The Charm School

The Charm School is truly a delightful book. I confess to feeling sorry I had to leave Captain Ryan Calhoun and the exotic warmth of Rio behind when I finished. The attention to details, such as the popular music of the time, the clothing, seafaring expressions and knowledge, the laws regarding runaway slaves, and the smoking of hemp in the 1800s, makes it apparent that Ms. Wiggs did a great deal of research for her novel. Further, the integration of Isadora's story with that of The Ugly Duckling is both clever and charming. Ms. Wigg's elevating her novels in this fashion is greatly appreciated by this reader.

The Charm School is the first book that I've read by Susan Wiggs, and I must comment that she is an wonderful author.Isadora Peabody is a brilliant spinster with dreams of marrying a certain young man who doesn't even know she exists. Overweight, wearing spectales, shy and smarter than any man Isadora has little chance of ever marrying or fitting into society. When she hears of a ship leaving for Rio that is owned by the father of the man she is infatuated with, she jumps at the chance to go on board and learn the ways of the shipping business.Captain Ryan Calhoun isn't happy about Isadora's appearance on board his ship. He'll do anything (and does!) to make her miserable. He's surprised when he finds himself attracted to dowdy Isadora.A wonderfully written novel, The Charm School is one of those romances that must be read over and over again!

I've never read a book like this in my life. Judging by the cover, I would have thought it to be a trashy sex novel. But it ended up being one of the best books I've ever read. I loved the setting, it made me miss the ocean. As soon as I finished it, I wanted to start reading it all over again!

It had everything. Wonderful characters, strong plot, touching momments. It is probably the best romance book I have read this year! I felt connected to these characters and wanted to find out more about their future. I reached the last page I could not let them go, they were too dear. This book could easily have followed the basic "romance formula" but S. Wiggs gave this story depth and poignancy. Buy this book and keep it forever.

She's the gauche misfit daughter of prominent Boston socialites. He's the "bad boy" abolitionist son of a slave-holding Southern plantation owner. Although they hate each other on sight, it soon becomes obvious to everyone except them that they need each other to reach their full potential. Falling in love in the lush tropical paradise of Rio de Janeiro (I'm ready to buy my ticket!), they must be prepared to face the reality of their respective families back home.This book has something important to say to all of us who have endured the "ugly duckling" years. Between the poignant tears and uninhibited laughter of self-discovery aboard a ship with a very special crew and the ugly reality of slavery in the pre-Civil War South, no reader will be able to escape with dry eyes.