An Icy Affair

Rating:
Summary: Promise not fulfilled
Review: Ivy Sterling is a very dissatisfied young lady - orphaned and now living with an uncaring, hermit of an uncle on his estate. Then a snowstorm brings an overabundance of travellers to their door in need of shelter - a lone gentleman, a pair of brothers and a troupe of travelling actors. Ivy is delighted and Mr. Sterling understandably angry.
Ivy takes an instant dislike to the lone Mr. Robert Westbrook, (on his way to London as it turns out to discover why his betrothed broke their engagement). He finds her to be a foolish chit of a girl. Naturally they are meant, by the author, for each other - but only after Ivy runs through an infatuation with Edward one of the brothers (a very slippery charmer indeed).
This all sounds very promising - but never really engages, mostly due to the fact that Ivy is surely one of the most irritating young girls I have read in a Regency for some time. She jumps on every word Westbrook utters, takes offence and rips back at him petulently at every turn. He is so much a man of sense, that one cannot understand why he proceeds to abandon his all too correct opinion of her and fall in love with the silly widgeon. After this change of heart, he tells her several times he thinks her intelligent and unusual etc. - and one cannot understand it, as she never exhibits any of those characteristics.
There were saving graces, I particularly liked the scene where 'Romeo and Juliet' is played for the servants and they add their very proper early 19th Century views of propriety to their comments on the play. They are particularly shocked by the behaviour of the nurse in aiding Juliet.
A mildly entertaining read - easily forgotten.

Rating:
Summary: A chilly tale to warm the heart
Review: Miss Ivy Sterling lives on a remote country estate with her uncle, who refuses to take her to Town for a Season. Ivy longs for companionship, and she gets her wish when a blizzard brings unexpected travelers to their door. First to arrive is a rather overbearing gentleman named Robert Westbrook, who is on his way to London to break off his engagement at his fiancee's request. Ivy does not think much of Mr. Westbrook. Much more interesting is a handsome, romantic young gentleman who arrives with his brother. A troupe of actors completes the guest list. Soon the snowbound household is putting on a production of Romeo and Juliet, but the real-life drama among the guests proves even more compelling.

The acting troupe added quite a bit of fun to the story, and I liked the way that Shakespeare's play was integrated with the plot in a natural and meaningful way.

The hero of this book is an appealing fellow. I enjoyed his philosophy of why he should care only about himself (which of course he does not follow!). The heroine was very young and behaved a bit foolishly, but she comes around in the end.

This is a fine example of the "snowbound romance" and is the perfect reading choice for a cold winter's night.