Deirdre and Don Juan (A Regency Romance)

Rating:
Summary: A Lovely Story
Review: I have been reading all of Jo Beverley's novels from the earliest to this point (still have a lot to go) and found, as always that I love this women's style.

In Deirdre and Don Juan (he is only part Spanish, hence the nickname)you have a hero who, rather than divorce his wife after she left him, used the marriage to fend off any like-minded mamas and was able to conceal his hurt behind the many dalliances he engaged in.

In the beginning, this suave and handsome man appears quite arrogant, which as you find later in the novel, was a shield to protect him from the hurt and devastation he experienced when his beautiful bride left him after 6 months of marriage. The reasons are explained later in the book.

With Deirdre, however, one has to wonder why even a plain, young, intelligent woman from a good family would want to marry a commoner mathemetician with little prospects. She convinced herself that she was needed and, he was handsome, left her to her embroidery which was her passion, but there was very little communication.

Don Juan finds himself a widower and before too many people find out he must find a suitable wife, to beget an heir now that his older brother has passed on and it is now up to him to set up his nursery.

The tale between Deirdre and Everdon (his real name) is so sweet. He assumed all he needed was a biddable brood mare and plain was just fine with him, there was no passion or lust involved in the choice, in fact Deirdre was his mother's suggestion. What follows was an awakening on the part of both of the participants, with a little push from Don Juan at the end, that just shows the talent for storytelling by Ms. Beverley.

I really liked this book, and if you had read her earlier novels, you will see characters from her previous books enter the scenes to add to the continuity of the time period.

I look forward to reading more and more from Ms. Beverley who is a stellar talent with wonderful gift for storytelling.

Rating:
Summary: A very good traditional Regency but flawed...
Review: Jo Beverley now writes historicals, rather than the traditional Regencies published by Avon. All her traditionals and most of her earlier work is very hard-to-find, and some have amazingly high prices on the secondhand-book (used book) market. Of all these books, I can commend this one DEIRDRE AND DON JUAN, which I have read, and EMILY AND THE DARK ANGEL (which I have not read, but plan to read). Both are slightly unusual takes on the typical Regency plot. The second is rated more highly, but I don't think that the first is *that* far behind. No, it does not rank with the highest, but I will consider this book a keeper.

The story is not of a beauty - Lady Deirdre Stowe is *not* a beauty, although she looks better when she dresses to her own taste rather than that of her mother. She is intelligent, but she also has a rather low opinion of herself, and is willing to settle for a rather inferior man (in terms of affection, rather than his rank). To begin with the beginning however.

The story begins with Mark Juan Carlos Renfrew, Earl of Everdon (aka Don Juan) learning that his wife has finally died abroad. She had left him very early into their marriage, and he had not bothered to divorce her. And as we learn, he is plagued with guilt about his short marriage, although it has enabled him to make merry as a "married" man without fear of the matchmakers. However, since his younger brother has died, it is incumbent on him to marry again, a suitable and plain wife who will be content in the country, and will give him heirs. His mother suggests Lady Deirdre Stowe who shares her passion for embroidery. And off Lord Everdon goes to meet the prospective bride, and to court her.

Lady Deirdre is not pleased. She has been a wallflower all the Season, and she is about to go back home unmarried. And she wants to be unmarried. Why? Because she is in love with a commoner, a mathematician. Her idea of bliss is life in a cosy cottage, embroidering and watching her future husband work on his problems. Never mind that he ignores her almost completely all day. And she will have one little baby to love and care for, or so she hopes.

The Earl of Everdon is stunned to hear that Lady Deirdre prefers a mathematician with no fortune (about 100 pounds a year) to him, a belted earl. He cannot however withdraw from the marriage, having obtained the permission of Lady Deirdre's parents. And Lady Deirdre has promised her mother that she will not turn down any reasonable offer. And so, the engagement continues, but Lord Everdon promises to behave unreasonably (create some scandal) and thus convince Lady Deirdre's mother that he is not a suitable husband.

Of course, Lord Everdon does nothing of the kind. He tries to persuade Lady Deirdre that kissing is fun. And that her mathematician is really a dull sort, although he is more subtle about that. The mathematician is persuaded to go with Lady Deirdre and her mother back to Everdon Park, where we learn many unexpected secrets about Lord Everdon, his first marriage, and his financial condition.

