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Regency Duo #1
A London Season
How could Lady Jand Fitzmaurice prefer her handsome horse trainer over the most attractive nobleman in England? She had taken London society by storm, but now a whirlwind of scandal was rising as she rode roughshod over all conventions and prepared to take a leap that could leave her heart forever broken.
224 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 6, 1981
34 people are currently reading
509 people want to read
About the author
Joan Wolf
104 books370 followersJoan Wolf is a USA TODAY bestselling American writer, whose acclaimed Regency romances have earned her national recognition as a master of the genre. Her many historical and contemporary romances, some of which have been chosen as Literary Guild selections, have been highly praised by reviewers and authors alike.
Joan was born in 1951 and she grew up in the Bronx, New York. A former English teacher, she obtained a Bachelor's degree in Mercy College and Master in English and Comparative Literature at Hunter College. An avid rider and horse owner, Joan lives in Connecticut with her husband Joe and two grown children, Jay and Pam.
Joan was born in 1951 and she grew up in the Bronx, New York. A former English teacher, she obtained a Bachelor's degree in Mercy College and Master in English and Comparative Literature at Hunter College. An avid rider and horse owner, Joan lives in Connecticut with her husband Joe and two grown children, Jay and Pam.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 79 reviews
August 26, 2014
4.5 stars. Loved it! Jane and David have loved each other 4-ever, but she is noble, and he is a groom. From the day they first meet at ages 7 and 8 they are inseparable, sharing a deep love for horses.
Jane is strong-willed and socially a bit clueless, even though she is sought after for her beauty and fortune. One reviewer thinks Jane may be slightly autistic.
David is yummy. With coloring like a lion, he's strong yet gentle and diplomatic, liked by all. In that sense, he is Jane's opposite, so he gently counsels her when her lack of tact becomes problematic. And she listens, because she loves and trusts him above all others. It's a very tight bond, like soulmates.
But they can never be together, the aristocrat and the commoner.
The suspense is a weak point. There is greed here, and murder. Horses, too, and races (Newmarket, Ascot, etc). Expect a twisty-turny ending.
Some mild lovemaking.
The first third of the book is set in childhood and adolescence. Half-way into the book, we are dealing with the adult Jane and David, ages 17 and 18. Somehow this lengthy childhood section made the book seem longer than 224 pages, yet it was very sweet, and it set the stage.
In the e-book there are several typos. Sentence missing its cap -- that sort of thing.
Be sure to check out the sequel, where Jane and David appear in strong secondary roles. See A Double Deception
Jane is strong-willed and socially a bit clueless, even though she is sought after for her beauty and fortune. One reviewer thinks Jane may be slightly autistic.
David is yummy. With coloring like a lion, he's strong yet gentle and diplomatic, liked by all. In that sense, he is Jane's opposite, so he gently counsels her when her lack of tact becomes problematic. And she listens, because she loves and trusts him above all others. It's a very tight bond, like soulmates.
But they can never be together, the aristocrat and the commoner.
The suspense is a weak point. There is greed here, and murder. Horses, too, and races (Newmarket, Ascot, etc). Expect a twisty-turny ending.
Some mild lovemaking.
The first third of the book is set in childhood and adolescence. Half-way into the book, we are dealing with the adult Jane and David, ages 17 and 18. Somehow this lengthy childhood section made the book seem longer than 224 pages, yet it was very sweet, and it set the stage.
In the e-book there are several typos. Sentence missing its cap -- that sort of thing.
Be sure to check out the sequel, where Jane and David appear in strong secondary roles. See A Double Deception
May 24, 2011
This is one of my all time favorites. It is different from most typical regencies. The story starts when the heroine, Jane, is 6 and the hero, David, is 7. They grow up together and fall in love but she is the daughter of a lord and he is a stable lad. Eventually, she must go to London for a season (she is 17, he is 18) but they both scheme to get back together. She comes home from London with an unwanted suitor who soon tries to kill David. I don't want to spoil it for new readers so I'll stop there.
This book has some of my favorite quotes. Example: David tells everyone that he has agreed to give up Jane. Jane's aunt by marriage is talking to her husband and another lord about separating the two while Jane and David are in another room.
"Those two children love each other, my lord. They love each other quite intensely, as a matter of fact. If we refuse to allow them to marry with our blessing, they will marry without it. Or they will simply go away and live together. They will both be ruined socially and it will have been our fault."
The Marquis looked at his wife, respect in his eyes. "What do you think he is saying to her now?" he asked.
"Whatever it is," Anne replied matter of factly. "you can be sure it isn't goodbye."
Trust me. Read it.
This book has some of my favorite quotes. Example: David tells everyone that he has agreed to give up Jane. Jane's aunt by marriage is talking to her husband and another lord about separating the two while Jane and David are in another room.
"Those two children love each other, my lord. They love each other quite intensely, as a matter of fact. If we refuse to allow them to marry with our blessing, they will marry without it. Or they will simply go away and live together. They will both be ruined socially and it will have been our fault."
The Marquis looked at his wife, respect in his eyes. "What do you think he is saying to her now?" he asked.
"Whatever it is," Anne replied matter of factly. "you can be sure it isn't goodbye."
Trust me. Read it.
February 6, 2017
I had to come up with a brand new shelf name to describe the heroine of Joan Wolf's superb Regency romance, A London Season, that of "Alpha female." There are plenty of romance books out there with Alpha males and the feisty, strong and smart heroines who love them, but this was the first time I came across a true Alpha female.
The narrative is driven by the sheer force of the heroine's will, which is just as steely when she is a six year old orphan dealing with the loss of her parents as when she is a seventeen year old, ready to throw all societal conventions and caution to the wind in order to achieve her happiness, that of a socially unacceptable marriage with the only person who she has ever loved and who has ever loved her.
I thought the author was so clever in creating this unusual heroine. The sometimes harsh and off putting aspect of her personality was needed in order for the reader to suspend her disbelief at a young woman of that era and social class flouting convention and risking becoming an outcast with such cool aplomb. The result was a totally believable character in which it was easy to invest emotionally in, and that made for a really thrilling, can't-put-it-down read.
