COUNTESS CONFIDENTIAL

Author: Barbara Dawson Smith ISBN: 0312932391 2/2006 HISTORICAL Publisher: ST. MARTIN'S PRESS
Time Period: Regency 1817

Dear Reader, This is the story of how I, a penniless upstart, became a countess. I never set out to be the heroine in a romantic tale of derring-do. As a spinster of five-and-twenty, I was much too practical to imagine myself tracking a dangerous criminal or falling prey to ardent nonsense. Nor did I ever envision myself entering the gilded ballrooms of society where indolent aristocrats nibbled cake and traded gossip. But that was before my father was wrongfully imprisoned as a jewel thief. Determined to uncover the true criminal, I posed as an impoverished widow and secured a post in the grand household of a noble family – the very family that had cruelly cast out my mother many years ago. Of course, they knew not who I was. To them, I was merely a servant, an invisible hireling. And little did I know, my daring plan would throw me into the path of Simon Croft, the almighty Earl of Rockford. Arrogant, charming, and too handsome for his own good, he might have walked straight off a pedestal in a museum. I had no use for such a rogue, yet from the moment of our first meeting, he tempted my unruly heart. And soon, he threatened my schemes as well, for Simon had secrets of his own…. —Claire, the Countess of Rockford

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

Now here's a wonderfully written Regency era romance chock full of engaging characters and a sleuthing pair of lovebirds I'd love to see in a series! Once COUNTESS CONFIDENTIAL takes off, there's just no stopping it, as one determined young woman works to free her falsely accused father by going undercover, while at the same time a master spy continues his hunt for the ever elusive Wraith. Once these two main characters cross paths with each other, look out, because from there on out it's nothing but suspense, drama, humor, and pure romantic delight for the reader.

Barbara Dawson Smith has written a non-stop page turner featuring two leads who are perfectly matched in both wit and intelligence. Both Simon and Claire are strong, intriguing characters whose emotional bond to each other develops over the course of the story. The attraction and sexual tension between the two is evident from the start, and their physical coming together is both romantic and hot. Both hide secrets from one another, and even though the usual misunderstanding occurs between them when all their secrets are revealed, they deal with it in a mature and logical fashion.

While COUNTESS CONFIDENTIAL is the second offering by Smith after THE DUCHESS DIARIES, it stands quite well on its own. It's a definite, one-night read that I highly recommend.

Nancy Davis