That is the spoiler-free review. Now a critique, to explain why I cannot assign this a higher grade. I loved this book, and read it in one afternoon. And I grew to like both Lady Deirdre and Lord Everdon by the end. I also appreciated the fact that the author had created a half-Spanish half-British earl, and that there was an "other man" rather than an "other woman". Furthermore, this other man is a brilliant mathematician.

Unfortunately, the book has some serious problems. Firstly, given the Earl's situation with his first wife, it is inconceivable that he would have avoided divorcing her because he was afraid of a scandal. What did he think she was creating? Also, the idea that he would avoid a divorce for fear of hurting his wife's parents made little sense, given the vituperative feelings of his mother-in-law (who appears briefly and bizarrely towards the end). A divorce would have been relatively easy for him; it is possible that he could not have divorced her for financial reasons, but she had certainly given him enough cause under the legal system of the time. Also, given that he had no direct heirs, the matter of an heir should have been of greater import to him.

Secondly, the fact that he escaped the matchmakers as a "married" man is a premise or plot device that really annoys me. (It reminds me of a terrible book where a duke plans to marry a dying woman precisely to avoid the matchmakers for a little while).

The fact that he wants a plain well-bred wife willing to breed and remain in the country, and that he seeks his mother's advice, also does not sit well with me. I compared this mentally to Heyer's SYLVESTER, but found that the premise there was far different. The hero there was willing to consider a lady mentioned by his mother, but did not plan to marry her immediately - until she had caught his interest.

Lady Deirdre herself at the outset (and for most of the book) irritated me. If her mathematician had indeed been a worthy man (albeit an absent-minded genius), that would have one thing. She was however in love with a deeply selfish man, who was totally unconcerned with her and her needs and wishes. And she persuaded herself somehow that she was in love. How did she come to have such a poor opinion of herself (well-articulated by her erstwhile lover toward the end)? She was no beauty to be sure, but her parents appeared decent people. There was no explanation of why Deirdre would pick a lowly mathematician, would prefer life in the country (in a small cottage!), or would have such a low opinion of herself.

I thought that the best part of the book was the last third (apart from the bizarre mother-in-law). Here, we learn the truth about the Earl's finances, and about his first marriage (and the irrational sentiments of his first wife). I think that much more could have been made of these. I appreciated the fact that the hero was not overwhelmingly wealthy, and that his father had frittered the family wealth away on improvements to the grounds but had remained a loving father and husband. [Too many fictional fathers spent their money on gambling at cards or dice, at racing, or in the pursuit of fast women. It is refreshing to meet one who overspends on his estate].

At the end, while I was happy for Deirdre and her Don Juan (his middle names, incidentally, did not make a lot of sense), I felt curiously dissatisfied. I felt that both Deirdre and Everdon were lucky to have found each other; she could so easily have married Howard (the mathematician) and discovered only after several children what she had let herself in for. Perhaps, if she had become disillusioned herself, the book would have been stronger. Unfortunately, she seemed to lack an understanding of human motivation, and to be curiously naive about men right to the end. As for Everdon, he was lucky to have found Deirdre, although I could not understand why he wanted to persist with the engagement. [Yes, he realized early on that she was mismatched, and that she would be miserable, but we have little evidence at the outset that he cares that much about other people].

This is not a bad read by any standards. But you might share my sentiments - liking the unusual heroine (and the odd situation the hero and heroine find themselves in) without being happy about how they work their way to a happy ending. I can say that I have had the same feeling about one other book - Joan Wolf's THE GAMBLE, where I also ended up keeping the book, but remained deeply frustrated with the heroine in particular.

Rating = 3.5

Rating:
Summary: A very good traditional Regency but flawed...
Review: Jo Beverley now writes historicals, rather than the traditional Regencies published by Avon. All her traditionals and most of her earlier work is very hard-to-find, and some have amazingly high prices on the secondhand-book (used book) market. Of all these books, I can commend this one DEIRDRE AND DON JUAN, which I have read, and EMILY AND THE DARK ANGEL (which I have not read, but plan to read). Both are slightly unusual takes on the typical Regency plot. The second is rated more highly, but I don't think that the first is *that* far behind. No, it does not rank with the highest, but I will consider this book a keeper.

