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Rating: 
Summary: Simply put: good
Review: Miss Helen Prestwick has journeyed all the way to Portugal to do one thing: to prove her late sister's child is actually the rightful Earl of Camberwell. However, it's her fear that the current earl, after hearing her story, will simply turn her away. When she meets Edward Beresford, he is nothing like the monster she expected. In fact, he is actually quite nice.Mr. Beresford, who has no real interest in his earldom, intends to help Helen prove her claim--even if his entire family thinks her story is too far-fetched. While he investigates her claim, Helen Prestwick stays in close quarters (she's trying to restore his family's art collection). The more they get to know each other, the closer they become. But Miss Prestwick is hiding a secret from her past--a secret she feels might rattle Mr. Beresford's newfound friendship with her. All in all, the story was nothing I hadn't read before. The lead characters were interesting, if not a bit stubborn. (I was happy to find a hero who wasn't handsome, or arrogant, or a rake). The secondary characters were a bit surprising (a couple of them turned out to be better than I had originally suspected). But the main story is somewhat predictable, and the ending is a bit rushed. Still, I came across a few parts where I was unable to put the book down. Overall, Ms. Barbour has given us an enjoyable read. I give it 3 1/2 stars.
Rating:
Summary: Simply put: good
Review: Miss Helen Prestwick has journeyed all the way to Portugal to do one thing: to prove her late sister's child is actually the rightful Earl of Camberwell. However, it's her fear that the current earl, after hearing her story, will simply turn her away. When she meets Edward Beresford, he is nothing like the monster she expected. In fact, he is actually quite nice. Mr. Beresford, who has no real interest in his earldom, intends to help Helen prove her claim--even if his entire family thinks her story is too far-fetched. While he investigates her claim, Helen Prestwick stays in close quarters (she's trying to restore his family's art collection). The more they get to know each other, the closer they become. But Miss Prestwick is hiding a secret from her past--a secret she feels might rattle Mr. Beresford's newfound friendship with her. All in all, the story was nothing I hadn't read before. The lead characters were interesting, if not a bit stubborn. (I was happy to find a hero who wasn't handsome, or arrogant, or a rake). The secondary characters were a bit surprising (a couple of them turned out to be better than I had originally suspected). But the main story is somewhat predictable, and the ending is a bit rushed. Still, I came across a few parts where I was unable to put the book down. Overall, Ms. Barbour has given us an enjoyable read. I give it 3 1/2 stars.
Rating:
Summary: a good 3 1/2 star read
Review: Miss Prestwick has a mission: to ensure that her nephew is properly recognized as the twelfth Earl of Camberwell. Of course her task is not as simple as it seems: there already is a twelfth Earl of Camberwell -- Edward Beresford, a cousin to the deceased heir, Christopher Beresford; plus the unpalatable truth that she has no physical proof that her sister was actually married Christopher. Add to that the fact she knows (based on bits of information that Christopher has seen fit to divulge) that the present earl, Edward, has always been jealous of Christopher and has always coveted the title. Such a man will no doubt make things really difficult for Helen! However, when Helen confronts Edward, she is surprised and relieved to discover that while he doesn't totally believe her story, he is willing to investigate her claims and to house her nephew, William, her duena, Miss Horatia Barnstable and her, until they discover how exactly things stand. Helen is floored -- she never expected for things to go so smoothly even though she is resolved to see things through and baby William restored to his rightful position -- but grateful for Edward forbearance. But why exactly is Edward so accommodating? Is he not quite so black as Christopher painted? Or does he have some sinister plan up his sleeve? As the days pass and Helen begins to see just how much in tune with Edward she actually is, and how much she actually likes and respects him, she cannot help but wonder about Christopher's claims. Unfortunately, Helen has a few skeletons rattling in her own closet, and as the days pass, and as Edward's agents fail to turn up any evidence of Christopher's marriage and William's legitimacy, Helen cannot help but fear that her secrets will be revealed and that the impact of those secrets will cost William and her dearly... What I liked about "Miss Preswick's Crusade" was the fact that both Edward and Helen acted in a manner that reflected their ages, maturity and life experiences -- in other words if you rather enjoy Regencies where either the heroine or hero indulges in massive hysterical bouts of infantile behaviour, give this book a miss! However while the romance that developed between Edward and Helen was quite nicely paced, it was also true that it took Helen a long time to reconcile the evidence before her eyes (as to Edward's character) with Christopher's tales -- in fact it took her so long that I sometimes wanted to shake her. However, when one factors in what Helen's past experiences were and what she went through (plus the betrayal that she suffered at the hands of those that should have stood up for her), you can totally understand her hesitation to trust Edward outright. And because Helen kept waffling on whether or not she could trust Edward, the pacing of the storyline was not always smooth -- in fact things really slowed down after the first quarter of the book. On the whole though, if you're in the mood for a good grown-up romance novel, complete with a believable hero and heroine, then definitely "Miss Preswick's Crusade" will completely satisfy.
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