Rating: 
Summary: A great romance - 4 great romances!
Review: Stephanie Laurens has done it again. Or, as she in fact wrote it earlier in her career (this was the second book Laurens ever wrote), she has set the precedent for her future work. A well written, fast paced Regency Romance - in fact four for the price of one.Max Rotherbridge inherited more than a dukedom on the death of his father eighteen months previous to the opening of the book - unknown to him he also inherited 4 wards. An established rake, he is initially dismayed to learn of his responsibilities, but dismay quickly turns into something else when he is presented with the eldest of the four sisters, Caroline Twinning. It appears that Twinnings have something of a thing for rakes, as the four gorgeous sisters cut a swath through the ton and have the men at their feet. They may seem young, with the exception of 26 year old Caroline, but their eighteen months in America have given them a great deal of polish, and the freedom to discover what it is they really want in life. This is a truly delightful tale and for me the principle enjoyment is the relationship between the females in the story. Set in a time when women rarely triumphed, here Caroline and her sisters Sarah, Arabella & Lizzy, their chaperone (Max's aunt) and the friends they make in London are able to set their goals, pursue and obtain them - even if it takes a little scheming and risk to get what they want. Each is a true character in their own right, and yet takes comfort in the relationship with their sisters (in the modern sense). Their story is told with a great deal of humour and style. There has to be some sacrifice in squeezing four stories into one volume. This is firstly that Caroline and Max's is the main romance - the other three are something more than subplots and yet slightly less than a fully developed story in their own right. And finally, of course, is the improbability that all four romances should resolve themselves at the same time. To some extent this is satisfactorily dealt with by making the suitors either friends or relatives of Max. Each romance develops with a different plan of attack, and the charming thing is that although more confident than the typical deb, none of the four women are sure they will be able to hold out for marriage, as they themselves fall in love. If you enjoy romance and the Regency genre, you will enjoy this well written example. Regular readers of Laurens will not be disappointed - I certainly wasn't.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't be deceived
Review: Stephanie Laurens has dragged this dreadful book out of the bottom of her desk where she should have left it. This is not a recently written book but an old manuscript she had lying around. Poor writing and miserable characters doom this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Pre-Cynster Laurens: much better writing, but flawed
Review: Stephanie Laurens is a talented writer and also reasonably knowledgeable about her period, but in recent years she's been wasting that talent writing 'historical romances' which are little more than Black Lace books in disguise. This book, however, is one of her earlier romances, written at a time when she was still trying to stay true to the Regency period. This is somewhat reminiscent of Georgette Heyer's Regency Buck, in that we have an arrogant, rakish lord who discovers that, along with the title he has recently inherited (in this case, Duke of Twyford), he has also inherited some wards. Here, his wards are four beautiful sisters, all unmarried, all wealthy and all, he knows, who will be the targets of every rake in town. He himself is hugely attracted to the eldest Miss Twinning, Caroline, and finds himself plotting to make her his mistress. Were she really his ward, it would be contrary to any sense of honour - even his honour - to seduce her, but under the terms of her parents' will, she is of age and so not his ward. Yet he pretends to her that she is, so that he'll be free to be with her without any suspicion. There are four romances in this book but, as some other reviewers have noted, none of them is really satisfying. In an attempt to fit them all in, Laurens rushes through crucial developments - such as her heroes actually realising that they are in love with the women they're pursuing. Even Max - Twyford - whose story is the main one appears to fall in love without the readers ever realising how this momentous event happens. One minute he is pursuing Caroline in order to make her his mistress; the next (and this is quite early in the book) we see him musing that seducing her is no longer his primary aim. Why not? What made him fall in love? We don't know, because Laurens doesn't show us. Similarly with Lord Darcy, the suitor of Sarah Twinning: Sarah rejects his attempts at seduction, and he gives up, retiring to his Irish estate in order to show her that he's lost interest. And yet he comes back and pursues her again. Why? With what object? This book does show signs of the pattern Laurens fell into with her Cynster books: her heroes all seem to fall in love too quickly, without any showing on Laurens' part of why and how this happens. Given the rushed nature of the individual love stories, which does leave readers unsatisfied, she would have been better advised to have made it a four-book series, culminating in Max and Caroline's story. Nevertheless, it's an entertaining read, and definitely far, far better than the majority of her later work. wmr-uk
Rating:
Summary: Pre-Cynster Laurens: much better writing, but flawed
Review: Stephanie Laurens is a talented writer and also reasonably knowledgeable about her period, but in recent years she's been wasting that talent writing `historical romances' which are little more than Black Lace books in disguise. This book, however, is one of her earlier romances, written at a time when she was still trying to stay true to the Regency period. This is somewhat reminiscent of Georgette Heyer's Regency Buck, in that we have an arrogant, rakish lord who discovers that, along with the title he has recently inherited (in this case, Duke of Twyford), he has also inherited some wards. Here, his wards are four beautiful sisters, all unmarried, all wealthy and all, he knows, who will be the targets of every rake in town. He himself is hugely attracted to the eldest Miss Twinning, Caroline, and finds himself plotting to make her his mistress. Were she really his ward, it would be contrary to any sense of honour - even his honour - to seduce her, but under the terms of her parents' will, she is of age and so not his ward. Yet he pretends to her that she is, so that he'll be free to be with her without any suspicion. There are four romances in this book but, as some other reviewers have noted, none of them is really satisfying. In an attempt to fit them all in, Laurens rushes through crucial developments - such as her heroes actually realising that they are in love with the women they're pursuing. Even Max - Twyford - whose story is the main one appears to fall in love without the readers ever realising how this momentous event happens. One minute he is pursuing Caroline in order to make her his mistress; the next (and this is quite early in the book) we see him musing that seducing her is no longer his primary aim. Why not? What made him fall in love? We don't know, because Laurens doesn't show us. Similarly with Lord Darcy, the suitor of Sarah Twinning: Sarah rejects his attempts at seduction, and he gives up, retiring to his Irish estate in order to show her that he's lost interest. And yet he comes back and pursues her again. Why? With what object? This book does show signs of the pattern Laurens fell into with her Cynster books: her heroes all seem to fall in love too quickly, without any showing on Laurens' part of why and how this happens. Given the rushed nature of the individual love stories, which does leave readers unsatisfied, she would have been better advised to have made it a four-book series, culminating in Max and Caroline's story. Nevertheless, it's an entertaining read, and definitely far, far better than the majority of her later work. wmr-uk
Rating: 
Summary: Yawn!
Review: Stephanie Laurens writes Regency historicals filled with sizzling sexy heroes out to pursue the heroine from the outset. Not my cup of tea, but at least I know the storyline. Recently I tried some of her older traditional Regencies which have been republished by Harlequin. If you are a Laurens completist (as in wanting her entire backlist) this is a good way to get them - although the style is very different. I cannot say that I enjoyed this book. I was reading a number of books with multiple romances lately, and this is by far the worst. Not only did the idea of four beautiful (ravishingly beautiful) young sisters, of whom three are eighteen, nineteen and twenty (poor mother!) rather pall, but so did the idea of four rakes chasing these young women. And the thought of a guardian and the guardian's brother and friends out to seduce (i.e. ruin) four young women of good family under the protection - legal and social - of one of them made me feel nauseous. Caroline, the eldest sister, was too good to be true, and far too innocent. If I want to read a guardian-ward traditional regency romance where I don't like the hero too much, I vastly prefer Heyer's Regency Buck. At least, the heroine there was not perfect! Unless you adore anything by Stephanie Laurens or you are really fond of books with several impossibly beautiful sisters in it, you might want to read another book by her (or any other author). Try her first Cynster book - Devil's Bride. A much better read.
Rating:
Summary: Four romances for the price of one!
