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Love & Temptation #3
The Education of Miss Patterson
An ultimatum from her strict guardian, Lord Charles Gaunt, forces lovely young Miss Patricia Patterson to abandon her capricious and flirtatious nature and act the part of a perfectly well-bred young woman.
224 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1985
85 people are currently reading
310 people want to read
About the author
Marion Chesney
148 books764 followersMarion Chesney Gibbons
aka: Ann Fairfax, Jennie Tremaine, Helen Crampton, Charlotte Ward, M.C. Beaton, Sarah Chester.
Marion Chesney was born on 1936 in Glasgow, Scotland, UK, and started her first job as a bookseller in charge of the fiction department in John Smith & Sons Ltd. While bookselling, by chance, she got an offer from the Scottish Daily Mail to review variety shows and quickly rose to be their theatre critic. She left Smith’s to join Scottish Field magazine as a secretary in the advertising department, without any shorthand or typing, but quickly got the job of fashion editor instead. She then moved to the Scottish Daily Express where she reported mostly on crime. This was followed by a move to Fleet Street to the Daily Express where she became chief woman reporter. After marrying Harry Scott Gibbons and having a son, Charles, Marion went to the United States where Harry had been offered the job of editor of the Oyster Bay Guardian. When that didn’t work out, they went to Virginia and Marion worked as a waitress in a greasy spoon on the Jefferson Davies in Alexandria while Harry washed the dishes. Both then got jobs on Rupert Murdoch’s new tabloid, The Star, and moved to New York.
Anxious to spend more time at home with her small son, Marion, urged by her husband, started to write historical romances in 1977. After she had written over 100 of them under her maiden name, Marion Chesney, and under the pseudonyms: Ann Fairfax, Jennie Tremaine, Helen Crampton, Charlotte Ward, and Sarah Chester, she getting fed up with 1714 to 1910, she began to write detectives stories in 1985 under the pseudonym of M. C. Beaton. On a trip from the States to Sutherland on holiday, a course at a fishing school inspired the first Constable Hamish Macbeth story. They returned to Britain and bought a croft house and croft in Sutherland where Harry reared a flock of black sheep. But Charles was at school, in London so when he finished and both tired of the long commute to the north of Scotland, they moved to the Cotswolds where Agatha Raisin was created.
aka: Ann Fairfax, Jennie Tremaine, Helen Crampton, Charlotte Ward, M.C. Beaton, Sarah Chester.
Marion Chesney was born on 1936 in Glasgow, Scotland, UK, and started her first job as a bookseller in charge of the fiction department in John Smith & Sons Ltd. While bookselling, by chance, she got an offer from the Scottish Daily Mail to review variety shows and quickly rose to be their theatre critic. She left Smith’s to join Scottish Field magazine as a secretary in the advertising department, without any shorthand or typing, but quickly got the job of fashion editor instead. She then moved to the Scottish Daily Express where she reported mostly on crime. This was followed by a move to Fleet Street to the Daily Express where she became chief woman reporter. After marrying Harry Scott Gibbons and having a son, Charles, Marion went to the United States where Harry had been offered the job of editor of the Oyster Bay Guardian. When that didn’t work out, they went to Virginia and Marion worked as a waitress in a greasy spoon on the Jefferson Davies in Alexandria while Harry washed the dishes. Both then got jobs on Rupert Murdoch’s new tabloid, The Star, and moved to New York.