The narrative is driven by the sheer force of the heroine's will, which is just as steely when she is a six year old orphan dealing with the loss of her parents as when she is a seventeen year old, ready to throw all societal conventions and caution to the wind in order to achieve her happiness, that of a socially unacceptable marriage with the only person who she has ever loved and who has ever loved her.
I thought the author was so clever in creating this unusual heroine. The sometimes harsh and off putting aspect of her personality was needed in order for the reader to suspend her disbelief at a young woman of that era and social class flouting convention and risking becoming an outcast with such cool aplomb. The result was a totally believable character in which it was easy to invest emotionally in, and that made for a really thrilling, can't-put-it-down read.
November 22, 2015
"From then on they were Jane-and-David, a twosome, linked together against the outside world. There was never a time when either child had put into words their need of each other; it was something they understood instinctively."
At the death of her parents when she was six, Lady Jane Fitzmaurice is given into the care of her maternal uncle. Jane loves horses much more than dressing up in pretty dresses, and she's soon fast friends with stableboy David Chance. The two are a bonded pair, and well...you know...how things change once children start growing up and they look at each other in a very different way - but - he's a stableboy and she's the daughter of an earl with a huge inheritance coming on her twenty-first birthday and marriage is just not in the cards.
Or is it? You'll have to read it for yourself to find out :)
At the death of her parents when she was six, Lady Jane Fitzmaurice is given into the care of her maternal uncle. Jane loves horses much more than dressing up in pretty dresses, and she's soon fast friends with stableboy David Chance. The two are a bonded pair, and well...you know...how things change once children start growing up and they look at each other in a very different way - but - he's a stableboy and she's the daughter of an earl with a huge inheritance coming on her twenty-first birthday and marriage is just not in the cards.
Or is it? You'll have to read it for yourself to find out :)
July 8, 2015
I am so in love with this rather unusual romance. It is certainly unlike all others of its genre (this I feel I can safely say) and I also saw in myself some of Jane's quirky characteristics. The story is focused solely on Jane and David, albeit with a greater focus on Jane, and I enjoyed my evening with them from their initial meeting at ages 6 and 7, respectively, to their adulthood.
In many ways, the romance is just perfect. Jane and David are the embodiment of soulmates in the truest sense of the word, and the novel is akin to a treatise on their love. I adore the secondary characters as well, and really enjoyed the reflection of familial love and societal norms from their interactions with our leads. But in the end, love wins, as it always does (in this genre, at least). ^_^
I heartily recommend this romance to all romance readers! Sure, there are little flaws I can pick out and poke at, but I'd rather not ruin my afterglow of this novel - it makes one very, very happy.
In many ways, the romance is just perfect. Jane and David are the embodiment of soulmates in the truest sense of the word, and the novel is akin to a treatise on their love. I adore the secondary characters as well, and really enjoyed the reflection of familial love and societal norms from their interactions with our leads. But in the end, love wins, as it always does (in this genre, at least). ^_^
I heartily recommend this romance to all romance readers! Sure, there are little flaws I can pick out and poke at, but I'd rather not ruin my afterglow of this novel - it makes one very, very happy.
December 1, 2015
More like 3.5. I thought parts of this were really good, but have, overall, mixed feelings.
Premise: Lady Jane is orphaned at 6 and sent to live with her bachelor uncle, where she is raised mostly by herself and scattered servants. Jane doesn't like people much (and seems to me vaguely like someone on the autism spectrum at times) but loves horses and riding. In her uncle's stables, she meets equally horse-crazed young David Chance, the orphaned son of French emigres, who lives with his aunt. Jane and David are two peas in a pod throughout their childhoods. When they grow up, David becomes the new head trainer, and Jane reluctantly heads to London to do what girls of her class are supposed to do - marry a man of her own kind. But of course Jane and David have eyes only for each other and so on and so forth.
What I liked: easily the first quarter of the book involves Jane and David as children, and I liked these parts. Jane is a very strange child, but I liked how she was written. She isn't warm or gentle or very "feminine" (whatever that means to you): she's singularly focused on what she's interested in (horses, hunting, David) and doesn't care much for anything else. She isn't the version of that character you sometimes get in romances where the book claims that she loves horses and doesn't care for romance or convention or what people think of her, but it's all totally fake, and she clearly cares a lot (secretly) that people think she's great. Jane isn't like that. Jane is STRANGE, and I liked it. The book accurately, IMO, senses that women like Jane are both compelling and alienating to almost everyone.
What I felt less enthused about: I had assumed that the book would be a long segment about Jane and David growing up together, and then skip some time so that they're adults and resisting their mutual attraction. That isn't really what happens: the book continues pretty steadily right through adolescence, and the book ends when they're still only 17 and 18.
I have a difficult time with romances about extremely young people. On the one hand, I did think the book made a case that Jane and David have a unique connection. On the other hand, life is very long, and it's easy to assume at 17 that you know everything there is to know. I was startled that the book ended where it did - I was assuming all along that there would be a time skip so that the happy ending didn't conclude until Jane and David were at least young adults. NOPE.
Jane is not interested in other men (and seems to only slowly realize that her interest in David is romantic/sexual) but David is definitely sexually aware of other women.
I was also interested to see how someone would resolve such a stark class divide, and
So for me, the ending didn't feel fully satisfying. I do see that Jane and David re-appear in another book - A Double Deception - so perhaps there's some follow-up there that improves things for curmudgeons like me.
Overall, the prose is very good, the characters are pretty consistent, the sense of time and place are good, the minor characters are good. I just expected something else - more time spent in adulthood, more angst about the cross-class romance, less of the extremely young lovers and their sturm und drang.
