Cupboard Kisses

Author Barbara Metzger is one of Regency's finest authors and every romance fan has at least one Metzger favorite. For this reader, CUPBOARD KISSES ranks right there with Metzger's best. The "mistaken identity" idea makes this story successful and as long as the main characters fail to uncover the truth, that famous Metzger humor works. As an orphaned daughter of a country vicar, Miss Cristabel Swann is penniless and alone in the world. Drearily, she exists as a much put-upon music teacher, in an exclusive Bath girl's school. Then the most extraordinary thing happens, Cristabel's uncle suddenly dies and it seems she is the sole beneficiary of his will. The school's headmistress says it's all just "Castles in the Air", but that does not discourage Cristabel. Instead, she stubbornly heads off to London. In the morning, Captain Kenley Chase, Viscount Winstoke, will undergo dangerous surgery. He may never see again. For that reason, the viscount throws caution to the wind, gambles recklessly, and wins Harwood House and some small rooming house in Kensington. When an unkempt, tired Cristabel Swann suddenly appears at his door and begins making ridiculous inheritance demands, the bandaged, sightless Captain Chase (Viscount Winstoke) unyieldingly consoles her with the Kensington property. Both parties are satisfied with the exchange. However, neither party realizes the relinquished property is a cheap brothel. Healthy again, Viscount Winstoke mistakes the beautiful "Belle" for London's newest "working girl." Of course, Cristabel thinks the marvelous Viscount Winstoke's intentions are quite honorable. Moreover, Cristabel does not realize the viscount is the same hateful, blind, horrendous Captain Chase she encountered at Harwood House. This humorous misconception is the story's great setup and Barbara Metzger exploits it wonderfully! Reviewer's Comments: With marvelous writing, wording, and tone, Metzger truly heightens and exalts the Regency spirit. Unfortunately, the story stumbles when the characters uncover the mistaken identities, which causes the ending to drag. A shame too, for Barbara Metzger gave her reader such a golden start! Still, with its entertainingly fun atmosphere and Regency note, CUPBOARD KISSES is a great read and highly recommended. MaryGrace Meloche.

I first read this novel almost 10 years ago; I enjoyed it then, and I enjoyed again when I reread it a few days ago. The plot of this novel revolves around Cristabel Swann, and the unfortunate set of circumstances that cause quite a few people to mistake her for a high-class courtesan.Cristabel teaches music at a borading school. Her only outlet from this rather deary task is her day dreams of owning her own home and having a private income to go with it. And her only hope of ever achieving this dream lies in the belief that she will one day inherit her uncle's house and whatever monies comes with it. So, when Cristabel receives a letter from her uncle's lawyer requesting her presence in London, she impulsively quits her job and sets out to receive her inheritance. Imagine her horror when upon her arrival she discovers that her uncle has gambled all he owned away to a loutish naval captain! Aghast at her situation, the captain offers Cristabel a job as the landlady of a boarding house in Kensington that her uncle formerly owned. What neither the captian nor Cristabel realise is that the house is actually a high-class bordello. And so the sweet and somewhat naive Cristabel finds herself looking after a stable of young "working" women who seem to have a lot of admirers and who seem not to have to go to work very much. Soon Cristabel is making friends with her "boarders" and meeting all kinds of people. And for the first time ever, she even seems to have a beau of her own, even if he is a tad too familiar in his attentions. Things are looking up indeed for Cristabel Swann. But what will she do when she discovers exactly what kind of house it is she is running, and why her beau is so forward?What really makes this book work is the central character in this novel: Cristabel Swann. I really felt for the young woman who had so few friends and who spendt her time daydreaming about having her own house and possessing at least one pretty dress; I entered fully into her feelings of anger and disappointment when she discovered that she had no inheritance at all, only a mountain of her uncle's debts; and I cheered when Cristabel started her rant on the perfidy of men. The men in this book, and there were a few, while playing somewhat pivotal roles were completely secondary to the plot -- this is Cristabel's story. And Barbara Metzger tells it in a deft, capable and magical manner. Cristabel Swann in a heroine that will charm and win hearts. A thoroughly fun read.