oliver and wish there was more of them.
01/2025:
Downgraded the stars because I didn't like the Felicity-Gavin pairing that much in this reread. I do like Lulu and Oliver and wish there was more of them.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 11, 2025
This was mildly Christmassy, with wintery outdoors activities and a bit of mistletoe kissing. I finished it in an evening so was suitably entertained. There are two sisters, one of whom is looking forward to a spinsterish future (we are told that no man has been interested in her, ever) and the other is uninhibited, talkative, and accident prone. Then two males crop up.
I didn't care for the way one of the MMC's considered his aunt's fortune as rightfully his, begrudging the money she spent on the FMC's. But he turned out to be an abolitionist and had not planned to use the money for his own good. The other MMC has been thinking about marrying an Other Woman, but she seems no fun, compared to the accident girl.
The ending seemed a little abrupt. It is to be expected that three couples will get together but it's left somewhat open-ended.
I didn't care for the way one of the MMC's considered his aunt's fortune as rightfully his, begrudging the money she spent on the FMC's. But he turned out to be an abolitionist and had not planned to use the money for his own good. The other MMC has been thinking about marrying an Other Woman, but she seems no fun, compared to the accident girl.
The ending seemed a little abrupt. It is to be expected that three couples will get together but it's left somewhat open-ended.
January 10, 2025
So much fun! I did find it a little slow initially, but then it took off, and I didn't look back. The characters, wit and humour regularly reminded me of Georgette Heyer's Regency romances. I truly enjoyed reading this story.
August 18, 2020
What a rip off. A novella at best and a short story at worst. The story was lame, poorly written, and an incredibly stupid ending.
November 16, 2025
A very sweet Christmas regency where two sisters without much money end up with nice men. Aww.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews