In Search of Scandal

Brooding botanist and adventurer Will Repton and common-born socialite Charlotte Baker take center stage in this warm and complex Victorian romance. Will, recently returned to London after a six-year trip in China with a dire ending, manifests himself as the man of irrepressible Charlotte’s romantic dreams when he pays a call on her brother-in-law and inadvertently gets presented among her suitors. His determination to fund a new expedition and return to Tibet, driven by a secret purpose, is at odds with her belief that they are destined to be together. More visits with her brother-in-law become a screen behind which Will informally courts Charlotte, displaying a depth of perception and understanding that her other beaux lack. Readers may become impatient with the obstacles between the lovers (which could be removed with a frank emotional discussion) and a bit of a kitchen-sink approach to the subplots, but the warmth of their romantic and intellectual connection, as well as the strongly drawn supporting characters, make this novel worth the reader’s while. Agent: Kristin Nelson, Nelson Literary Agency. (Dec.)