THE CONFESSIONS OF A DUCHESS

Author: Nicola Cornick ISBN: 9780373773770 6/2009 HISTORICAL Publisher: HQN
Time Period: Regency 1809

Never, ever deceive a gentleman... When an ancient tax law is invoked requiring all unmarried ladies to either wed or surrender half their wealth, it's not long before the quiet village of Fortune's Folly is overrun by a swarm of fortune-hunting bachelors. Marry again? Never! Not after what Laura, the dowager duchess, was forced to endure. Even if the arrival of her onetime paramour, Dexter Anstruther, is oh-so-tempting, she knows the secret she's kept from him would destroy any chance at a future together. Young, handsome and scandalously enticing, Dexter suspects Laura has a hidden motive for resisting his charms ...and he intends to expose her, by any means necessary.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

It took me several times to read this book. Not because it's not enjoyable—it is, I loved the cast of characters surrounding the leads and was genuinely intrigued by the mystery, all of which were well written. It took me several times because I could not get past the age disparity between Laura and Dexter, nor their past association.

There seems to be a trend as of late in historical novels—older women being wooed by younger men. Historical novels have a tendency to have older men chasing debutantes as young as eighteen years of age, but that seems to have dropped off as this new trend has become popular. I’m not a fan of either; I prefer the women to be in their mid-twenties and their paramours to be no more then five years older.

THE CONFESSIONS OF A DUCHESS has Laura, the Dowager Countess, aged thirty-four, and Dexter, a spy (more or less), aged twenty-six. They had met four years prior when Dexter was a young, foolish, and hopeful young man just beginning his job, and Laura was a disillusioned wife of a husband who slept around and noticed her even less then his furniture. What began as a simple camaraderie between kindred spirits developed very quickly into something, and then into something that couldn’t be taken back. The ending of their one night affair left Dexter a hard, cynical man who trusted no one, and Laura with the undeniable proof of their night together.

And that is where I had issue. Laura was married, albeit unhappily, and Dexter had no experience with women. None. She was an older, experienced woman. She knew better, in other words. I am not a fan of adultery in any form—if one character is married ,well, their partner had better die (or disappear for America or something permanent) before they find themselves in the arms of their new love interest. It wrecked the entire novel for me.

I enjoyed the mystery and genuinely was surprised on how it turned out. I enjoyed the antics of the ladies of Fortune’s Folly while they gave Sir Montague Fortune a run for his money (literally) and a taste of his own ridiculous medicine. I even enjoyed the interaction between Dexter and Laura, until the truth was out.

In the end, while I cannot read this novel again, I look forward to the next books in the series (The Brides of Fortune) and watching Laura’s rakehell cousin Miles get a runaround from his lady love.

Alexandra Cenni