The story is not of a beauty - Lady Deirdre Stowe is *not* a beauty, although she looks better when she dresses to her own taste rather than that of her mother. She is intelligent, but she also has a rather low opinion of herself, and is willing to settle for a rather inferior man (in terms of affection, rather than his rank). To begin with the beginning however.

The story begins with Mark Juan Carlos Renfrew, Earl of Everdon (aka Don Juan) learning that his wife has finally died abroad. She had left him very early into their marriage, and he had not bothered to divorce her. And as we learn, he is plagued with guilt about his short marriage, although it has enabled him to make merry as a "married" man without fear of the matchmakers. However, since his younger brother has died, it is incumbent on him to marry again, a suitable and plain wife who will be content in the country, and will give him heirs. His mother suggests Lady Deirdre Stowe who shares her passion for embroidery. And off Lord Everdon goes to meet the prospective bride, and to court her.

Lady Deirdre is not pleased. She has been a wallflower all the Season, and she is about to go back home unmarried. And she wants to be unmarried. Why? Because she is in love with a commoner, a mathematician. Her idea of bliss is life in a cosy cottage, embroidering and watching her future husband work on his problems. Never mind that he ignores her almost completely all day. And she will have one little baby to love and care for, or so she hopes.

The Earl of Everdon is stunned to hear that Lady Deirdre prefers a mathematician with no fortune (about 100 pounds a year) to him, a belted earl. He cannot however withdraw from the marriage, having obtained the permission of Lady Deirdre's parents. And Lady Deirdre has promised her mother that she will not turn down any reasonable offer. And so, the engagement continues, but Lord Everdon promises to behave unreasonably (create some scandal) and thus convince Lady Deirdre's mother that he is not a suitable husband.

Of course, Lord Everdon does nothing of the kind. He tries to persuade Lady Deirdre that kissing is fun. And that her mathematician is really a dull sort, although he is more subtle about that. The mathematician is persuaded to go with Lady Deirdre and her mother back to Everdon Park, where we learn many unexpected secrets about Lord Everdon, his first marriage, and his financial condition.

That is the spoiler-free review. Now a critique, to explain why I cannot assign this a higher grade. I loved this book, and read it in one afternoon. And I grew to like both Lady Deirdre and Lord Everdon by the end. I also appreciated the fact that the author had created a half-Spanish half-British earl, and that there was an "other man" rather than an "other woman". Furthermore, this other man is a brilliant mathematician.

Unfortunately, the book has some serious problems. Firstly, given the Earl's situation with his first wife, it is inconceivable that he would have avoided divorcing her because he was afraid of a scandal. What did he think she was creating? Also, the idea that he would avoid a divorce for fear of hurting his wife's parents made little sense, given the vituperative feelings of his mother-in-law (who appears briefly and bizarrely towards the end). A divorce would have been relatively easy for him; it is possible that he could not have divorced her for financial reasons, but she had certainly given him enough cause under the legal system of the time. Also, given that he had no direct heirs, the matter of an heir should have been of greater import to him.

Secondly, the fact that he escaped the matchmakers as a "married" man is a premise or plot device that really annoys me. (It reminds me of a terrible book where a duke plans to marry a dying woman precisely to avoid the matchmakers for a little while).

The fact that he wants a plain well-bred wife willing to breed and remain in the country, and that he seeks his mother's advice, also does not sit well with me. I compared this mentally to Heyer's SYLVESTER, but found that the premise there was far different. The hero there was willing to consider a lady mentioned by his mother, but did not plan to marry her immediately - until she had caught his interest.

Lady Deirdre herself at the outset (and for most of the book) irritated me. If her mathematician had indeed been a worthy man (albeit an absent-minded genius), that would have one thing. She was however in love with a deeply selfish man, who was totally unconcerned with her and her needs and wishes. And she persuaded herself somehow that she was in love. How did she come to have such a poor opinion of herself (well-articulated by her erstwhile lover toward the end)? She was no beauty to be sure, but her parents appeared decent people. There was no explanation of why Deirdre would pick a lowly mathematician, would prefer life in the country (in a small cottage!), or would have such a low opinion of herself.