Anxious to spend more time at home with her small son, Marion, urged by her husband, started to write historical romances in 1977. After she had written over 100 of them under her maiden name, Marion Chesney, and under the pseudonyms: Ann Fairfax, Jennie Tremaine, Helen Crampton, Charlotte Ward, and Sarah Chester, she getting fed up with 1714 to 1910, she began to write detectives stories in 1985 under the pseudonym of M. C. Beaton. On a trip from the States to Sutherland on holiday, a course at a fishing school inspired the first Constable Hamish Macbeth story. They returned to Britain and bought a croft house and croft in Sutherland where Harry reared a flock of black sheep. But Charles was at school, in London so when he finished and both tired of the long commute to the north of Scotland, they moved to the Cotswolds where Agatha Raisin was created.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 49 reviews
June 14, 2018
I am on a roll with Marion Chesney's regency stories ! And I'm having a lot of fun - so much fun that I've finished 3 of her novels and haven't made time to catch up with the reviews. This book was pure comic entertainment ! I love the cast of zany characters that this author creates and the vivid way she's able to define and mold each one as the storyline progresses. In this story, the heroine meets the H for the first time when she's only 16 yrs old, but nothing romantic happens until she's 19 because they're both annoyed with each other. The heroine Patricia starts off as a very spoilt bratty 16 yr old orphan whose temporary caretakers ( until her guardian, the H, arrives from his continental travels ) are an eccentric senile nanny and a governess who's a former whore. Nobody knew Miss Simpkin had been a whore ( otherwise she'd not have been hired ) but there were so many hints; three of which included her caked on make up, her failure to teach anything educational to Patricia and her penchant for gaping at men lustfully. OK, so these 3 characteristics wouldn't define a woman as a whore in our era but this was, after all, the regency period where women of good repute were expected to behave properly. The heroine, Patricia, ended up as a very precocious yet childish 16 yr old as a result of Miss Simpkins' tutelage. Patricia was left to do whatever she wanted, including wearing rouge, grown up courtesan type dresses and cutting her own hair ( poorly ) after she saw some modish hairstyles in La Belle Assemblée magazine. As a result, we end up with a heroine who looks like this:
But acts like this:
The poor hero Lord Charles, is stupefied when he meets Patricia for the first time ! She's dressed like a 30 yr old woman and is flirting coquettishly with him. It was so funny because Patricia isn't even aware of the ramifications of her behaviour or how it would be interpreted; she's merely copying Miss Simpkins' simpering mannerisms. The heroine's effort to play "dress up" is shocking to Charles but he is speechless with anger because she took 3 whole hours to get dressed and kept him waiting:
Patricia waited confidently for his eyes to light up with pleasure when he saw her. But he glared at her and did not bother to walk forward to greet her. He merely stood where he was in front of the fire.
“I am glad you have decided to honor me with your company, Miss Patricia,” he said. “Did your parents never tell you it is rude to keep guests waiting?”
“I did not expect you, my lord,” said Patricia. “I wished to look my best for you and so I took time over my appearance.” She pirouetted in front of him, giggled, and sank into a curtsy. The green eyes surveying her looked, if anything, a trifle colder and harder.
Beaton, M. C.. The Education of Miss Patterson (The Love and Temptation Series Book 3) (Kindle Locations 76-83). RosettaBooks. Kindle Edition.
Things go downhill, in the most amusing manner, from there. The 30 yr old H is stumped by Patricia. He thinks the entire household is out of control since the childish Patricia has been allowed to rule the roost since her parents' deaths. Patricia had redecorated entire sections of the manor house in the most garishly childish manner: she's had the living room painted pink and gold and decorated with poorly done amateur paintings of herself done by her friends yet she continues to sleep in the nursery ! It's ludicrous and it's a God awful mess and the poor H is pulling his hair out wondering what he's supposed to do about this girl. On his first night at the manor, the spoilt Patricia is so peeved that he hadn't fallen at her feet and told her how pretty she looked that she hides a rough old, stuffed hedgehog toy in his bed. A week later, he brings in a new stern governess to replace the tarty ( but lovable ) Miss Simpkin. The H doesn't fire Miss Simpkin but merely tells her that Miss Sinclair is to be solely in charge of Patricia's education. Patricia rebels against this by acting out. She runs off with a drunken soldier who is besotted with her but the H rescues her in time before the guy can take advantage of the young heroine. Patricia wasn't even attracted to the soldier. She only ran off with him in a childish fit of tantrum throwing after the H treated her very sternly. Then, after the nasty mean and evil Miss Sinclair locked her in the nursery without food for a whole day, Patricia got mad and threw a boulder through the drawing room window. Charles was so mad that he lost his temper and spoke to her very rudely. This only served to make the nasty governess develop an unhealthy infatuation with the handsome H:
