A Certain Want of Reason
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A Certain Want of Reason
by Kate Dolan
Edition: paperback, 2007
Synopsis: Lucia Wright needs a holiday. After years of caring for her “eccentric” younger brother and sister in the country, she accepts a friend’s invitation to spend a few weeks enjoying the season in London only to find that life among the city’s elite may be even crazier than at home.
Lord Edmund Rutherford needs an escape. Sworn since childhood to a woman he cannot abide, he finds himself trapped by the strictures of society and the expectations of those around him. The solution seems simple-feign madness and be sent away for a short period, encouraging his intended bride to end their long engagement, thereby securing his freedom.
Lucia and Edmund are thrown together by chance, and while he should be the last man on earth she would find appealing, Lucia becomes fascinated by the gentleman who seems rational to no one but her. Together they are forced to weather a madhouse, the vengeful scheming of a woman who wants Edmund’s title at all costs and a world that appears to have lost all reason.
Lord Rutherford makes the rather rash decision that the only way to get out of an arranged marriage with a young lady he dislikes is to pretend to be mad. His antics brings him into Lucia Wright’s sphere, a young lady who knows quite a lot about dealing with those who have ‘a certain want of reason.’
I’m going to admit, this was hilarious. Lord Rutherford’s actions as a ‘mad’ person mad me laugh out loud. The plot remains clean, going only so far as kisses.
The only thing that kept me from giving this five stars is just how unlikely I found the plot. Yes, it was amusing but I couldn’t stop thinking ‘Oh, this is going to have some bad consequences when Lord Rutherford tries to return to society.’ And the book didn’t go into that. They end on the note that all would be well, and I’m not convinced it would.
Still, this was a fun read that I would recommend to those who enjoy comedic if not exactly true to life tales.
