DEDICATION

Author: Janet Mullany ISBN: 0451216369 9/2005 HISTORICAL Publisher: NAL/Signet
Time Period: Regency 1813

French aristocrat Fabienne Argonac Craigmont escaped the Reign of Terror—only to lose her head over the rakish Adam Ashworth. As she remembers it, he seduced and abandoned her; Adam, however, still feels the sting of her rejection. When a surprise meeting brings them together years later, he is a widowed, respectable country gentleman, and the innocent convent schoolgirl has become a sophisticated patroness of the arts, living on the bohemian outskirts of the ton. Despite the popularity of her salon, Fabienne is lonely, and she begins a correspondence with the reclusive Mrs. Ravenwood, whose gothic novels have taken London by storm. When Fabienne goes in search of the authoress at her country home, she finds a very evasive Adam Ashworth instead—and concludes that Mrs. Ravenwood must be his mistress. And as their letters grow more intimate, Fabienne finds herself recklessly divulging long-held secrets—while her encounters with Adam leave her torn between distrust and desire...

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

DEDICATION's characters have a lot going on in this story, but that's to be expected. After all, the two main leads, Fabienne Craigmont and Adam Ashworth, are no spring chickens—she's 37 and he's 42. Perhaps that's one reason this is so different from other Regencies I've read. It's also more sexy and sensual than I remember my past Regency romances as being.

Fabienne and Adam shared a past some 17 years before, that through mutual distrust and misunderstanding ended badly. It's how these two strong and resilient characters come to terms with that past and the lingering aftermath that make this a worthwhile read.

It's amazing that anyone could create so many subplots revolving around so many different characters in this short of a story. For 209 pages, Mullany has managed to include everything, from the usual youthful indiscretions and the bitter consequences that can result, to murder, spousal abuse, treachery, and even rape. That's just some of the bad stuff. On the upside, there's a widower who had loved his wife and enjoyed a happy marriage and is blessed with loving children and grandchildren, and a woman who had once lost everything but has since regained her own wealth and social prestige.

While I found some parts of DEDICATION to be a bit over dramatic, overall Ms. Mullany has done a very fine job with this, her first Regency debut. But be warned, this is not your mother's Regency.

As to that, I say, "Thank you, Janet Mullany!" It's about time!

Nancy Davis