The Dreaming Beauty

Walker’s sweet follow-up to The Masked Baron takes readers to Rose Cottage, where mysterious dreams and family secrets link the life of an orphaned young woman to the brother of a duke. Tansy White travels to her mother’s former home with her three eccentric aunts in tow, hoping to make sense of her troubling dreams. Their new neighbor, professor Marcus Taylor, brother to the Duke of Westmoreland, is also dealing with distressing dreams, and it soon becomes clear they’re connected with Tansy’s own. Neither Tansy nor Marcus trusts easily but they find comfort in each other as they share secrets and set out to solve the mystery of how their pasts are linked. Easy-going Marcus ingratiates himself with Tansy’s aunts, while Tansy finds favor with the Duke, resulting in a love triangle. But the gentlemen’s mother is not as welcoming—and her disdain stems from more than just Tansy’s lack of a title. Walker does a good job suffusing this romance with a fairy tale feeling while eschewing any actual magic, and peppers in just enough hints to lead readers along on Marcus and Tansy’s hunt for the truth. The result is well-rounded and adorable. (July)