More than a Stranger

Knightley debuts with a ham-handed but sweet Regency on an age-old theme. Lady Evelyn Moore is surprised and intrigued when her beloved older brother, Richard, comes home suddenly with a handsome, enigmatic stranger in tow. What Evie doesn’t know is that Mr. James Benedict is actually Richard’s best friend, Benedict Hastings, with whom she had corresponded nearly a decade earlier until he broke her heart with a cruelly worded letter. While Hastings is enchanted with the lively and beautiful Evie, he is wrestling with a dilemma and can’t afford to be distracted. Evie is headstrong and used to getting her own way, a dangerous combination for a man trying to keep his distance from a woman he’s attracted to. Hastings is an excellent hero, charming and refreshingly honest about his feelings. The great reveal and resolution come on abruptly, but the romance is charmingly sweet and tender as Hastings works through years of secrets and sorrow to win his lady. Agent: Deidre Knight, the Knight Agency. (June)