I thought that the best part of the book was the last third (apart from the bizarre mother-in-law). Here, we learn the truth about the Earl's finances, and about his first marriage (and the irrational sentiments of his first wife). I think that much more could have been made of these. I appreciated the fact that the hero was not overwhelmingly wealthy, and that his father had frittered the family wealth away on improvements to the grounds but had remained a loving father and husband. [Too many fictional fathers spent their money on gambling at cards or dice, at racing, or in the pursuit of fast women. It is refreshing to meet one who overspends on his estate].

At the end, while I was happy for Deirdre and her Don Juan (his middle names, incidentally, did not make a lot of sense), I felt curiously dissatisfied. I felt that both Deirdre and Everdon were lucky to have found each other; she could so easily have married Howard (the mathematician) and discovered only after several children what she had let herself in for. Perhaps, if she had become disillusioned herself, the book would have been stronger. Unfortunately, she seemed to lack an understanding of human motivation, and to be curiously naive about men right to the end. As for Everdon, he was lucky to have found Deirdre, although I could not understand why he wanted to persist with the engagement. [Yes, he realized early on that she was mismatched, and that she would be miserable, but we have little evidence at the outset that he cares that much about other people].

This is not a bad read by any standards. But you might share my sentiments - liking the unusual heroine (and the odd situation the hero and heroine find themselves in) without being happy about how they work their way to a happy ending. I can say that I have had the same feeling about one other book - Joan Wolf's THE GAMBLE, where I also ended up keeping the book, but remained deeply frustrated with the heroine in particular.

Rating = 3.5

Rating:
Summary: The gentleman proposes... and the lady says no!
Review: Mark Juan Carlos Renfrew, Earl of Everdon, is known throughout the ton as Don Juan, and with good reason. He is a rake who has had affair after affair, although he is a married man. But his transgressions aren't without cause: after all, he married very young, and his wife ran off with another man within six months of their wedding. Now, though, he has just heard that she is dead, and he needs to find another wife in a hurry, before the matchmaking mamas hear that there's a new matrimonial prize on the market. Everdon's mother has a solution: propose to her young friend Lady Deirdre Stowe.

Deirdre is not considered to be a great prize on the marriage mart; she is not especially attractive, with too large a nose, and she has a tendency to dress in styles and colours which don't suit her. But this is all part of her plan; she is in love with a penniless mathematician of whom her parents don't approve. She has, however, struck a bargain with them: she will undergo one more season and she will not turn down any respectable offer of marriage she might receive. However, if she receives no offers, they will allow her to marry her Howard. This, then, is the reason for Deirdre's unbecoming apparel and her failure to make herself attractive. But then Everdon proposes, and she's in trouble...

She can't refuse him because of her promise to her parents. So they come to an agreement: she will accept his offer and they will enter into a sham betrothal, and at some point Everdon will contrive to be discovered in compromising circumstances, which will give Deirdre a good reason to end the engagement.

Everdon doesn't particularly like the plan, especially as it will leave him without a fiancée and at the mercy of the sharks in the marriage mart again. He likes it even less once he meets Howard Dunstable and sees how the man treats Deirdre, forever complaining, failing to pay her any attention and clearly intending to treat her as an unpaid housekeeper once they're married. And as soon as Everdon actually kisses Deirdre he knows that she's never known passion - and that he wants her for his own. But how can he convince her that he isn't the irredeemable rake she believes him to be - and that they are meant for each other?

This is an enjoyable book; not as good as Beverley's best early Regency, Emily and the Dark Angel, but considerably better than most of the others from that era. There are familiar characters here too: Everdon's cousin is Ian Renfrew, the Daffodil Dandy first introduced in Emily and the Dark Angel, and Everdon first dances with Deirdre at a ball held at the Ashbys' home. The romance is sweet and certainly convincing; both characters have much to gain from knowing and loving the other. Appearances can be, and are, deceiving on both sides. Was Deirdre's attachment to Howard convincing? I'm not sure.

I was puzzled as to why Everdon's friends called him Don - yes, his nickname was Don Juan, but as he and they would have been well aware, Don is not a name in Spanish, it is a title and form of address for the nobility. Was it intended to be short for Everdon, as well as being part of his nickname? That would have made some sense, but should have been explained.

An enjoyable book, which I'll certainly want to re-read.