The Wedding Wish

"The Wedding Wish" finishes the Creswell sisters trilogy, and I think that it is the best one of the three. The characters are better developed, as are the many subplots. Debbie Raleigh has done a wonderful job of weaving together the several diverse subplots into one magnificent whole, so that the end result is one very interesting and intriguing romance novel. After another public blow up with Lady Broswell, flirtatious Rachel Creswell has decided to take the war into the enemy camp by accepting her good friend's (Violet Carlfield) invitation to visit her in the country and celebrate Violet's engagement of marriage. Rachel, of course, is the youngest daughter of that notorious jewel thief, the Devilish Dandy; and ever since her father's arrest (and daring escape from prison), Rachel has been thumbing her nose at the London ton by attending every fashionable do, and behaving as outrageously and as flirtatiously as possible. For high sticklers like Lady Broswell, Rachel's behaviour is beyond the pale. And when she upbraids Rachel publicly and quite viciously at the London Opera House, Rachel decides to settle Lady Broswell's hash once and for all. It is Rachel's plan to visit her friend Violet (Violet lives just a stone's throw away from the Broswell estate), and to detach Lord Newell away from the Broswell grasp (Lady Broswell has earmarked Newell for one of her daughters). However, once at the Carlfield estate, Rachel finds that things are not going exactly according to plan. To begin with father has decided (for reasons of his own) to tag along, and Rachel cannot help but fear for his safety; and then she finds that her sweet and shy friend is being forced to marry a rather sanctimonious and dry stick of a man. But the biggest complication comes in the form of the mysterious inventor Anthony Clarke. A gentleman, whom unlike others, Rachel cannot wrap around her finger, but who makes her senses swim. Suddenly the plan to seduce Newell away from the Broswell camp seems completely unappetizing. Distracted by worry for both her father and friend, Rachel must now decide what it is she really wants -- revenge on Lady Broswell or a chance at love with Anthony.What I really liked about this novel was that we got to see another side of Rachel Creswell. Hitherto, we'd only seen the care-for-all and spendthrift side of her character; but with "The Wedding Wish" we get to see the caring, compassionate and loyal side of Rachel. This made her a much more appealing and complex heroine, and one that I really liked. I also liked the manner in which Raleigh allowed for the romance (which was quite electric) between Rachel and Anthony to unfold; and that in spite of the fact that Anthony was described as being a rather reclusive individual and of an intellectual bent, he was not portrayed as a stiff, sanctimonious twit, but as incredibly appealing and sensual gentleman instead. "The Wedding Wish" is a terrific read and should not be missed!

I enjoyed the whole series that Debbie Raleigh wrote in connection with this. This was about 1 of the 3 daughters of a noble jewel thief.This daughter was considered the wild one of the bunch and her adventures. I especially like the interaction of the heroine with her father who is in disguise and with the hero. I was happy to read that Debbie Raleigh is writing another series. She does a very good job with them and I already have them entered to pick them up as soon as they come out.