A Grand Deception

From the back cover: Love's bold disguise... Miss Georgy Verney doesn't wish to upset her mother, but she can't bring herself to flirt with the gentlemen of the ton--much less accept a marriage proposal based solely on social status or financial gain. Then she finds herself attracted to the most handsome, eligible catch of the season... Anthony Maitland, Viscount Ivers, wants nothing more than to return Georgy's affections--then the spirited girl runs away. Desperate to avoid scandal, the girl's mother concocts a bold and daring masquerade, but the viscount's heart is not easily fooled. Amid a flurry of mistaken identities, Anthony embarks on a deception of his own, determined to bring Georgy back home and into his arms... And my review: I discovered Elizabeth Mansfield when I picked up one of her books off a discount table at my local department store. Since then, I've snapped up everything of hers that I can get my hands on. Her writing is delightful. Her prose flows easily, is fun to read, her characters are well drawn, and her dialogue witty and fun. Her stories are also clean; no sex, just kisses. This story was enjoyable as a work of historical fiction, but I think the romance aspect of it was rather poorly done. The hero falls in love with the heroine almost at first sight. However, she runs off, and they are seperated for 2/3 of the book. I read romance to watch the sparks fly as hero and heroine interact; but that can't happen when they aren't even in the same room for more than half the book! Then, when they do meet up again, they are in love almost instantly. The author then has to contrive something to keep them apart, and unfortunately, I felt that it fell flat. The heroine kept refusing the hero because he had money. Huh? The heroine has promised never to marry for money. So even though she is madly in love with Anthony, she keeps refusing him. It got very grating, very fast. I'm all for having principles, but the heroine was so rigid about it that she drove me insane. And for no good reason. Since she loved the guy, it seemed like a very weak excuse for repeatedly rejecting him. I actually enjoyed the secondary romance of Peggy (the heroine's look-alike replacement) and the heroine's brother Jeremy more than I enjoyed the relationship between the lead characters. I felt that Peggy and Jeremy's romance was much better developed. For one thing, they didn't fall in love instantly. Instead, their love grew slowly over time--my favorite kind of love story. Apart from the sometimes irritating heroine, the rest of the characters in this novel were wonderfully drawn. Did this author ever write a book starring Allie, the heroine's younger sister? Because I would love to read it if she did. Allie was enchanting. All in all, this was an enjoyable read. The only drawback was the primary romance. I think that this book needed another hundred pages to show Anthony and Georgy falling in love more gradually, and to have them spend less

A reprint of an earlier work, "A Grand Deception" is a very good example as to why so many romance readers consider Elizabeth Mansfield to be one of the best Regency-era romance novelists of our time. Captain Jeremy Verney has returned from the wars to find his family is disarray. To begin with the family finances leave a lot to be desired, and it looks as if the only way out may be if the eldest Verney daughter, Georgianna agrees to marry a rich gentleman. Except that Geogianna, who happens to be a bit of a bluestocking has no intention of marrying for money. A serious, compassionate and intelligent young woman, Georgianna longs to do something worthwhile with her life. And when her mother begins to nag at her to be more receptive to the attentions of the Season's latest eligible, Anthony Maitland, Viscount Ivers, Georgianna decides to leave home in order to strike out on her own in spite of the fact that she is rather attracted to Viscount Ivers. Horrified, her family tries to look for her but with no success. What they do find is a young pickpocket, Peggy Birkin, who happens to bear an uncanny resemblance to Georgianna. And that's when Lady Verney comes up with an audacious PLAN to save the family from scandal until Georgianna comes to her senses and returns home.But what the good lady never considered was how her PLAN would affect and impact her family, and change things forever... Put the fact that Lady Verney's grand plan is a rather daft one at the back of your mind, and just allow yourself to enjoy this really well written and highly polished romance novel. Elizabeth Mansfield does a really excellent job of centering the book on two very different yet wholly engaging heroines: Georgianna and Peggy, charting the highs and the lows of their new situations brilliantly, especially their different romances. An entertaining and captivating story, peopled with a cast of strong and well drawn characters, this charming and absorbing tale was a treat to read from beginning to end. So, if you're looking for something that's not fluffy and that's an affecting and charming tale, you can't go very wrong with "A Grand Deception."

Lady Horatia Verney is having cardiac arrest because her unmarried daughter Georgianna is a bluestocking. Besides fretting that her oldest daughter is heading towards the shelf if she is not already there, Horatia needs Georgianna married to a wealthy man because the family lacks the funding to keep up their appearances. Her other daughter Alison is only fourteen so is not a variable alternative at this time. To avoid the matchmaking antics of her mother who has chosen Anthony Maitland for her, Georgianna flees from her home. Horatia sends her son Jeremy to find Georgianna, but he fails on his quest. Instead he meets the abused by a nasty father, Peggy, who could be Georgianna's twin sister. Feeling a need to protect Peggy from her odious father, Jeremy brings her home where Horatia concoct a diabolical plan. Horatia decides that Peggy will serve as a fine replacement until her daughter returns to her senses and comes home, but did not count on Jeremy falling in love with the substitute. This is a reprint of a delightful mid 1980s Regency romance. The cast is the key to the fine plot as the lead couple and the secondary characters are a likable group albeit with differing objectives. Sub-genre fans will take immense delight as Elizabeth Mansfield's tale remains a grand historical. Harriet Klausner