Charles' next decision is to send Patricia and Miss Sinclair to stay with some friends of his in Boston. He thinks that she's too unruly and needs to learn how to settle down and behave like a lady before she can be exposed to the Ton during a London season. Miss Simpkins, the tarty but kind governess is sad and appalled but can't do anything about it. This is Miss Simpkins:
The evil governess, Miss Sinclair, is also angry but her reasons are different; she's mad because she won't be able to indulge her newfound infatuation if she's across the ocean and far away from Charles. This is Miss Sinclair:
Patricia spends 3 yrs in Boston and manages to learn how to dress properly and behave like a lady. That's because the American family she's staying with are very hospitable and the lady of the house treats the heroine like a daughter. Patricia also becomes less bratty and spoilt since she's away from the influence of her old nanny and Miss Simpkins. Miss Sinclair is very depressed, however, because she misses being around Charles and is ecstatic when he finally sends a letter telling her to return to England with Patricia. The H is shocked and filled with unwanted lust when he meets the 19 yr old Patricia. This is the grown up and sexy version of Patricia:
( Notice how Patricia looks nothing like how she does in the first photo ? That's a trick I copied from the movies, where different actors replace younger ones who played the same role. And please ignore the fact that her clothing looks far too modern for the regency era. Lol. )
Anyway, where was I ? Oh yes, Charles is becoming besotted with Patricia but he can't do anything about it since he's gone and gotten himself engaged to a dowdy, sourpuss and prudish woman called Miss Chalmers. This is Miss Chalmers:
Miss Chalmers hates Patricia on sight. She's jealous insecure because Patricia's glamorous and more beautiful, so she immediately starts to nag Charles about enforcing stricter rules for the young heroine. Miss Sinclair is also heartbroken since the object of her infatuation is out of her reach due to his engagement, but she soon notices that he and Patricia are attracted to each other. This leads the bitter governess to form an evil alliance with the fiancee Miss Chalmers so that both women can plot and scheme to destroy poor Patricia. The H isn't even aware of any of this because he's never really bothered much with his fiancee; he'd only proposed to her because he felt that a prudish, staid and prim woman would make a better wife than one who was glamorous and frivolous. Charles had only ever kissed Miss Chalmers once and that had been a brief kiss on the lips when he had proposed to her. Miss Chalmers, for her part, is rather frigid and disdains outward shows of physical affection:
The MC's soon start to develop strong feelings for each other and Charles comes to the conclusion that he must break the engagement with Miss Chalmers because he's in love with Patricia. However, the scheming fiancee and Miss Sinclair get a shortlived victory when they unearth a damning letter which breaks the hero's heart and makes him think that Patricia is just manipulating him. He fires Miss Sinclair, dumps Miss Chalmers and then tries to forcibly seduce Patricia in anger. Everything goes haywire after that because the tarty other governess ( Miss Simpkins ) is being blackmailed by one of her former clients/Johns and Patricia ends up being kidnapped by this guy's stupid, dandy son. The H rescues Patricia, the MC's confess their love for each other and can then go on to live HEA. There's no sex in this story and the romantic relationship between the MC's only starts to develop after the heroine returns from Boston, but this was a lot of fun to read. It's quirky, humorous and free from horrible angst; most of the conflict that occurs is presented in a somewhat slapstick manner by the author. Patricia was an entertaining heroine who didn't take shit from anybody ! Some readers might not find this novel appealing but I belong to the half that's gonna give it a standing ovation:
But acts like this:
The poor hero Lord Charles, is stupefied when he meets Patricia for the first time ! She's dressed like a 30 yr old woman and is flirting coquettishly with him. It was so funny because Patricia isn't even aware of the ramifications of her behaviour or how it would be interpreted; she's merely copying Miss Simpkins' simpering mannerisms. The heroine's effort to play "dress up" is shocking to Charles but he is speechless with anger because she took 3 whole hours to get dressed and kept him waiting:
Patricia waited confidently for his eyes to light up with pleasure when he saw her. But he glared at her and did not bother to walk forward to greet her. He merely stood where he was in front of the fire.
“I am glad you have decided to honor me with your company, Miss Patricia,” he said. “Did your parents never tell you it is rude to keep guests waiting?”
“I did not expect you, my lord,” said Patricia. “I wished to look my best for you and so I took time over my appearance.” She pirouetted in front of him, giggled, and sank into a curtsy. The green eyes surveying her looked, if anything, a trifle colder and harder.
Beaton, M. C.. The Education of Miss Patterson (The Love and Temptation Series Book 3) (Kindle Locations 76-83). RosettaBooks. Kindle Edition.
