The Perfect Wife

Rating:
Summary: Fun, Funny, Sensual --- Loved it!
Review: I liked the spontaneous way Nicholas was willing to take off on a trip at the last minute to and as yet to be discovered location just to follow Sabrina.

The book was witty, fun and carried off an unusual plot for a historical romance. I enjoyed the side characters finding romance, too.

As the first reviewer said, I wish the motivation were a little clearer, but the story was so fun to read that I look forward to future books from Victoria Alexander.

Rating:
Summary: but not a perfect book
Review: More often than not, I really like Victoria Alenander; she's one of the authors who got me started on romances. It's probably a good thing this was not one of the first of her books I read. Excellent premise, but the execution was way off.

Nicholas was an okay guy--your typical haughty aristocrat. Sabrina started out with such promise, but in the end didn't live up to her characterization. She's supposedly lived the last 10 years wearing a mask that slowly falls away during the course of the novel, worn that mask for love of her daughter. But in the end, she simply leaves her; I didn't buy it. She supposedly led a band of smugglers who adored her and followed her with unswerving loyalty, yet we see nothing of those qualities in a long and boring trek across the desert--for nothing. This is also the woman who is determined to never be dependent on another financialy again--but she doesn't follow her investments to the point that she's barely solvent? Too many things don't add up.

Everything in the book is set up to get these two together in love; unfortunately that fact is far too obvious. Everytime a new dilemmna is needed, the author simply states a reason for things to be different. For example, Sabrina's daughter is not enamored with her fiance's sea sickness; she needs to see him do something heroic. So the ladies are kidnapped and the dear fiance just happens to be the only one available to rescue them, which he does with absolutely no difficulty. And Nicholas is supposedly an important man with political aspirations--but he can take off for nearly a year at a moment's notice?

As for the witty repartee, it isn't all that witty; Alexander is capable of much better (see her Effington series, except the last one which was as dreadful as this tale). Secondary characters have as much if not more life to them than the main couple. Nowhere near Alexander's best.

Rating:
Summary: She's not the woman he thought he married.
Review: Sabrina has spent the past 10 years as a very proper matron raising a daughter alone. In truth, she is trying to wipe out her scandalous past as a daring smuggler for the sake of her daughter's marriage prospects. Suddenly facing financial reverses at a time when she desperately needs a dowry for her daughter, Sabrina jumps at the chance to go treasure hunting in Egypt. Not understanding what is happening, her daughter Belinda turns to her fiancé for help, and he in turn pleads with his father to intercede.

An absentee father, the Earl of Wyldewood has been feeling guilty about his past relationship with his son. The endless pursuit of pleasure has left him somewhat jaded and cynical, and he has thought about remarrying, if for nothing more than to have a chatelaine and hostess for his home. When the sparks fly between the earl and Sabrina, he impulsively decides to ask her to marry him. She seems to be a perfectly proper society matron, and the attraction between them is an added bonus.

Unfortunately, she seems to be leaving for an extended trip, and the earl decides to accompany her as a protector. Of course, when their children learn that their parents have taken off together for Egypt, they persuade an aunt to accompany them in hot pursuit. The earl, after all, is a known rake, and certainly cannot be trusted alone with a woman for an extended period.

Sabrina impulsively marries the earl on board the ship, then discovers that he has the power to destroy her if he discovers the secret of her smuggler-past. She loves him, but fears that he will reject her when he discovers how very far from proper she truly is. Not being blind or stupid, the earl realizes rather quickly that Sabrina is in reality a very feisty and spirited lady, and he finds himself entranced rather than repelled. Still, there is something she isn't telling him...something in the past she has shared with the handsome American ship captain. And he determines to stick with her until he discovers what it is.

I really feel this book would be better if it included a more vivid description of Sabrina's days as a smuggler and her run-in with the earl, then a government agent. As it is, those scenes are vague, and the motivation for the earl's fierce determination to catch her just isn't clear to me. If she had been an agent for the French or some such thing, I could understand his dilemma...but smuggling just isn't in the same league as treason.

Other than that, I truly enjoyed the book and would love to find out what happened between Matt and Wynne, since their liaison was not resolved.