A Lady for All Seasons

Alexander follows A Gentleman’s Gentleman with another witty and bighearted, if somewhat less successful, queer Regency romance in which a motley cast struggles against convention in the search for true love. After Verbena Montrose’s father loses the family fortune, she plans a marriage of convenience with a friend she suspects to be gay, hoping to secure his reputation and her own financial security. Then Verbena meets Flora Whitcombe, a famous poet, and her life is turned upside down by the eccentric and magnetic woman. Unbeknownst to Verbena, Flora lives part of her life as William Forsyth, the son of a minor noble family. Unable to openly court Verbena as Flora or reveal the truth about this dual nature, William woos Verbena himself. A two-person love triangle forms as Verbena struggles with feelings for both William and Flora, and miscommunication and deception abounds. This clever conceit queers the long-standing historical romance plot device of cross-dressing, but the tropey mechanics of its execution leaves some romantic and character development subsumed by the complexity of the plot. Still, this is a unique, humorous, and hopeful slow burn that’s sure to please Alexander’s fans. Agent: Larissa Melo Pienkowski, Azantian. (Mar).