So… this was a tough one… I liked and disliked this book at the same time so I made peace with myself and compromised with three stars. First, I have to say that there are themes and topics covered in this book that have, thankfully, evolved over the course of time. I’m 100% sure that if this story were re-written these topics that I am alluding to would be either deleted or changed… So keeping in mind that this story was originally written in 1978, I ventured on and forgave the antiquity of these themes.
Moving on… I liked the heroine and the plot. I thought that the plot was very original. Katie Kendrick is in a tough situation. Her name is soiled by her father’s horrible reputation. All of English society stays away from her father like the plague, which is understandable since he is a reprehensible character. Unfortunately, very few characters in this story are pleasant, including our hero- Lord Linden. He is pretty much a jerk. Although he is a complete jerk, the woman cannot help but throw themselves at him. Why? I have no idea. I think that the writing of this story was a good indicator of how men were viewed and how women were viewed (my opinion).
Katie and Lord Linden meet in a gin house while Katie is disguised as a boy. There are two reason for her disguise. One, woman are not allowed to work in the gin house and two to protect her virtue. Katie is very beautiful and men are captivated by her beauty. Zack is Katie’s “brother”. He looks after her when her father –the bad baron-disappears. Katie’s father is a terrible example and not a very good guardian, he disappears quite frequently. His current disappearance has Zack in a panic and he basically “sells” her to Lord Linden.
Lord Linden, although a terrible character, feels bad for Katie and tries to help her. He just can’t figure out how given her situation-she basically has no one. As the story progresses Lord Linden’s character really evolves and he can’t help fall in love with Katie. Although completely out of character for him, he is honorable and respectful to her. Katie is sweet but it’s hard to imagine how she survived on her own. Most of the time she is terrified or running for help. As I mentioned before, keeping in mind the time that this story was written it is enjoyable and very sweet.
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