Things go downhill, in the most amusing manner, from there. The 30 yr old H is stumped by Patricia. He thinks the entire household is out of control since the childish Patricia has been allowed to rule the roost since her parents' deaths. Patricia had redecorated entire sections of the manor house in the most garishly childish manner: she's had the living room painted pink and gold and decorated with poorly done amateur paintings of herself done by her friends yet she continues to sleep in the nursery ! It's ludicrous and it's a God awful mess and the poor H is pulling his hair out wondering what he's supposed to do about this girl. On his first night at the manor, the spoilt Patricia is so peeved that he hadn't fallen at her feet and told her how pretty she looked that she hides a rough old, stuffed hedgehog toy in his bed. A week later, he brings in a new stern governess to replace the tarty ( but lovable ) Miss Simpkin. The H doesn't fire Miss Simpkin but merely tells her that Miss Sinclair is to be solely in charge of Patricia's education. Patricia rebels against this by acting out. She runs off with a drunken soldier who is besotted with her but the H rescues her in time before the guy can take advantage of the young heroine. Patricia wasn't even attracted to the soldier. She only ran off with him in a childish fit of tantrum throwing after the H treated her very sternly. Then, after the nasty mean and evil Miss Sinclair locked her in the nursery without food for a whole day, Patricia got mad and threw a boulder through the drawing room window. Charles was so mad that he lost his temper and spoke to her very rudely. This only served to make the nasty governess develop an unhealthy infatuation with the handsome H:
Charles' next decision is to send Patricia and Miss Sinclair to stay with some friends of his in Boston. He thinks that she's too unruly and needs to learn how to settle down and behave like a lady before she can be exposed to the Ton during a London season. Miss Simpkins, the tarty but kind governess is sad and appalled but can't do anything about it. This is Miss Simpkins:
The evil governess, Miss Sinclair, is also angry but her reasons are different; she's mad because she won't be able to indulge her newfound infatuation if she's across the ocean and far away from Charles. This is Miss Sinclair:
Patricia spends 3 yrs in Boston and manages to learn how to dress properly and behave like a lady. That's because the American family she's staying with are very hospitable and the lady of the house treats the heroine like a daughter. Patricia also becomes less bratty and spoilt since she's away from the influence of her old nanny and Miss Simpkins. Miss Sinclair is very depressed, however, because she misses being around Charles and is ecstatic when he finally sends a letter telling her to return to England with Patricia. The H is shocked and filled with unwanted lust when he meets the 19 yr old Patricia. This is the grown up and sexy version of Patricia:
( Notice how Patricia looks nothing like how she does in the first photo ? That's a trick I copied from the movies, where different actors replace younger ones who played the same role. And please ignore the fact that her clothing looks far too modern for the regency era. Lol. )
Anyway, where was I ? Oh yes, Charles is becoming besotted with Patricia but he can't do anything about it since he's gone and gotten himself engaged to a dowdy, sourpuss and prudish woman called Miss Chalmers. This is Miss Chalmers:
Miss Chalmers hates Patricia on sight. She's jealous insecure because Patricia's glamorous and more beautiful, so she immediately starts to nag Charles about enforcing stricter rules for the young heroine. Miss Sinclair is also heartbroken since the object of her infatuation is out of her reach due to his engagement, but she soon notices that he and Patricia are attracted to each other. This leads the bitter governess to form an evil alliance with the fiancee Miss Chalmers so that both women can plot and scheme to destroy poor Patricia. The H isn't even aware of any of this because he's never really bothered much with his fiancee; he'd only proposed to her because he felt that a prudish, staid and prim woman would make a better wife than one who was glamorous and frivolous. Charles had only ever kissed Miss Chalmers once and that had been a brief kiss on the lips when he had proposed to her. Miss Chalmers, for her part, is rather frigid and disdains outward shows of physical affection:
The MC's soon start to develop strong feelings for each other and Charles comes to the conclusion that he must break the engagement with Miss Chalmers because he's in love with Patricia. However, the scheming fiancee and Miss Sinclair get a shortlived victory when they unearth a damning letter which breaks the hero's heart and makes him think that Patricia is just manipulating him. He fires Miss Sinclair, dumps Miss Chalmers and then tries to forcibly seduce Patricia in anger. Everything goes haywire after that because the tarty other governess ( Miss Simpkins ) is being blackmailed by one of her former clients/Johns and Patricia ends up being kidnapped by this guy's stupid, dandy son. The H rescues Patricia, the MC's confess their love for each other and can then go on to live HEA. There's no sex in this story and the romantic relationship between the MC's only starts to develop after the heroine returns from Boston, but this was a lot of fun to read. It's quirky, humorous and free from horrible angst; most of the conflict that occurs is presented in a somewhat slapstick manner by the author. Patricia was an entertaining heroine who didn't take shit from anybody ! Some readers might not find this novel appealing but I belong to the half that's gonna give it a standing ovation:
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 17, 2025
Misogynistic rubbish. I can’t find an ounce of empathy for the guardian. The heroine deserves better despite her occasional moronic behavior.
