PERDITA

Author: Joan Smith ISBN: 9780709079255 4/2008 HISTORICAL Publisher: ROBERT HALE LTD.
Time Period: Regency

Governess Moira Greenwood's beautiful young charge, Perdita Brodie, is a high-spirited chit. Indeed, she rebels against her stepmama's choice of mate and manages to get Moira and herself positions in a not-quite-shabby travelling acting troupe. While Moira cooks, her lovely cousin sings, attracting the very insistent attentions of the cold, handsome rakehell Lord Stornaway—who takes the pair for lightskirts! Although Moria explains the truth, the self-satisfied lord believes not a word; he's positive the two are ladies of ill repute. Moria finds him the most rude, uncivil of men and tells him so. Still, there is something about him she can't quite define that is not completely loathsome.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

PERDITA is written in an unusual way than most Regency romances.  Written almost like a diary being read out loud, PERDITA is told by the title character's governess/companion/cousin Moira, as she details her younger cousin's reckless scheme to get out of her arranged marriage.

Moira describes her cousin as having the typical fairy tale life—a wicked stepmother, pushover father, loads of money and incredible beauty.  Her wicked stepmother had plans to wed Perdita off to an older gentleman, to get her out of the house, but Perdita will have none of it.  Dissatisfied with her countrified life she is desperate to find adventure by being an actress. 

Impulsive is an understatement of Perdita's personality—she runs off with an acting troop in the middle of the night without any thought as to her reputation.  Moira, determined to look after her cousin and keep her respectable, follows after her.  Her first thought is to drag her back, but seeing that they are now indebted to the actors, she agrees to let Perdita be the troop's newest leading lady until other circumstances can be made.

In a genre where romance is a key to the story, PERDITA seems to dwell less on the romances of either Perdita or Moira, and more on their adventures and predicaments.  This isn't necessarily a bad thing.  Moira isn't prone to daydreams of romance and Perdita is too easily swayed by a handsome and cheerful compliment, so it came as a surprise that Moira fell in love at all!  Especially considering her love interest's first meeting with herself and Perdita.

The only real complaint I have is with the cover artwork—I'm not certain if that is supposed to depict Perdita, who is eighteen, or Moira, who is well over eighteen but not a fair-haired female.  Whomever it does depict makes her very old looking and entirely too hard. 

Alexandra Cenni