Premise: Lady Jane is orphaned at 6 and sent to live with her bachelor uncle, where she is raised mostly by herself and scattered servants. Jane doesn't like people much (and seems to me vaguely like someone on the autism spectrum at times) but loves horses and riding. In her uncle's stables, she meets equally horse-crazed young David Chance, the orphaned son of French emigres, who lives with his aunt. Jane and David are two peas in a pod throughout their childhoods. When they grow up, David becomes the new head trainer, and Jane reluctantly heads to London to do what girls of her class are supposed to do - marry a man of her own kind. But of course Jane and David have eyes only for each other and so on and so forth.
What I liked: easily the first quarter of the book involves Jane and David as children, and I liked these parts. Jane is a very strange child, but I liked how she was written. She isn't warm or gentle or very "feminine" (whatever that means to you): she's singularly focused on what she's interested in (horses, hunting, David) and doesn't care much for anything else. She isn't the version of that character you sometimes get in romances where the book claims that she loves horses and doesn't care for romance or convention or what people think of her, but it's all totally fake, and she clearly cares a lot (secretly) that people think she's great. Jane isn't like that. Jane is STRANGE, and I liked it. The book accurately, IMO, senses that women like Jane are both compelling and alienating to almost everyone.
What I felt less enthused about: I had assumed that the book would be a long segment about Jane and David growing up together, and then skip some time so that they're adults and resisting their mutual attraction. That isn't really what happens: the book continues pretty steadily right through adolescence, and the book ends when they're still only 17 and 18.
I have a difficult time with romances about extremely young people. On the one hand, I did think the book made a case that Jane and David have a unique connection. On the other hand, life is very long, and it's easy to assume at 17 that you know everything there is to know. I was startled that the book ended where it did - I was assuming all along that there would be a time skip so that the happy ending didn't conclude until Jane and David were at least young adults. NOPE.
Jane is not interested in other men (and seems to only slowly realize that her interest in David is romantic/sexual) but David is definitely sexually aware of other women.
I was also interested to see how someone would resolve such a stark class divide, and
So for me, the ending didn't feel fully satisfying. I do see that Jane and David re-appear in another book - A Double Deception - so perhaps there's some follow-up there that improves things for curmudgeons like me.
Overall, the prose is very good, the characters are pretty consistent, the sense of time and place are good, the minor characters are good. I just expected something else - more time spent in adulthood, more angst about the cross-class romance, less of the extremely young lovers and their sturm und drang.
December 8, 2013
I love this romantic and memorable childhood friends (soul mates) to lovers story. The characterizations are so deft and true that the immediate and enduring bond of trust and love that forms between the six year old aristocrat, Jane Fitzmaurice and David Chance, the seven year old stableboy is believable throughout. I quickly came to care for the fate of the young friends/lovers as they matured and worried until the end that circumstance and family would tear them apart, despite the assurance of a happy ending. That takes a very skillful writer, and Joan Wolf delivers.
July 8, 2017
Dnf at 35%
Although I love reading the angsty, drama-filled romances, my favorite kind of romance is the slow-burning, fluffy type where the hero and the heroine have known each other long enough to form a deep friendship that eventually grows into love. I picked this one up because I thought the main characters' relationship would be something like that.
In this book the heroine's parents die when she's six and she has to leave her family home and move to her uncle's mansion. There she meets the hero who is a stableboy and they soon fall into an easy friendship because of their common interest in horses.
The author does a good job of showing, rather than telling us how their affection develops over the years and as a result, it felt genuine and believable. It was so sweet to see their relationship change as they grow up. I was really enjoying it.
And then the hero sleeps with someone else for his first time.
It was like watching someone make the most delicious cake and just when you're about to dig in, they dump it in the trash bin. What's the point of writing two characters so in tune with each other, so emotionally connected, if you throw it all away by writing the hero's first time
with someone else? The other woman, Laura, finds David attractive and decides to pursue him.
What annoys me is that Laura's character had no other purpose in the story. She was solely introduced in order to sleep with the hero, and then she promptly vanished from the plot when Jane returns home from her semester in school.
I dnf'd at that point. David hides his affair with Laura from Jane and it was never mentioned again for the rest of the book. Apart from the mild discomfort he experienced in that one paragraph, he never feels guilty that he's hiding things from her and on top of that, he's once again tempted by a housemaid but he doesn't follow through with it. It's so sad because Jane was never interested in other men. David has always been her no.1. She deserves to at least know that he had been with someone else before her.
I generally don't have a problem with a hero who slept with other women in the past if he is paired with an equally experienced, non-virginal heroine. They both had a chance to explore their tastes before entering into the relationship so I feel it's all very balanced. Most authors write an experienced hero and a virgin heroine and while it irritates me, it's so prevalent in romance that I let it slide as long as the hero doesn't boast or describe them in graphic detail.
But writing the hero and the heroine grow up together, form a deep and special bond and then to throw it all away by having him sleep with someone else? It was dreadful.
Although I love reading the angsty, drama-filled romances, my favorite kind of romance is the slow-burning, fluffy type where the hero and the heroine have known each other long enough to form a deep friendship that eventually grows into love. I picked this one up because I thought the main characters' relationship would be something like that.
In this book the heroine's parents die when she's six and she has to leave her family home and move to her uncle's mansion. There she meets the hero who is a stableboy and they soon fall into an easy friendship because of their common interest in horses.
From then on they were Jane-and-David, a twosome, linked together against the outside world. There was never a time when either child had put into words their need of each other; it was something they understood instinctively. Jane was temperamental and David was serene. Jane was the niece of a Marquis and David's aunt gave French lessons. They were different in so many ways, but in the most important way of all they were alike. It was not something that needed to be said. Simply, for the first time in their lives each child had someone he loved.
The author does a good job of showing, rather than telling us how their affection develops over the years and as a result, it felt genuine and believable. It was so sweet to see their relationship change as they grow up. I was really enjoying it.
David's eyes were golden as he regarded the reed-slim figure before him. He put out a hand and touched her hair; it felt like soft silk. He noticed for the first time the beautiful way her head was set on her slender neck. Suddenly he was fiercely glad she was not a boy. He said as much, standing with his hand buried in the soft darkness of her hair. “I like you just the way you are. I don't want you to change at all."
