Simply one of the best historical novels I have read in a
while! A LADY'S LESSON IN SCANDAL was a dynamic, enchanting
Cinderella story written out to its fullest!
Nell Whitby is an East End London factory girl. The girl
that was always in rags, working in the factories, and
staring into the shop windows at the fancy ladies pictured
there. Nell had never imagined a day when she was not poor,
over-worked, and trying to stay afloat. The death of her
mother brings even more sorrow down upon Nell who is
tragically left all alone in this unforgiving world. The
story her mother once told her of her father that abandoned
them keeps repeating itself in her head and Nell determines
to find him and get her revenge for never helping her
mother. When she arrives at the Earl of Rushden's home what
she finds is not a man old enough to be her father, but a
much younger, much much more handsome Rushden.
Simon can hardly believe his luck! After inheriting the
title, but not the funds, it appears that the most amazing
discovery has fallen right into his lap. Sixteen years ago,
one of the twin daughters of the late Early of Rushden was
kidnapped and never seen again. To his dying day the late
Earl kept out hope that his daughter would appear and left
all of his fortune to the twin girls, much to Simon's
dismay. He got the title, the house and no way to pay for
it all. However, the scamp in Simon's bedroom bears such a
strong resemblance to the missing Cornelia Aubyn that Simon
is convinced Nell really is the heiress. Proving that to
the world may be trickier than he imagined, but Simon knows
that marrying Nell and showing her to society just may be
the simplest way of getting what they both want. He wants her
money and she will get a new life a life she never knew
existed before.
At first I was very leery about another Cinderella story;
however I should not have lost faith in Meredith Duran.
Clearly she knew where she was leading me and I had only to
follow her path to discover so much more than I was
expecting! The complexities of the two characters were
amazing. I loved seeing Nell stay her constant self and not
turn into something that she was not in the beginning. The
fact that she held true to herself, her beliefs, and her
desires for her old world made her a strong and complete
character. It was very funny watching Simon flounder in his
attitudes. He didn't quite know what to make of Nell and
her desires. Simon seemed to be watching his world through
her eyes and found that it was not all he desired. Watching
their relationship develop from a business strategy to the
romantic love story it became was delightful! The
difficulty of writing a Cinderella rags to riches novel
appears not to have caused Duran any stress as this vivid
fascinating story gave me more than I ever asked for.
IN GRITTY, WORKING-CLASS LONDON, SHE DOES WHAT SHE MUST TO
SURVIVE . . .
When Nell Whitby breaks
into an earl’s house on a midnight quest for revenge, she
finds her pistol pointed at the wrong man—one handsome as
sin and naked as the day he was born. Pity he’s a lunatic.
He thinks her a missing heiress, but more to the point,
he’ll help her escape the slums and right a grave
injustice. Not a bad bargain. All she has to do is marry
him.
A NOTORIOUS LADIES’ MAN COULD
TAKE HER FROM POVERTY TO OPULENCE . . . BUT AT WHAT PRICE?
A rake of the first order, Simon St.
Maur spent his restless youth burning every bridge he
crossed. When he inherits an earldom without a single
penny attached to it, he sees a chance to start over—
provided he can find an heiress to fund his efforts. But
his wicked reputation means courtship will be difficult—
until fate sends him the most notorious missing heiress in
history. All he needs now is to make her into a lady and
keep himself from making the only mistake that could ruin
everything: falling in love. . . .
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