Lady In The Briars

Black Sheep Trilogy #2

by Carola Dunn

Rebecca Nuthall, a supposed meek companion, is saved from drowning by Lord John Danville. Ordered abroad by his father for a frivolous duel, John convinces his cousin to employ Rebecca as governess when they all journey to St. Petersburg, and is astonished at the way she blossoms - until she's arrested for espionage! Once again, John must risk his life to rescue her.

Genres: Romance, Regency, Historical Romance, Historical Fiction, Historical, Fiction, Regency Romance

351 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1990

About the author

Carola Dunn is the author of more than 30 Regency romances, as well as 16 mysteries (the Daisy Dalrymple mystery series is set in England in the 1920s). Ms. Dunn was born and grew up in England, where she got a B.A. in Russian and French from Manchester University. She travelled as far as Fiji before returning to settle in California. After 30 years in the US, she says she still sounds as if she arrived a month ago.

Prior to writing, Ms. Dunn’s various jobs included market research, child-care, construction--from foundation trenches to roofing--and writing definitions for a dictionary of science and technology. She wrote her first novel in 1979, a Regency which she sold to Warner Books.

Now living in Eugene, Oregon, Ms. Dunn has a son in California who has just made her a grandmother, and a large black dog named Willow who takes her for a walk by the Willamette River each morning. (www.belgravehouse.com)

Reviews

[CatBookMom · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not as good as several others written by Carola Dunn, some of which are favorites for re-reading, such as The Improper Governess or Lavender Lady.

"It was OK" is just exactly what I thought. I'm trying to get into the prequel of this Black Sheep's Daughter, and I think it's going to be DNF.

[Wealhtheow · Rating 2 out of 5]

The day she turns 21, Rebecca runs away from her abusive uncle. She becomes a lady's companion, but the state of terror she lived in for years has left its mark.
Lord John Danville stops in to see his family after accidentally wounding someone in a duel. While there, he is intrigued by their new companion--the shy and timid Rebecca. He contrives to have her sent to Russia (where he's headed to be a diplomat) with him. For a few months, he pretends to be a dissolute nobleman while spying on the Russian army, and she attends sparkling parties and attracts some notice. But when John's ulterior motives are discovered, it is Rebecca who is seized and imprisoned.

I've liked Dunn in the past, so I was surprised by how much this book disappointed me. Rebecca is amazingly obtuse in regards to John's feelings for her, and continually tries to martyr herself. John, who is obvious about his attraction to Rebecca for the first 100 pages (manipulating his family into bringing Rebecca to Russia, losing his breath when he sees her all dressed up, getting angry when other men show interest in her, etc) somehow manages to forget that he thinks she's totally hot right around pg 180. Then we the readers have to sit through some 20 pages of him trying to figure out how he feels about her. Dude. You already know. The author just decided the book needed to be a little longer.

[Olga Godim · Rating 2 out of 5]

A mediocre novel. The Russian theme annoyed me. I grew up in Russia, and for me, all the talk of the Russian soul, the Russian character, and the like was somewhat off. Nothing authentic in it, just pretense. A sham Russia at best.

[QNPoohBear · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rebecca Nuthall has lives most of her life with an abusive uncle. The day after her twenty-first birthday, she secretly leaves his house, vowing to never let another man have power over her. She takes a position as companion to an elderly relative to make her own way in the world. Lord John Danville, younger son of the Duke of Stafford, finds himself in hot water after a joke goes wrong. His father, tired of John's wild lifestyle, threatens to send John into exile. John wishes to go into Parliament on the Whig side, but first, his father promises to have John sent on a mission for the Diplomatic Corps. John's first stop on his journey is his brother Tom's home, where he encounters Rebecca hanging from a bridge in an attempt to rescue a little boy from drowning. John rescues Rebecca and thereafter feels protective of her. John's adventurous cousin Teresa arrives with her Diplomat husband Sir Andrew, and their little daughter Esperanza. John adores little Peri as well as his brother's two children and finds that Rebecca is also good with the little ones. He recommends Rebecca for the position of governess as John, Teresa and Sir Andrew leave on a spying mission for Russia. At first Rebecca is timid but soon finds herself enjoying the social life in St. Petersburg; she even catches the attention of a prince! John's protective instincts turn to love as the situation in St. Petersburg becomes dangerous for innocent Rebecca. Joh