Jane was oddly still as her great light eyes searched his face. “Really?” she said wonderingly.
"Really.” There was no mistaking the utter sincerity of his tone.
[...]
They left the tack room together as in accord with each other as usual. They both knew that something of importance had occurred between them, although neither was quite sure what it was.
And then the hero sleeps with someone else for his first time.
It was like watching someone make the most delicious cake and just when you're about to dig in, they dump it in the trash bin. What's the point of writing two characters so in tune with each other, so emotionally connected, if you throw it all away by writing the hero's first time
with someone else? The other woman, Laura, finds David attractive and decides to pursue him.
She took off her cloak and came forward into the light of the fire. She looked very lovely. “I have been thinking of you, David,” she said softly.
"Have you?” He hadn't moved, and his still beauty drew her like a magnet.
"Yes,” she murmured huskily. She was tall, but she had to reach up quite a long way to pull his head down to meet hers. He remained perfectly still for a minute, with her mouth on his, as if he were holding his breath. Then his arms came up to encircle her and draw her closer. After a long moment she pulled back from him and looked up, meeting his eyes, golden now with desire. “Let's go into the bedroom,” she said.
"All right,” he answered, and held the door for her to precede him.
What annoys me is that Laura's character had no other purpose in the story. She was solely introduced in order to sleep with the hero, and then she promptly vanished from the plot when Jane returns home from her semester in school.
He wished Laura would go, but he didn't know how to tell her. He wasn't quite clear about his own feelings, but one thing he was sure of: he never wanted Jane and Laura to meet. He never wanted Jane to know about Laura. In some obscure way he felt he had betrayed Jane and the feeling made him uncomfortable.
I dnf'd at that point. David hides his affair with Laura from Jane and it was never mentioned again for the rest of the book. Apart from the mild discomfort he experienced in that one paragraph, he never feels guilty that he's hiding things from her and on top of that, he's once again tempted by a housemaid but he doesn't follow through with it. It's so sad because Jane was never interested in other men. David has always been her no.1. She deserves to at least know that he had been with someone else before her.
I generally don't have a problem with a hero who slept with other women in the past if he is paired with an equally experienced, non-virginal heroine. They both had a chance to explore their tastes before entering into the relationship so I feel it's all very balanced. Most authors write an experienced hero and a virgin heroine and while it irritates me, it's so prevalent in romance that I let it slide as long as the hero doesn't boast or describe them in graphic detail.
But writing the hero and the heroine grow up together, form a deep and special bond and then to throw it all away by having him sleep with someone else? It was dreadful.
October 16, 2021
Nothing feels quite as comforting as a Joan Wolf Regency romance. This one is now my personal benchmark for ‘childhood friends to lovers’ romances. Wolf singlehandedly changed my mind on what used to by least favorite romance trope with this charming and passionate cross-class love story. The dramatic tension was pitch perfect throughout the entire novel, and the drama was both realistic and well-balanced. I was surprised to find that both main characters were quite young (17 and 18 respectively), but their feelings for each other always came off as very mature and profound. And finally, one can’t help but appreciate the author’s use of Shakespeare quotes at the beginning of each chapter!
April 18, 2022
This book is a neat childhood sweetheart and a coming of age story. The writing is excellent, and horses feature prominently, atypical of a Joan Wolf book. The only thing which is a bit of a downer is the characterisation.
Lady Jane was orphaned at five years old. Her parents weren’t particularly present in her life, so their deaths didn’t quite affect her. She was taken as a ward by her Marquis uncle. She has always loved horses, so that’s where she met David, who happened to be a year older and a stable boy. David was also an orphan, and he was staying with his aunt. They were French immigrants. David was described as being kind, gentle and patient. On top of that, he was also very good looking, a blond Adonis. Jane wasn’t a beautiful child, but she grew up to be very striking looking. In each other, they found a thing they have ever wanted; a person to love. So, moving forward to a decade or so, Jane’s uncle wanted to settle down, and he also wanted Jane to have a London season (aka The Marriage Mart). Jane played along, but she has always loved David and couldn’t think of life without him. The problem lies with them being from different classes; Jane was an Earl’s daughter, and David has risen to be a stable master but is still from a working class. I understand, Jane, but David is a bit of a conundrum.
He had an affair with a married, older Lady from a neighbouring county when he was 17. For David, it was purely physical. He didn’t put up a fight when the said Lady just appeared at his doorstep one day (Jane was away at school, so he felt it was okay). True, they’ve not declared their love, but he knew he loved Jane. I can accept this as a purely hormonal, adolescent thing. However, there is also a bit at the end where David and Jane are separated for a while (with the understanding that they will elope when they meet up with each other and they have declared their love at this point), and he contemplated bedding a maid to "ease his aching". So, I wasn’t enamoured with David’s character any longer. I think he’s written as the type of person who believes that if your partner isn’t around and you sleep with someone else, it isn’t cheating. I’ve got news for you, pal, it is cheating. Thinking about bedding someone else is considered emotional cheating. Jane is written to be a very intense person, and she cares deeply for her uncle, the horses and David. She gave her all in the relationship. So, the relationship is imbalanced in terms of intensity and fidelity. I'd consider how they ended up together to be satisfactory.
This book would have been a 5 star read if only David and Jane were the first of each for everything (first love, first kiss, first….). It would have been more poignant and romantic. Nevertheless, it was still a damn good read.
Lady Jane was orphaned at five years old. Her parents weren’t particularly present in her life, so their deaths didn’t quite affect her. She was taken as a ward by her Marquis uncle. She has always loved horses, so that’s where she met David, who happened to be a year older and a stable boy. David was also an orphan, and he was staying with his aunt. They were French immigrants. David was described as being kind, gentle and patient. On top of that, he was also very good looking, a blond Adonis. Jane wasn’t a beautiful child, but she grew up to be very striking looking. In each other, they found a thing they have ever wanted; a person to love. So, moving forward to a decade or so, Jane’s uncle wanted to settle down, and he also wanted Jane to have a London season (aka The Marriage Mart). Jane played along, but she has always loved David and couldn’t think of life without him. The problem lies with them being from different classes; Jane was an Earl’s daughter, and David has risen to be a stable master but is still from a working class. I understand, Jane, but David is a bit of a conundrum.
