An American Duchess
Sharon Page
Harlequin HQN, Sep 29 2015, $7.99
ISBN: 9780373789382
In 1922, accompanied by her Mother, twentyish Zoe Gifford drives
her car on the Brideswell Abbey Estate in Hertforshire to visit the aristocrat
she plans to marry in haste Lord Sebastian Hazelton. The marriage will enable Zoe to use her trust
fund to pay off Mother’s disastrous debts and also her husband for cooperating
before they divorce. A blown tire forces
the two women to start walking.
When Zoe and Sebastian's older brother Nigel, Duke
of Langford, meet, both are attracted to one another. However, Nigel suffers from war-related PTSD
and hates the monstrous changes wrought by the Roaring Twenties as epitomized
by the upstart American female who does not know her proper place. She, in turn, rejects his antiquated
beliefs. Love has blossomed in Hertforshire,
but seems unable to overcome the vastly different philosophies.
An American Duchess is a pleasant post World
War I romance starring a Thoroughly Modern Millie and a Brontosaurus in love. Though the angst loses its edge in the last
quarter of the historical, Sharon Page captures the
essence of a radically changing world (see the early episodes of the People’s
Century) as epitomized by this lead couple, Mother and other family members and
servants.
Harriet Klausner
No comments:
Post a Comment