Review: The new Duke of Twyford had inherited more than his uncle's estates: he, the most notorious rake in London, had also become the guardian of four drop-dead gorgeous women, all of whom were determined to net a husband during the Season! Twyford's duty was to secure suitable husbands for them - and yet he was irrevocably drawn to his oldest ward, Caroline. It was completely improper for Twyford to attempt to seduce his own ward, but, as the most notorious rake in London, he could hardly allow the opportunity to pass him by! As three other rakes also attempt to seduce the Twinning sisters, each rake soon learns that only one word, the most dreadful word in a rake's vocabulary, can get the Twinning sisters into their beds - marriage! I was frequently confused when reading this book. Not only were there the four Twinning sisters (Caroline, Bella, Sarah, and Lizzie) and their beaux, but there was also Amanda Crowbridge, the Jennings girl (don't remember her first name), who were both friends of the Twinnings, and Sir Ralph. I found it difficult to remember who was pining away for whom, and which Twinning sister was which. Besides being confused, it was also difficult to develop any of the secondary romance plots to any great detail in 300 pages. I would have prefered it if the author would have devoted AT LEAST four different books (Amanda Crowbridge and the Jennings girl could have had their own books too!) to the Twinning sisters' exploits during their Season, rather than try to cram it all into one book, which left a lot of unanswered questions and too little background information. For example, although the Twinnings' experiences in America were hinted at, for being such a pivotal time in their lives, their experiences were not described in any detail. Still, I can't write off the book because I was thoroughly confused through about half of it. The premise was good, and I did get a good laugh out of the antics of the sisters. I also had a great laugh at the expense of the poor beaux who were attempting to seduce the sisters without the tangles of marriage! The book is really good, just incredibly fast-paced and bare-bones when it comes to descriptions, previous histories, etc.
Rating:
Summary: Four in love with Lauren's regal style
Review: The recurring romance storyline of "rakes falling in love with the ladies in the ton" predominates her Cynster saga - and originates from her earlier Harlequin regency romance as well, including the featured title Four In Hand in 1999. It is hence a largely predictible plot that is penned straight by Laurens with little surprises. Despite this, FOUR IN HAND is kept spry in its narration by Lauren's firm grasp in her regal style. Max Rotherbridge was a viscount before he ascends to dukedom after the demise of his uncle in an accident. Little did he expects his obligations would include offering his protection to four delectable ladies of Twinning. Their stunning beauty propel them to the toast of the ton - and the duke of Twyford finds it a daunting task to fend off rakes and unwanted attraction. Even he himself is stumbled by his desire for the eldest Twinning sister Caroline - and it would prove a scandal if he falls in love with his ward.... It is a light-hearted and wispy romance that is kept bustling through Lauren's vivacious descriptions of baroque balls, glitzy parties where gossips are rampant among priggish countesses, flirtations are exchanged and hearts are lost. Her characters are equally measured in terms of exuberance - there is the matured Caroline, the naughty minx Arabella, the innocent Lizzie and the sensible Sarah. Lady Augusta Benborough, Max's aunt and the girls' chaperon also makes a welcoming presence. They each find their suitors and ultimately marriage proposals from the rakes... I do like Lauren's style and passionate prose but I would even gladly welcome a change of her plots anytime to banish the staleness of the typical "rakes tempting ladies" storyline - that has been recycled from 1999 till now.
Rating:
Summary: One of my favourites!!
Review: This book is the reason i will always like Stephanie Laurens. No matter how tedious some of her books have become I will always look fondly on her because of this marvelous novel, which i first read many years ago, but which i lost as all my friends wanted it too and it finally disintegrated from overuse.
Its funny, quick witted and cleverly paced. definitely a keeper!!!
Rating:
Summary: Boring, Bland and Blah
Review: This book was another Lauren's book that I just couldn't get into. I would read a few pages and put it down. It was definately NOT a page turner. I couldn't get into the story which was so bland and boring and spread out among so many characters. There was no action at all, no heart wrenching moments, although there could have been. Laurens constantly "overwrites" the story by explaining and explaining on stupid sub plots you could care less about. Caroline, the heroine of the story (I think), was not even fully developed as a character. It seems all she does is smile. That's all I can remember about her character, and I just read a few pages more last night. I am just about finished and almost don't want to. Oh, where is a Julia Quinn or a Kat Martin when you need it?!
Rating:
Summary: Okay but....
Review: While I found parts of this book very entertaining, I found it fell short of what I am accustomed to from this author. I read in one of the earlier reveiws that this was one of her earlier works and that makes me feel better. My main gripe with this book is that Ms.Laurens brought in so many secondary characters that I found it difficult to get into Caroline and Max's story. When they finally do get together, the reader is left wondering how it happened because you are literally thrown 10 or 12 other people that have sub plots. Not only do you read about Caro and Max but also her four sisters (on a somewhat individual basis), their potential beau's, two other girls that the four befriend, an aunt, and a slew of gentleman bevying to win the hand of one of the four girls hands. Its a book you should probably borrow from someone. Don't buy it.
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