December 28, 2017
Ok, I admit it. I read the whole stupid book. I'm the eternal optimist believing that a book won't be as lame as all flashing lights say it's going to be! The jist of this book is if a guy gets drunk he'll attempt to rape someone. Awesome story right? Wrong! If you're considering this book I would just skip it.
January 21, 2021
An amusing, light read. Patricia Patterson is a spoilt 16 year old who does not take kindly to her new guardian. It’s a very easy read but quite funny in places. The audiobook narrator has the perfect voice for this and managed to do the over the top dramatisation just right!
December 3, 2025
This has to be one of the most silly books (I don’t mean funny) I’ve ever read. Obviously, some must enjoy these but the series is not for me. I had hoped they would be a light read for a cozy evening. Alas, not! I’m being kind at 2*s
October 11, 2025
If you are into stories where the male romantic lead is abusive and a rapist, well, this is the book for you.
Truly awful.
Truly awful.
February 1, 2024
The FMC and MMC are onstage most of this novel, which is not typical for a Chesney romance
Miss Patricia Patterson was born when her parents were in their 40s. They were wealthy members of the gentry, and in keeping with an entrenched tradition of the gentry and aristocracy, Patricia was raised by servants rather than her parents. In Patricia's case, this was an ancient nanny and an eccentric governess. Both of them have doted on Patricia and spoiled her terribly.
Patricia's parents died when she was 16, and in her father's will, he designated 30-year-old, extremely rich and powerful Lord Charles Gaunt to be Patricia's guardian, in charge of both her and her considerable fortune until she reaches age 21. When Lord Charles finally shows up at her home, months after her parents' death, he instantly reveals himself to be an extremely stern parental figure. He hires a different governess for her, who is much stricter than her previous one, and expects Patricia to stay in the schoolroom and study lessons as if she were a child. Patricia rebels, gets into serious trouble as a result, and Charles exiles her to Boston to reside with a conservative but kind family there, both to improve her behavior and for her to live down the scandal. The two years Patricia spends in Boston occur almost entirely offstage. The real action of the story begins when, shortly after her nineteen birthday, Charles at last allows her to return to England for her comeout.
Unlike most of Marion Chesney's Regency romances, the FMC and MMC of this novel actually spend most of this story onstage together. Typically, in her Regencies, Chesney gets sidetracked by a murder-mystery subplot, which separates the FMC and MMC for all but 25-30% of the page space of the novel. Fortunately, there is no murder mystery in this novel.
This is an "enemies to lovers" plot, and as Patricia and Charles journey from dislike, to appreciation, to falling in love, there are multiple antagonists standing in the way of their eventual HEA, not least of which are Patricia and Charles themselves.
There are a couple of dastardly villains in this story, but they are quite mild compared to the murderous villains Chesney frequently includes in her Regencies. It is important to note, as a trigger warning, that the Dark Period is precipitated by an enraged Charles who, wrongly believing that Patricia has betrayed him, is on the verge of raping her before he stops himself, horrified at what he is doing. This is disappointing but not surprising, given the fact that, in many of her murder-mystery subplots, MC had a habit of including near-rape situations.
As is typical of the short Regency genre, especially those written many years ago, as this novel was, there is no onstage sex.
Miss Patricia Patterson was born when her parents were in their 40s. They were wealthy members of the gentry, and in keeping with an entrenched tradition of the gentry and aristocracy, Patricia was raised by servants rather than her parents. In Patricia's case, this was an ancient nanny and an eccentric governess. Both of them have doted on Patricia and spoiled her terribly.