He had an affair with a married, older Lady from a neighbouring county when he was 17. For David, it was purely physical. He didn’t put up a fight when the said Lady just appeared at his doorstep one day (Jane was away at school, so he felt it was okay). True, they’ve not declared their love, but he knew he loved Jane. I can accept this as a purely hormonal, adolescent thing. However, there is also a bit at the end where David and Jane are separated for a while (with the understanding that they will elope when they meet up with each other and they have declared their love at this point), and he contemplated bedding a maid to "ease his aching". So, I wasn’t enamoured with David’s character any longer. I think he’s written as the type of person who believes that if your partner isn’t around and you sleep with someone else, it isn’t cheating. I’ve got news for you, pal, it is cheating. Thinking about bedding someone else is considered emotional cheating. Jane is written to be a very intense person, and she cares deeply for her uncle, the horses and David. She gave her all in the relationship. So, the relationship is imbalanced in terms of intensity and fidelity. I'd consider how they ended up together to be satisfactory.
This book would have been a 5 star read if only David and Jane were the first of each for everything (first love, first kiss, first….). It would have been more poignant and romantic. Nevertheless, it was still a damn good read.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 9, 2012
This is a slim little romance in which childhood friends grow up to love each other, encounter difficulties, and everything turns out ok in the end. Its strong points were an excellent attention to horsey detail, a hero I actually wanted to lick (possibly due to him sounding like my high school crush), and a heroine, well...
I think Jane was written as being on the (autism) spectrum. Possibly not deliberately -- it was 1981 and there was a lot less public knowledge, but if we are going to argue than Jane Eyre was on the spectrum (and I find it not improbable), then this Jane can be, too.
My points:
* She only bonds strongly to one person, and has a flat affect around people that she doesn't care about.
* She is much more comfortable with animals than humans.
* She is repeatedly and strikingly oblivious to social cues.
* She is not motivated by social rewards or punishments. Having decided on a goal, everything she does is bent to that goal.
* She has difficulty expressing herself verbally.
* She finds social situations overwhelming, especially around people she doesn't know.
* She is anxious and withdrawn around strangers, and it takes several times meeting someone to warm up to them.
I might just attribute all that to shyness, but her utter lack of emotive expression toward anyone but her friend David is remarkable, especially in the context of an average romance novel, where even shy heroines have close female friends they talk to, or siblings they relate to.
I think this is fascinating, but I could be constructing a house of cards. I wish someone else would read it and let me know what they think, especially someone who is themselves on the spectrum. It's an old old book, but my copy, at least, is not showing undue signs of poor printing, and Amazon has at least a few copies available used.
Read if: You want to investigate my theory, you like heroines for whom love is "an ever-fixe'd mark", you are horse-crazy.
Skip if: You are frustrated by a lack of pliability in characters, you hate childhood friends-romances, you really hate horses.
I think Jane was written as being on the (autism) spectrum. Possibly not deliberately -- it was 1981 and there was a lot less public knowledge, but if we are going to argue than Jane Eyre was on the spectrum (and I find it not improbable), then this Jane can be, too.
My points:
* She only bonds strongly to one person, and has a flat affect around people that she doesn't care about.
* She is much more comfortable with animals than humans.
* She is repeatedly and strikingly oblivious to social cues.
* She is not motivated by social rewards or punishments. Having decided on a goal, everything she does is bent to that goal.
* She has difficulty expressing herself verbally.
* She finds social situations overwhelming, especially around people she doesn't know.
* She is anxious and withdrawn around strangers, and it takes several times meeting someone to warm up to them.
I might just attribute all that to shyness, but her utter lack of emotive expression toward anyone but her friend David is remarkable, especially in the context of an average romance novel, where even shy heroines have close female friends they talk to, or siblings they relate to.
I think this is fascinating, but I could be constructing a house of cards. I wish someone else would read it and let me know what they think, especially someone who is themselves on the spectrum. It's an old old book, but my copy, at least, is not showing undue signs of poor printing, and Amazon has at least a few copies available used.
Read if: You want to investigate my theory, you like heroines for whom love is "an ever-fixe'd mark", you are horse-crazy.
Skip if: You are frustrated by a lack of pliability in characters, you hate childhood friends-romances, you really hate horses.
May 24, 2015
A really beautiful, quite sweet and innocent romance which I adored. If nothing else this book a vacation from overly-tortured heros (not that that's not good on occasion) and depressingly predictable heroines. It can be read in one sitting if you consider a skipped meal or two a worthy sacrifice for a truly compelling book. For the new to friends-to-lovers theme (such as myself) this is the perfect choice as it does away with the cliche of the long lost childhood friends reunited into lovers theme (a them which may work sometimes but I've rarely found well written) and instead rekindles the sweetness of learning to see their best friend in a new and passionate light.
David is a truly excellent romance hero for this heroine, his calm and steady manner and tone hide a core of true mettle and provide a perfect contrast. I think it is Jane, however, who truly engages the audience. Her bluntness, single-minded passion, obtuseness and unwavering loyalty to her tiny world of friends and family sets the tone of the novel. If this book had a motto it would be 'there is no Jane without David and no David without Jane.'
David is a truly excellent romance hero for this heroine, his calm and steady manner and tone hide a core of true mettle and provide a perfect contrast. I think it is Jane, however, who truly engages the audience. Her bluntness, single-minded passion, obtuseness and unwavering loyalty to her tiny world of friends and family sets the tone of the novel. If this book had a motto it would be 'there is no Jane without David and no David without Jane.'
