A Handful of Promises

I, as other reviewers, enjoyed the fact that one of the main romances (there are two others!) involves people who are a little older, rather imperfect, and behave like real people do! Secundus was a wonderful man and his ever-faithful and patient Helen waited for him to return from his journeys. Would he have the fortune he felt he needed to continue his pursuit of Helen? I thought it was fantastic that Helen had created a fulfilling life (without Secundus) involving charity work. The other two romances involve Secundus's nephew and niece (Robert and Ruth). Rutherford, Helen's brother, finds Ruth attractive but cannot see her as his wife and feels she is too well bred to be his mistress. I liked Rutherford. He was the one who interfered with Secundas and Helen's romance when he was young and now being too high in the in-step to follow his heart regarding Ruth. He had a hard time bending his own rules to admit he loved Ruth. He also looked out for his friends and family. Robert's love is Lucy Chalmers and her father stands in his way. What father would allow his precious daughter to marry a penniless man encumbered with three siblings! Lucy is so funny - decides she will not see her father since he said he doesn't want to see her until she forgets her infatuation. She keeps to her room while the squire's house goes to rack and ruin - and no good meals. See how long the stand-off lasts! Hmmm I'm wondering if Lieutenant Ralston might end up waiting for Tibby to grow up. As you will find out, there are many other delightful characters to meet including the other Alchesters and Secundus's man Paulo. Fun reading; lighthearted; all ends happy.

The heroine stammers. The hero has -- gasp -- thinning hair. Neither of them are sharp dressers. Thank you, thank you, thank you! The notion that romance readers only want to read about people who are beautiful, gets very disheartening -- it sends a subtle message that only beautiful people are lovable. Or maybe not so subtle, when one considers the all-too-common plot-line where a fat bride in an arranged or forced marriage is left behind when the hero goes to war (or whatever excuse for a separation), loses weight, and upon being reunited a few years later -- hey presto! the hero falls in love with her. While plenty of people really are that shallow, thank you, I don't choose to fantasize about them. Savery does blink on the issue of weight -- "Helen had reduced her excessive plumpness long ago ..." -- when the truth is, cancer has a better cure rate than obesity. I've seen a number of diseases shift, when an effective treatment was finally found, from being moral or character defects or hypochondria to having little or no stigma (e.g., cramps, depression), and I expect fat will be the same. Meanwhile, it's nice to see a romance about a couple who value each for their character instead of their looks -- a man for his ability to make people laugh, a woman for her enthusiasm for helping people. Those traits last beyond crows feet and gray hair.

The republication of an earlier work, "A Handful of Promises" was a very pleasant read about second chances at love.Years ago, Secundus Alcester, a poor younger son, feel in love with shy, demure but incredibly rich Lady Helen Rotherford. But while Lady Helen returned Secundus' love, her proud and autocratic father did not approve of Secundus' suit at all. Roundly refusing to allow Secundus to court his daughter, Lord Rotherford and his son led Secundus to believe that Helen was all but engaged to another, more eligible gentleman. And so, Secundus, both his pride and heart quite shattered, left England for India in order to amass a fortune and to forget Lady Helen. Now, however, an urgent letter (two years late) has arrived informing Secundus that his elder brother is dead, leaving his children orphaned and his estate quite beggared, and requesting that Secundus return home and set matters aright. Swiftly, Secundus leaves India for England; but while his primary concern is for his nephews and nieces, a part of Secundus cannot help but wonder about Lady Helen. Is she still married? And does she still remember him fondly? And how her family would react to him now that he is a very rich man indeed..."A Handful of Promises" turned out to be a nice gentle romance novel and a very pleasant read indeed. There were also two other romance subplots that revolved around Secundus' older niece and nephew, but for me the plot that really mattered was the one that dealt with Secundus and Lady Helen, and it was charmingly and delicately done. I would have, perhaps, liked it more if Jeanne Savery had spent even more time on Secundus and Lady Helen, but that is just a more personal wish/desire. And on the whole, everything had just the right touch for a nice, light Regency-era romance novel -- the story, the pacing and the characters involved. And if I had any quibbles about the book, it was that everyone was just so nice! Neither Secundus nor Lady Helen ever get angry at her brother for the part he played in separating them all those years ago. I, would conked the man hard on the head and then proceeded to make him feel as small as possible for at least week. But then, (obviously) Lady Helen is a much nicer person than me. All in all, reading "A Handful of Promises" was a very nice and pleasant way indeed to spend a lazy afternoon.