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Rating: 
Summary: three wonderful charactersin search of a more exciting plot
Review: "The Fontainebleau Fan" suffers from having three fairly interesting characters who unfortunately, happen to be stuck in a rather bland plot. Miss Meg Haywood and her family have had the misfortune of falling on some rather hard times indeed. And it has been Meg's artistic talent that has more or less kept poverty at bay. Now, however, she has unwittingly gotten herself involved in an antique's swindling scheme. Meg and her sister, Olivia, have been stitching and hand-painting fans, little realising that their fans were being sold as antiques by their unscrupulous friend. Upon discovering that their copy of the Fontainebleau Fan (supposedly once a prized possession of Madame de Pompadour), was sold to the Earl of Wakefield as the real thing, both Meg and Olivia make for London in order to rectify the error. The earl however turns out to be an arrogant and supercilious beast, who believing that the sister are swindlers, takes them to Berkshire, in order to meet his grandmother (for whom he had bought the fan) so that the sisters can retrieve the false fan and exchange for the real one. (Not that he really believes that this is what the sisters actually mean to do.) Once at Berkshire, the sisters meet the earl's grandmother, who takes to the sisters immediately. And taken by Meg's obvious talent, the countess offers Meg the commission of redecorating her conservatory. Needing the money desperately, Meg agrees to undertake the redecorating of the room. But she also privately resolves to stay out of the high and mighty earl's way. Likewise the earl also resolves to stay out of the way of the pretty young artist who so obviously holds him in disdain. What neither the earl or Meg bargain for is a marriage minded old woman who has decided that they would be perfect for each other, and who goes out of her way to throw the pair together. What will happen? Will the earl and Meg succumb to the attraction that fairly hums between them? Or will they stick to their separate (and private) resolves to avoid each other as much as possible? The trouble with "The Fontainebleau Fan" is that there is very little conflict in the storyline. As such there is very little tension. The plot unfolded in such a 'straight' manner that the ultimate outcome was never in doubt at all! It's true Victoria Hishaw does introduce the fact that Meg, being the daughter of impoverished gentry, as well as an artist who works for her living, is not considered to be the ideal mate for the rich and eligible Earl of Wakefield. She also introduces to the plot the fact that the ability to enjoy life has been bred out of the earl because of all the responsibilities that he has had to assume. Still, all these factors figured into the plot is such a muted manner that one did not really feel the angst Meg must have gone through when she first realises her feelings for the earl and decides that nothing can come of her feelings for the earl; likewise the earl's conflicted feelings about his attraction for Meg for that matter. On the other hand, while the plot was a little boring, three of the characters Victoria Hinshaw created, Meg, Olivia and the countess, were pure joys to read about, and were (I felt) quite wasted on the novel. I liked the manner in which the authour depicted the countess's verve for life, her elegance and her charm. I also liked that Victoria Hinshaw gave both Meg and Olivia quiet dignity, inner strength and humour. And it was a real shame, I felt, that the story was not exciting enough for these wonderful characters.
Rating: 
Summary: A very good first Regency
Review: I thought this was a nice simple story with very appealing characters. Meg and the earl exchange enjoyable banter rather than arguing and they clearly have fun with one another despite their claims to the contrary. Their emotions and motivations are clearly drawn and their romance progresses nicely without too much angst. The art element added an interesting dimension to the story. Meg wears one of the earl's old shirts to paint in, which I thought was a romantic touch. There was also a nice secondary romance between Meg's sister, who is lame, and the earl's friend, who lost an arm in the war and became addicted to laudanum. I wouldn't have minded a bit more of that pair actually. The author also does a great job of describing the landscape of Berkshire -- it felt like a real place, not just anonymous countryside. Overall a very enjoyable read.
Rating:
Summary: Lots of fun, just what the doctor ordered
Review: This book was such a nice consolation for a day spent in bed with a wretched cold. Lively, likeable characters, a beautifully described setting, and lots of gentle humor made it just the thing to cheer me up. I'm looking forward to reading more from this new Regency author
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