A Match for Melissa

by Kathryn Kirkwood

Forced to become a maid to her two stepsisters during the London season, Melissa meets the most extraordinary man while escaping her duties during a society ball after he sweeps her into his arms for a waltz, and through many adventures and mistaken identity, these two lovers will seal their fate. Original.

Genres: Romance, Regency Romance, Traditional Regency

224 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 1998

About the author

Pseudonym for Joanne Fluke

These Regency Romances are "by" the mother of fictional character Hannah Swenson; Kathryn Kirkwood is Dolores Swenson's pseudonym.

Reviews

[QNPoohBear · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a retelling of Cinderella, without magic and set in real life early 19th century London. This story is incredibly simple and light that it doesn't require any sort of thought. It's just the sort of pleasant thing I was looking for. I can't say that I enjoyed the story very much though. The characters were just TOO good and selfless. I found them all boring, especially Lissa. I wasn't attracted to the hero. I think he's an idiot and doesn't deserve Lissa at all. How could he fail to recognize her at the end? That part was forced to fit the Cinderella story and didn't fit with the rest of the plot. The writing is OK. There's quite a bit of period description, especially of food, which I really liked. I liked the depictions of the social life and customs of the era but the story just didn't feel realistic at all. I love a good fairy tale romance but there has to be more to the story than that. I'm just not into straight up fairy tales, as much as I try. Read this one only if you love fairy tales.

Dolores Swenson's debut Regency novel reads like her daughter Hannah wrote it. Joanne Fluke's website

[Shae · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute Cinderella story. The author went a little overboard with period lingo which made the book less enjoyable to read. She also threw in a few too many coincidences once the pair was already well in love. If you absolutely love fairy tale retellings, you'll love this one. Otherwise, there are far better ones in the genre to check out.

[Bonna Hicks · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute little fluff book to read when you're not sure what to read.
Its predictable yet fun. Kind of like any basic lifetime love story. It just makes you feel good rooting for the orphan and wanting to b*tchslap the stepmom. ;)

[Norma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Your typical Cinderalla story, you know the ending from the first page, but still an entertaining read.

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this when I was 14 :) It is a typical Cinderella story. I loved it when I was 14, haven't read it since but it was fun then :)

[Renee P · Rating 2 out of 5]

Melissa and whats-his-name were disgusting towards the end. A book from another book! Love it, especially all the references to Hannah, and Lake Eden.

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

delightful!