The Widow and the Rake

by Jeanne Savery

Five years after Lady Joanna Ransome broke her engagement to Pierce Reston, Duke of Stornway, and married another soldier, the Duke returns to find that Joanna's husband has been lost in battle. Original.

Genres: Romance, Fiction, Historical Romance

352 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1993

About the author

Jeanne Savery has lived and travelled in Great Britain with her spouse, an American Professor of British Politics. An American herself, she is descended from the English (via her father) and the Scots (via her mother).

She first read the Regency Romances of Georgette Heyer while living in Sidcup, Kent. She reread them while living in Whitstable, Kent. The dialogue was charming, but the detail was forbidding: No mistakes! That's the watchword.

For library research, she amassed (and read) a library of diaries, letters, memoirs, yearbooks, etc., from the era. For field research, she (and her spouse) repeatedly crisscrossed the island of Great Britain. Their two daughters fondly recall a family jaunt (with bed and breakfast) in August, 1973: London to Pembroke to Chester to Carlisle to Stirling to Edinburgh to Hawick ... to London.

She published her first Regency Romance in 1991. Since then, she has published more numerous novels and novellas.

She has received the Reader's Choice Award and been awarded the Holt Medallion. She is a member of Novelists, Inc. and Romance Writers of America.

Reviews

[Roberta · Rating 3 out of 5]

A well written book. Some may look at it as a second chance at love book but it might be seen as a "have your cake and eat it, too" book.

The dashing Pierce Reston, Duke of Stornway, grew up next door to Lady Joanna Ransome and assumed he would marry her. But first he intended to enjoy himself in London before getting tied down in marriage. Lady Joanna worshiped Pierce but he was gone and she was courted by another man who she married. Now her husband is dead and Pierce Reston is back in town.

[Pat · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lady Jo never expected to see Pierce again. The dark and dashing duke was as devilishly attractive as ever, yet she knew she daren't trust him. After all, hadn't the rogue nearly single-handedly sabotaged her first trip to the altar? And here he was, pursuing her all over again! Jo vowed to avoid him at all costs, but she could scarcely resist the attraction that flared between them, nor could she deny the yearning of her own heart. For when it came to love, the second time was, truly, a charm.

I found all of these characters kind of thick headed at times. If there was the slightest chance of misconstruing a remark, they were off on the wrong track. By page 300, I wanted to scream. If you can ignore that, the rest of the story is good.

[Sylvia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Regency