cover image Scandalous Ever After

Scandalous Ever After

Theresa Romain. Sourcebooks Casablanca, $8.99 mass market (320p) ISBN 978-1-4926-4902-1

Romain’s diverting novel lacks the intrigue of some of her previous Regencies, but it abounds with delightful characters. Abigail Catherine “Kate” Durham, Irish Countess of Whelan, has only recently shed her widow’s weeds in favor of feathered hats and brightly colored dresses. It’s racing season in Newmarket, and she intends this trip to her father’s home to mark a new beginning. When Kate and her brother Jonah stop in Cambridge to take in a lecture on antiquities by expert Evan Rhys, she means it as an olive branch to Evan, a man she and her late husband once counted as a close friend. But Evan has absented himself from her life since the day of her husband’s fatal accident, and she’s not so sure she can trust his friendship anymore. When she invites him into her bedchamber, an entertaining collision of crossed purposes and mixed messages ensues. These misunderstandings more than make up for the rather lightweight subplot of possible murder, smuggling, and forgery. Agent: Paige Wheeler, Creative Media. (July)