Author of speculative fiction
February 16, 2022
Tanya suggested this book to me. She said it was a lovely romance, so it was appropriate for Valentine's Day.
This book begins with a great set-up—a large gathering of people who don’t like each other, all going to a party together. And right off, this begins what I found to be the most surprising twist in this book: No one kills anyone. All they do is dance. There are countless gatherings of people who don’t like each other in this book. And in each and every one, you are waiting with bated breath, and then the chapter ends and no one is dead. I, like you, was surprised. I had to go back and re-read a few times. But no. That is correct.
At any rate, there is a group of sisters who would all like to get married, despite not knowing anyone they'd like to get married to. Their parents seem singularly ineffective. It is not immediately apparent what they do for a living. But whatever it is, it appears rather than teach their daughters how to do it, they instead instruct them to get married.
The daughters attempt to do this, with varying degrees of success.
There is a soldier.
He is not killed.
There is a pastor.
He is not killed.
There is an unpleasant but rich gentlewoman.
She is not killed.
There is an unpleasant but rich gentleman.
He is also not killed.
He is the hero, I think.
There is, for inexplicable reasons, a lot of panic over someone maybe accidentally having sex.
This is a book full of twists and turns, mostly because you are always expecting someone to pull out an explosive or a weapon, but at no point do they do this.
I did enjoy this book despite the unrealistic lack of murders. I have always loved a good romance. However, I do think that Lizzy would have been better off with Georgina.