November 3, 2024
Много сладка романтика, още повече, че героите са едва на 17 и на 18 г. Но пък предвид нелекото им детство, отлично разбират кога човекът до тях си заслужава битката срещу разни кухи обществени предразсъдъци, и я водят докрай. Злодеят е само един, и даже е логичен! Нито грам неразбирателство, само битка с класовите предразсъдъци и предразсъдъците, че всички млади хора по дефиниция са незрели и не знаят какво искат. Дейвид и Джейн ги обориха здраво, и си останаха мили и добри същества (плюс едно убийство). Яко.
3,5⭐️
3,5⭐️
January 2, 2016
The Gist: Jane and David are childhood friends who fall into a deep, committed love, but class differences keep them from being able to marry. She's a lady and he works in the stables.
What I Liked: Jane and David are only about 17 and 18 respectively and are allowed their HEA ending without having some 10 year time gap and then finally coming together like most other romances about childhood sweethearts.
The Downside: The plot is completely predictable, including who the villain turns out to be and the reasons they are finally allowed to be together.
Why Read It: The story is just so sweet and their devotion to each other is believable. Also, the fact the the hero and heroine get their HEA ending at just 17 to 18 years of age is rare in romances.
What I Liked: Jane and David are only about 17 and 18 respectively and are allowed their HEA ending without having some 10 year time gap and then finally coming together like most other romances about childhood sweethearts.
The Downside: The plot is completely predictable, including who the villain turns out to be and the reasons they are finally allowed to be together.
Why Read It: The story is just so sweet and their devotion to each other is believable. Also, the fact the the hero and heroine get their HEA ending at just 17 to 18 years of age is rare in romances.
April 10, 2022
Regency, Kindle version. 1 star of 5.
\
I liked, David, the horse trainer hero (wise beyond his yrs)
over (heiress) Lady Jane's unconventional & bratty nature.
Conformity was not a necessity, but Jane wanted to control
all. She lacked maturity and prospective. She should have
sat with her beloved horses in the barn until old enough to
be an equal partner in a relationship. Her guardian/ uncle
gave her too much autonomy, starting @ age 6. The mystery
seemed tacked on and the ending was too perfect. Oh well!
\
I liked, David, the horse trainer hero (wise beyond his yrs)
over (heiress) Lady Jane's unconventional & bratty nature.
Conformity was not a necessity, but Jane wanted to control
all. She lacked maturity and prospective. She should have
sat with her beloved horses in the barn until old enough to
be an equal partner in a relationship. Her guardian/ uncle
gave her too much autonomy, starting @ age 6. The mystery
seemed tacked on and the ending was too perfect. Oh well!
August 30, 2015
This is a difficult review to write - not because I didn't enjoy the book (I did), nor because I wasn't invested in the characters (I was), but because I feel betrayed by something that was allowed to happen. Let me explain.
The plot is very straightforward (apart from an unnecessarily dramatic twist at the end that actually doesn't count for much): Jane, the daughter of an earl, and David, a groom, are childhood friends, whose friendship ripens to young love. There's a lovely sense that they are two halves of a whole, with David's steadiness underpinning Jane's more impulsive nature. The first half of the book shows this inevitable, delightful love, the two of them dedicated to each other. And, yes, of course there are likely to be problems ahead given their relative social positions.
But then - this is what I really can't understand or forgive - So, in some ways, it's a measure of my engagement with the book that this event feels so wrong and out-of-character, even though the author doesn't appear to think so. I'd be interested in anyone else's take on this.
The plot is very straightforward (apart from an unnecessarily dramatic twist at the end that actually doesn't count for much): Jane, the daughter of an earl, and David, a groom, are childhood friends, whose friendship ripens to young love. There's a lovely sense that they are two halves of a whole, with David's steadiness underpinning Jane's more impulsive nature. The first half of the book shows this inevitable, delightful love, the two of them dedicated to each other. And, yes, of course there are likely to be problems ahead given their relative social positions.
But then - this is what I really can't understand or forgive - So, in some ways, it's a measure of my engagement with the book that this event feels so wrong and out-of-character, even though the author doesn't appear to think so. I'd be interested in anyone else's take on this.
April 6, 2017
One of my favourite regency romances ever, this one. Jane is a splendid and thoroughly different heroine than any I have come across. I have read/watched heroes like her, but it's as if Joan Wolf was the first to realize that women can also sometimes be taciturn, aloof, brilliant, obstinate, fiercely determined and single-mindedly loyal. Maybe today someone would diagnose Jane with autism and put her somewhere in the high functioning end of the spectrum, but back then she was simply clever, proud and eccentric. Fortunately she had a very kind upbringing, optimally suited to a child of her nature. She was given independence and unconditional love, and she grew up to care fiercely for those closest to her and nothing for the rest of the world. And I really do mean nothing. Jane is not unworldly, but she would never bend to the conventions of society if they stood between her and the one she loved most. Of course the end of the book was pat (with no conventions feeling remotely outraged) and everything was resolved much too neatly but I'm not really here for the literary criticisms. I'm here for Jane Fitzmaurice - my second favourite regency heroine, standing just behind Sophy Stanton-Lacy from The Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer.
You can find more of my reviews at my blog: Caught In a Book
You can find more of my reviews at my blog: Caught In a Book
May 26, 2016
I clicked this on a whim on my Kindle during my lunch break and then didn't want to stop reading. I came home from work and quite literally dropped everything to keep going; this was just what I was in the mood for.
It's short and sweet and Jane and David are fairly uncomplicated protagonists. While there is perhaps a little bit of drama (although it can arguably be called that, to be honest), and things might be too convenient sometimes and there were one or two things I disliked...I found in this case I didn't mind that much. This was lovely.
It's short and sweet and Jane and David are fairly uncomplicated protagonists. While there is perhaps a little bit of drama (although it can arguably be called that, to be honest), and things might be too convenient sometimes and there were one or two things I disliked...I found in this case I didn't mind that much. This was lovely.
June 20, 2016
Everytime I pick up a Joan Wolf old skool trad regency I am reminded all over again what a gifted writer she is. She manages to pack a wealth of romance, story and character in a little over 200 pages. Not a word is wasted. And she doesn't do pure fluff. Her books have a lot of depth to them.