Patricia's parents died when she was 16, and in her father's will, he designated 30-year-old, extremely rich and powerful Lord Charles Gaunt to be Patricia's guardian, in charge of both her and her considerable fortune until she reaches age 21. When Lord Charles finally shows up at her home, months after her parents' death, he instantly reveals himself to be an extremely stern parental figure. He hires a different governess for her, who is much stricter than her previous one, and expects Patricia to stay in the schoolroom and study lessons as if she were a child. Patricia rebels, gets into serious trouble as a result, and Charles exiles her to Boston to reside with a conservative but kind family there, both to improve her behavior and for her to live down the scandal. The two years Patricia spends in Boston occur almost entirely offstage. The real action of the story begins when, shortly after her nineteen birthday, Charles at last allows her to return to England for her comeout.
Unlike most of Marion Chesney's Regency romances, the FMC and MMC of this novel actually spend most of this story onstage together. Typically, in her Regencies, Chesney gets sidetracked by a murder-mystery subplot, which separates the FMC and MMC for all but 25-30% of the page space of the novel. Fortunately, there is no murder mystery in this novel.
This is an "enemies to lovers" plot, and as Patricia and Charles journey from dislike, to appreciation, to falling in love, there are multiple antagonists standing in the way of their eventual HEA, not least of which are Patricia and Charles themselves.
There are a couple of dastardly villains in this story, but they are quite mild compared to the murderous villains Chesney frequently includes in her Regencies. It is important to note, as a trigger warning, that the Dark Period is precipitated by an enraged Charles who, wrongly believing that Patricia has betrayed him, is on the verge of raping her before he stops himself, horrified at what he is doing. This is disappointing but not surprising, given the fact that, in many of her murder-mystery subplots, MC had a habit of including near-rape situations.
As is typical of the short Regency genre, especially those written many years ago, as this novel was, there is no onstage sex.
September 8, 2016
AudioBook Review:
Stars: Overall: 4 Narration: 4 Story: 4
Like all of Marion Chesney/M.C. Beaton's romance titles, they are short, sweet and fun, with a touch of a retro feel: most were penned twenty years ago, and even with the historical romances you do notice the age on some of these titles. That is not, however, a bad thing: you know what you are getting, they are fun and light with a very British feel in both style and delivery.
In this story, Patricia Patterson is youthful and exuberant, more than a little spoiled and in charge of her own life after the death of her parents. Her guardian has not appeared to rein in her fun, tell her what to do, or lay the conventional expectations of society on her shoulders. Scandalous, certainly, but she is strong willed and coddled, used to having her own way without often being told no. Not much time expires before a stranger appears in the form of Lord Charles Gaunt, claiming his position as her guardian. Lord Charles is uptight and hemmed in: critical of Patricia's attitude and behavior as well as the few extra pounds she carries. Instantly hiring a governess/tutor and seeking Patricia's acquiescence and tractability: he was not prepared for her rebellion. Unwilling to allow her rebellious behavior to cause scandal, Lord Charles ships her off to Boston to be "finished". This could have ended the story, or it could have resulted in a story about a school, but instead we find Patricia returning after plotting for her two years to gain an advantage.
She returns, and decides that she will cause the unflappable Lord Charles several moments of discomfort as she seeks to make him hers. Yes, the secondary characters are close to stereotypical villains, but they are truly only serving as background and to add some conflict before our couple is reunited to get to their happy ending.
Narration provided by Alison Larkin was perfectly suited to this story, giving appropriate attention to the inflections and pacing to illustrate character differences, presenting strength and stubbornness in equal balance for Lord Charles, adding a touch of stomping two year old to the early renditions of Patricia and bringing us a more cultured and coy young woman upon her return. This was a fun, sweet and short romance that isn't going to challenge but will charm.
I received an MP3 Download from the AudioProducer via AudioBook Jukebox. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.
Stars: Overall: 4 Narration: 4 Story: 4
Like all of Marion Chesney/M.C. Beaton's romance titles, they are short, sweet and fun, with a touch of a retro feel: most were penned twenty years ago, and even with the historical romances you do notice the age on some of these titles. That is not, however, a bad thing: you know what you are getting, they are fun and light with a very British feel in both style and delivery.