n is willing to risk his life to save the woman he loves and convince her that not all men are like her uncle. This book is told mainly from John's point of view. His development from wild child to reliable man is very good and realistic. I liked John a lot. He isn't too high handed and his occasional flares of temper are justified. Rebecca is a very different sort of heroine. She has difficulty overcoming abuse and for most of the book she's very meek, though has strong opinions about right and wrong. Teresa is the best character in the novel. She's lively and fun and a really strong woman. She's a good role model for her daughter as well. When the true adventure happened, I couldn't put the book down. The rescue is accomplished in a daring but realistic manner. This is a pretty good book for those who enjoy traditional Regencies.

[Amy S · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story continues from the first book with another tale of traveling and adventure in regency romance form. The story had a good structure around the Duke’s son sent off in disgrace and his efforts at redemption.
The female main character was one of those almost cliche abused women found in the romance genre that just need an alpha male to fall desperately in love with them for all their problems to be solved. Ugh.
Not sure if the closing scenes showed the heroine to have found the inner strength the author attempted to portray. The author really put this lady through the ringer without much chance to rescue herself so her need of the hero was clear, but a true happy ending was hinted at, in that she also didn’t need him but was able to choose him, which upped my rating from 3 to 4 stars.
Violence, no sex, some mostly mild swearing. Themes of women being abused and references to torture, alcoholism, prostitution and animal cruelty

[Laurie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dunn majored in Russian and French in college, according to her author bio, and so she does a rather good job of taking us to 19th century Russia. There is snow, vodka, and spying. The rakish hero learns to drive a troika. The heroine speaks Russian due to a Russian grandmother, and both of them have a tendency to save the lives of small children. The heroine has fled an abusive guardian, which has left her with a tendency to fear violence and raised voices. She helps the hero be a better person, leaving his carousing ways behind, and he helps her trust her instincts. Another interesting theme is the anti-slavery movement in Britain and the first stirrings of anti-tsarist sentiment in Russia.

[Alice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lord John Danville finds his Lady

The adventurous Andrew and Teresa are off again to Russia this time taking Rebecca, a relation to Muriel who was originally betrothed to Andrew, but married Teresa's cousin Lord Danville instead. Also going is Lord John, Danville's brother who needs to depart due to a duel that went awry. It would be more fun to read the first in the series, but it can be read as a standalone. There's quite a bit of action in Russia and even more when they need to escape. I'm enjoying the series a lot.

[v · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent

Goody, goody!!! This regency has it all. Accidents, spying, nobles, Russians, dungeons, danger and most importantly love. A great read!

[AnnMarie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun and fluffy, a quick read and a satisfying, happy ending.

[L · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another good one from Carola Dunn. On to the last in this series.

[Amanda Caswell · Rating 4 out of 5]

While not as good as a Dinah Dean novel about Regency Russia, it was still an enjoyable read and Russian practices were better explained than in Dean's novels. I like to read of characters in different circumstances and the issue of the heroine's abuse was intriguing, if not the best representation I've ever read.

[Lori · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another look at Carola Dunn's writing... I'm only familiar with her from her Daisy Dalyrymple series, which is quite different from her Regency romances.

This romance was good, as far as they go. Predictable and follows the formula well, with a hero and heroine that we want to see triumph and find love.

I did especially enjoy the time in Russia - the politics and all. It was nice to see our hero and heroine outside of England or France.

Very entertaining.

[☆Ruth☆ · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was ok, but not one of my favourites. Some of the narrative takes place in Russia (I suppose the author was trying to add some diversity) but it really wasn't very convincing. However I did finish the book, so gave it more than one star.

[Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have enjoyed all of Carola Dunn’s regency books I have read so far. They are a nice, quick, easy read and they have a Jane Austen feel to them. Each book is different enough from the others to feel fresh and her enjoyable writing style is consistent.

[Leslie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Haven't seen one of these Walker Regency novels in years. Carola Dunn was always a favorite too.

[Harini Gopalswami Srinivasan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as much fun as the first book in this trilogy (Black Sheep's Daughter), and the heroine is a bit milk-and-watery. Still, a pleasant read. Now on to Polly and the Prince!