I am reminded of how she took the marriage of convenience trope in Margarita and gave it some layers so that it wasn't merely a vehicle for the hero and heroine to have guilt free sex while falling in love.
Or how in The American Duchessshe used the opposing social and political philosophies of the hero and heroine to explore their differences as they navigate their marriage.
In this one she takes a stab at class differences. Truthfully, this book isn't as issue oriented as the two I mention above because the class differential is resolved in a rather neat, convenient bow. But still even if the neat resolution has not presented itself the hero and heroine were more than ready to do whatever they needed to do in order to be together.
Jane and David meet when they are young. They are both under ten years old when Jane comes to her uncle's house to live after her parents die. Her uncle, a titled peer, has a magnificent stable and he breeds horses often hosting lavish parties during racing season.
There is nothing Jane loves more than horses. When she first meets David a stable boy (who himself is an orphan living with his French emigree aunt after his parents were killed during the Terror) they discover they are kindred spirits.
The first part of the book details the growing years of Jane and David who are attached at the hip. They ride, swim and generally run wild together as they grow up.
But adulthood changes things Jane is a lady and David is now the head groom. She is expected to marry well and they can no longer have the sort of unfettered access to each other they have always enjoyed.
But Jane and David realize they are in love with each other and refuse to let something so insignificant as society standards stand in their way.
That is a much too simple synopsis of a book that actually includes a quite a bit more story and some memorable supporting characters.
There are two main things that stand out for me in this book and made it a really great read:
1) the relationship between Jane and David. The author just draws you in emotionally to these two. You get the simple innocence and enjoyment of the two as they are children but you actually feel the connection begin to change as they grow older. David is the first to realize both his real feelings for Jane and what they portend. And he grapples with the reality of their class difference a little more than she does. And this brings me to Jane.
2) Jane is a wonderful character. While David is a quiet, steady rock, Jane is something else altogether. She has a will of steel. She is implacable. She is difficult. She is proud. She is honest. She is a little scary (and not in a bad way, but in a rather awesome way). She is not however bratty or --God forbid -- feisty. Mind you she is seventeen years old and yet the author does this thing where she very effectively shows what an old soul Jane is. I loved that although she was reared gently as a lady she simply was unable to navigate polite society superficially. Frankly, she had no fucks to give. I really, really dug Jane. i loved how the author crafted her because she could have been an awful Mary Sue and yet she wasn't. There was too much purpose and resolve about her to be something so lame as a Mary Sue.
There are some additional plot points that include an actual life or death menace to the young lovers and some family drama, but this is all Jane and David's story.
I had the sads when I finished because I really enjoyed them. I was glad to find out they appear as supporting characters in another book so I am looking forward to seeing them again.
I am reminded of how she took the marriage of convenience trope in Margarita and gave it some layers so that it wasn't merely a vehicle for the hero and heroine to have guilt free sex while falling in love.
Or how in The American Duchessshe used the opposing social and political philosophies of the hero and heroine to explore their differences as they navigate their marriage.
In this one she takes a stab at class differences. Truthfully, this book isn't as issue oriented as the two I mention above because the class differential is resolved in a rather neat, convenient bow. But still even if the neat resolution has not presented itself the hero and heroine were more than ready to do whatever they needed to do in order to be together.
Jane and David meet when they are young. They are both under ten years old when Jane comes to her uncle's house to live after her parents die. Her uncle, a titled peer, has a magnificent stable and he breeds horses often hosting lavish parties during racing season.
There is nothing Jane loves more than horses. When she first meets David a stable boy (who himself is an orphan living with his French emigree aunt after his parents were killed during the Terror) they discover they are kindred spirits.
The first part of the book details the growing years of Jane and David who are attached at the hip. They ride, swim and generally run wild together as they grow up.
But adulthood changes things Jane is a lady and David is now the head groom. She is expected to marry well and they can no longer have the sort of unfettered access to each other they have always enjoyed.
But Jane and David realize they are in love with each other and refuse to let something so insignificant as society standards stand in their way.
That is a much too simple synopsis of a book that actually includes a quite a bit more story and some memorable supporting characters.
There are two main things that stand out for me in this book and made it a really great read:
1) the relationship between Jane and David. The author just draws you in emotionally to these two. You get the simple innocence and enjoyment of the two as they are children but you actually feel the connection begin to change as they grow older. David is the first to realize both his real feelings for Jane and what they portend. And he grapples with the reality of their class difference a little more than she does. And this brings me to Jane.
2) Jane is a wonderful character. While David is a quiet, steady rock, Jane is something else altogether. She has a will of steel. She is implacable. She is difficult. She is proud. She is honest. She is a little scary (and not in a bad way, but in a rather awesome way). She is not however bratty or --God forbid -- feisty. Mind you she is seventeen years old and yet the author does this thing where she very effectively shows what an old soul Jane is. I loved that although she was reared gently as a lady she simply was unable to navigate polite society superficially. Frankly, she had no fucks to give. I really, really dug Jane. i loved how the author crafted her because she could have been an awful Mary Sue and yet she wasn't. There was too much purpose and resolve about her to be something so lame as a Mary Sue.
There are some additional plot points that include an actual life or death menace to the young lovers and some family drama, but this is all Jane and David's story.
I had the sads when I finished because I really enjoyed them. I was glad to find out they appear as supporting characters in another book so I am looking forward to seeing them again.
January 10, 2015
This was fun! I do like the traditional regencies. It's another that's description isn't entirely accurate. Or, rather, that it's a bit misleading. It spends a fair amount of time on the heroine and hero's childhood. (So not really that much about "a London season.") Anyway, it was all very nice. I liked that the heroine was unusual, but not in your face about it, like so many unusual heroines are. She was just the way she was.
And it was one of those younger heroines I always want!
And it was one of those younger heroines I always want!