In this story, Patricia Patterson is youthful and exuberant, more than a little spoiled and in charge of her own life after the death of her parents. Her guardian has not appeared to rein in her fun, tell her what to do, or lay the conventional expectations of society on her shoulders. Scandalous, certainly, but she is strong willed and coddled, used to having her own way without often being told no. Not much time expires before a stranger appears in the form of Lord Charles Gaunt, claiming his position as her guardian. Lord Charles is uptight and hemmed in: critical of Patricia's attitude and behavior as well as the few extra pounds she carries. Instantly hiring a governess/tutor and seeking Patricia's acquiescence and tractability: he was not prepared for her rebellion. Unwilling to allow her rebellious behavior to cause scandal, Lord Charles ships her off to Boston to be "finished". This could have ended the story, or it could have resulted in a story about a school, but instead we find Patricia returning after plotting for her two years to gain an advantage.
She returns, and decides that she will cause the unflappable Lord Charles several moments of discomfort as she seeks to make him hers. Yes, the secondary characters are close to stereotypical villains, but they are truly only serving as background and to add some conflict before our couple is reunited to get to their happy ending.
Narration provided by Alison Larkin was perfectly suited to this story, giving appropriate attention to the inflections and pacing to illustrate character differences, presenting strength and stubbornness in equal balance for Lord Charles, adding a touch of stomping two year old to the early renditions of Patricia and bringing us a more cultured and coy young woman upon her return. This was a fun, sweet and short romance that isn't going to challenge but will charm.
I received an MP3 Download from the AudioProducer via AudioBook Jukebox. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.
January 10, 2016
Could not rouse an inch of sympathy for the heroine, thus i exited the tale unfinished.
March 28, 2022
This aged so terribly. Very uncomfortable and disappointing because I was thoroughly enjoying it up until something happened at 75% through.
May 3, 2022
Very enjoyable and without some of the vicious behavior that Chesney sometimes writes about.
May 12, 2021
2.5 stars
If you’ve been around the block in Romance land, there are some books you read for the depth and substance of the story, and there are some books you read just for the fluff or even for the crazy. This book is the latter two. I’ll be honest, It’s not the greatest writing you’ll come across, which I’m surprised about because I normally like the way M.C Beaton writes. Its lacking in depth and seems rushed due to a pace that runs extremely quickly, but possibly because of that, it had a comedic trashy tone that had me laughing out loud at some of the outlandish events that took place. I enjoyed it to a certain point. It had some cute moments, but it had some really bad moments as well. The hero is a tyrannical jerk who takes his anger and discipline towards the heroine too far. The heroine is a spoiled unlikable brat with hardly any redeeming qualities, but hey, sometimes I like moving away from the norm and read about a spoiled bratty heroine work her way into finding love. It’s not like it doesn’t happen in real life. Lol. Somehow I just couldn’t turn away from the dysfunction of it all. Well, that is until the over the top parody became a tad bit too ridiculous and I started to wish for an end.
If you’ve been around the block in Romance land, there are some books you read for the depth and substance of the story, and there are some books you read just for the fluff or even for the crazy. This book is the latter two. I’ll be honest, It’s not the greatest writing you’ll come across, which I’m surprised about because I normally like the way M.C Beaton writes. Its lacking in depth and seems rushed due to a pace that runs extremely quickly, but possibly because of that, it had a comedic trashy tone that had me laughing out loud at some of the outlandish events that took place. I enjoyed it to a certain point. It had some cute moments, but it had some really bad moments as well. The hero is a tyrannical jerk who takes his anger and discipline towards the heroine too far. The heroine is a spoiled unlikable brat with hardly any redeeming qualities, but hey, sometimes I like moving away from the norm and read about a spoiled bratty heroine work her way into finding love. It’s not like it doesn’t happen in real life. Lol. Somehow I just couldn’t turn away from the dysfunction of it all. Well, that is until the over the top parody became a tad bit too ridiculous and I started to wish for an end.
February 2, 2015
Miss Patricia Paterson is a spoilt sixteen year old who is used to getting her own way and who spends as much time as she can flirting with any man she comes across. She is an orphan and an heiress and has been left to the guardianship of the eligible Lord Charles Gaunt. Sparks fly between them as soon as they meet but Lord Charles is determined that Patricia will grow up well educated and able to fit in with society so that she can make an eligible marriage.
What happens when Patricia makes her come out is entertaining and amusing reading and both characters will be changed before matters can be arranged to suit both of them. I found myself chuckling over this story of the irresistible force meeting the immovable object. If you want a light hearted Regency romance to curl up with on a cold winter's afternoon then you could do worse than settle for this one.
