A SUITABLE HUSBAND

Author: Fenella-Jane Miller ISBN: 0709080298 3/2006 HISTORICAL Publisher: ROBERT HALE LTD
Time Period: Regency

Someone is trying to murder Sarah Haverstock and her son, Edward. His tutor, and veteran of the Peninsular War, Captain Oliver Mayhew is the ideal man to protect them and root out the perpetrators. Oliver accepts the position with the sole intention of charming his employer into matrimony, the attacks giving him the perfect opportunity to further his aims. Indeed, as the danger escalates Sarah comes to rely on him more and more but before they can find the happiness they both seek, they must face the evil that stalks them...

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

On the up side, I liked the author's way of conveying the sense of time and place in this lukewarm Regency romance. I enjoyed the use of Regency slang and the portrayal of young Edward as the mischievous, affectionate young son who seemed to steal nearly every scene he was written into. As did his overgrown, overly affectionate dog, Rags.

But on the down side—and you knew there had to be one by the way I started writing this review—I was disappointed in the two lead characters, Sarah and Oliver. With a bit more depth added to their characters, I probably would have felt a romantic connection between these two that should have been, but wasn't. Not a spark, not a sizzle, not even a zinger between the pair was evident to make me believe they were truly falling in love. Without that connection, that tingling feeling of a romance that slowly blossoms into love and passion, A SUITABLE HUSBAND became slow paced and just another average Regency romance.

With a storyline revolving around several mysterious murder attempts upon Sarah and Edward's lives, and the question of just what ulterior motive drives Oliver to become a husband of convenience (what's he really after from Sarah?) , A SUITABLE HUSBAND is just, well, suitable. However, while "suitable" may not be enough for me, it may be for other romance readers. You simply won't know unless you read it.

Nancy Davis