October 5, 2021
I’m going to share a bit about me because it’s a powerful testimony to how great a book A London Season by Joan Wolf is. I am three months away from being half a century old. My days of staying up past my bedtime to read on a work night ended a while ago. I’ve accepted the fact. My husband jokes that ten p.m. is ‘pumpkin time’, no matter where I am or what I am doing, my body knows its bedtime. A London Season overrode my inner clock – I could not put the book down. It gave me a second wind or something because it was past midnight before I finished it. Even after I finished it, I wasn’t able to go to sleep because I was suffering from a wonderful ‘book glow’. It means that the book left me feeling full of joy, enthusiasm, energy, emotion and AWAKE! lol.
Why couldn’t I put the book down? Why did I love it so much? Let me tell you. First, I have to credit the author, Joan Wolf. I’ve read several of her books and I feel her stories are flawlessly written and I don’t feel they have cookie cutters formulas. A London Season was no exception. I was fully engaged from the beginning to the end. The characters were irresistible. Each person had their unique personality that I either loved or hate.
The synopsis gives a very good description of the heroine, Jane Fitzmaurice. She’s perfect in every way until she doesn’t get her way. A bit of a Jekyll and Hyde trait if I may say so. She definitely “set heads shaking and tongues wagging”. I loved it. I wouldn’t consider her a spoiled brat at all. I agree with the synopsis when it says “she had a mind and heart of her own”. I found her easy to relate to.
The hero, David Chance, was the heart of the book. David and Jane grew up together starting at a very young age. Their circumstances developed who they grew up to be. Their romance was slow, sweet and genuine. I enjoyed the ride with all the bumps, twists and turns. There is more that I want to share but I don’t want to give any spoilers. I suggest this book to be put on a readers list. It’s going on my keeper’s book shelf. I thoroughly enjoyed this seat-gripping journey to their happily ever after.
Why couldn’t I put the book down? Why did I love it so much? Let me tell you. First, I have to credit the author, Joan Wolf. I’ve read several of her books and I feel her stories are flawlessly written and I don’t feel they have cookie cutters formulas. A London Season was no exception. I was fully engaged from the beginning to the end. The characters were irresistible. Each person had their unique personality that I either loved or hate.
The synopsis gives a very good description of the heroine, Jane Fitzmaurice. She’s perfect in every way until she doesn’t get her way. A bit of a Jekyll and Hyde trait if I may say so. She definitely “set heads shaking and tongues wagging”. I loved it. I wouldn’t consider her a spoiled brat at all. I agree with the synopsis when it says “she had a mind and heart of her own”. I found her easy to relate to.
The hero, David Chance, was the heart of the book. David and Jane grew up together starting at a very young age. Their circumstances developed who they grew up to be. Their romance was slow, sweet and genuine. I enjoyed the ride with all the bumps, twists and turns. There is more that I want to share but I don’t want to give any spoilers. I suggest this book to be put on a readers list. It’s going on my keeper’s book shelf. I thoroughly enjoyed this seat-gripping journey to their happily ever after.
dnf
July 15, 2022I started reading this and realized I'd started reading this years ago and didn't finish it. I wondered why. Well, 25 % in and I know why. The writing is stilted, the characterizations unbelievable (a 6 year old child sounding like she's 10 years older), the plot ridiculous, and did I mention the writing isn't very good?
Not sure what I'll do now for this month's TBR challenge, but it won't be this. Off to hit DELETE on my Kindle!
Not sure what I'll do now for this month's TBR challenge, but it won't be this. Off to hit DELETE on my Kindle!
February 1, 2011
This was a nice "old-skool" Regency romance, which means it's a bit nicer than many. Heiress heroine grows up best friends with a French emigre stableboy, very self possessed, very stubborn. Hero is the boy she grows up with. This is a "from childhood" story that begins when she's six, her parents die and her uncle brings her home, where she meets the hero. They become best friends, and eventually fall in love, but her uncle doesn't want them to marry, so--I thought their problem was solved awfully easily and awfully conveniently--but that's "old skool" Regency. It's a bit Dickensian, in that way. I enjoyed it--though the "from childhood" story is not one of my favorite tropes.
October 5, 2017
The main characters and the plot itself behave in similar ways. They operate on the belief that if you play by the rules, something good will eventually happen. A tiny amount of risk is taken, but it's all still very safe. For a story about star-crossed lovers, the emotion is pretty lacking in dimension and the resolution a little too "clean" for my liking. (Something major happens near the end and the main characters laugh it off like, "Haha, well the villain deserved it!" That's the strangest treatment I've ever seen of a situation like that.)
January 8, 2015
This was so much fun!
It is the story of two childhood friends and their single-minded devotion to each other that they don't even realize is love until they're teenagers and about to be forbidden from ever marrying because she is a Lady and he is a stable lad. I suspect that description will appeal to some of you.
I am definitely going to need to read more Joan Wolf.
It is the story of two childhood friends and their single-minded devotion to each other that they don't even realize is love until they're teenagers and about to be forbidden from ever marrying because she is a Lady and he is a stable lad. I suspect that description will appeal to some of you.
I am definitely going to need to read more Joan Wolf.
December 6, 2014
Product of its times, maybe?
Lots of bashing of every female who ISN'T the heroine (she's so unique and special!) while she's totally deferential to the hero. We're TOLD she's an excellent rider and has been essentially living as a boy her whole life, but she still can't handle a spirited horse that the hero can ride easily. What, is the hero steering with his penis?
Blech.
Lots of bashing of every female who ISN'T the heroine (she's so unique and special!) while she's totally deferential to the hero. We're TOLD she's an excellent rider and has been essentially living as a boy her whole life, but she still can't handle a spirited horse that the hero can ride easily. What, is the hero steering with his penis?
Blech.
January 4, 2011
Terrible. Doesn't even deserve the time for a review. I wish it wasn't so bad because the heroine had potential, but the plot was absurd.
October 24, 2014
A pretty shallow, frivolous novel... but I did finish it.
March 29, 2014
This is a very sweet story!!! even though it was short I thoroughly enjoyed it . It would have been a five star but I felt it needed an epilogue , the ending was abrupt .
November 17, 2014
And...here I go on a Joan Wolf binge.
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