What happens when Patricia makes her come out is entertaining and amusing reading and both characters will be changed before matters can be arranged to suit both of them. I found myself chuckling over this story of the irresistible force meeting the immovable object. If you want a light hearted Regency romance to curl up with on a cold winter's afternoon then you could do worse than settle for this one.
August 8, 2018
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This was a cozy and enjoyable Regency romance read, based on a guardian and his ward. Nice way to entertain yourself in the world of fiction.
This book can stand on its own and delivers an HEA. These are very important attributes in a series for me. I'm glad I found this one.
This was a cozy and enjoyable Regency romance read, based on a guardian and his ward. Nice way to entertain yourself in the world of fiction.
This book can stand on its own and delivers an HEA. These are very important attributes in a series for me. I'm glad I found this one.
August 10, 2017
Didn't like this series so much. See her Poor Relations and The Traveling Matchmaker for fun romances.
June 18, 2019
"Some things are better left unread."
Marion Chesney, The Education of Miss Patterson
***Audiobook from Blackstone Publishing
Narrated by Alison Larkin
app 5 hrs
Marion Chesney, The Education of Miss Patterson
***Audiobook from Blackstone Publishing
Narrated by Alison Larkin
app 5 hrs
May 14, 2020
This story was excellent coming of age book.
November 10, 2020
One of the worst tropes ever to exist in historical novels is when the hero finds some BS reason to believe that the heroine is a slut with no virtue and thus believes it is within his rights to take his pleasure on her, i.e. rape. Unfortunately, this novel falls victim to this plot and as usual it is depicted as if the heroines near ravishment is supposed to be passionately romantic. Just because the hero comes to his senses in just the knick of time does not redeem him in my eyes.
Not only that, but I feel that story lines in which the guardian falls in love with his ward when he knew her as a child to be deeply disturbing. Especially with a large age gap. He even spanks her at one point when she was 16 and he in his 30s!
Marion Chesney has several wonderful books. Sadly, this one is not one of them.
Not only that, but I feel that story lines in which the guardian falls in love with his ward when he knew her as a child to be deeply disturbing. Especially with a large age gap. He even spanks her at one point when she was 16 and he in his 30s!
Marion Chesney has several wonderful books. Sadly, this one is not one of them.
August 26, 2021
A fun and entertaining read! This is the third book of the Love & Temptation series by Marion Chesney (M.C. Beaton) that I've loved. I think I almost liked this one best so far (tied with the pineapple book) because of its cozy home descriptions and silliness. This book is not a literary masterpiece, but it truly keeps my interest and brings a smile to my face. If you're looking for a super light romance with all the usual highs and lows, I think you'd really enjoy this book. Perfect for summer beach reads if you love the Regency era.
May 12, 2019
One of Chesney's earlier stand alone books. Suitable romance for mid teens, complete with subtle instructions on obeying your elders dressing properly, and not letting boys take advantage of you. One near rape scene, but not as graphic as day-time television. I don't usually read "pure romance" books, but I've finished all the Hamish Macbeth books, all the Poor Relations, and and waiting my turn for the library to provide the Agatha Raisin series.
June 6, 2020
The joys of an education
Patricia Patterson retains her place as the constant schoolgirl when her behaviour becomes outlandish- but the education she gets from her strict governess gives her the skills she needs to believe in herself.
Patricia Patterson retains her place as the constant schoolgirl when her behaviour becomes outlandish- but the education she gets from her strict governess gives her the skills she needs to believe in herself.
March 19, 2018
Paternalistic tosh.
July 18, 2018
While Miss Patterson's guardian is pushing her to have more education and learn how to behave, she is dreaming of revenge on him. She soon realizes what was once revenge is turning into love.
August 18, 2018
Cutesy, fun, delightfully old fashioned, and a fast read. No complaints.
July 18, 2020
A fun bit of fluff for a grey Saturday afternoon read.
September 3, 2021
This book was good. I enjoyed it.
February 9, 2024
I'm currently reading every romance book by this prolific author, especially the Regency Romances. This is by far the worst thing I've read by this author... so far.
December 24, 2024
Quite fun.
April 23, 2025
Another enjoyable Regency romance.
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