The Banished Bride (Signet Regency Romance)

Rating:
Summary: a wonderful and satisfying read
Review: At first glance the premise for this Regency romance seems incredibly far-fetched. How on earth could a husband and wife, after many years of separation, not recognise each other (never mind not being familiar with each other's names) when they finally meet? Andrea Pickens, however, has written a really engrossing and enjoyable novel using exactly this plot premise, and amazingly enough, this premise becomes both probable and completely believable under her skilled hands.

The novel opens with a scene at a gambling house, where the fathers of the hero and heroine are deep at play. The Earl of Woodbridge has been steadily losing to Baron Trumbull. In order to clear his debts, the earl offers his 19 year old son, James Hadley Alexander Fenimore, as a husband for Trumbull's troublesome 14 year old daughter, Elizabeth Jane Aurora. Eager to be rid of his daughter (whom we gather is a budding feminist), Trumbull agrees. On the day of the wedding, young Alexander turns up very drunk and dressed in a uniform, while Aurora is dressed from head to foot is a thick wedding veil -- so that the couple don't actually see each other at all. Wedding over, Alex hands his bride over to his father and leaves for India. Thirteen years pass, Alex is happy with his career in the army, while Aurora has been living quietly in the country (having forsaken both the Fenimore household and name) under the name of Aurora Sprague (her maternal grandmother's name). She's also made a name for herself for running The Sprague Agency For Distressed Females. The agency does everything from spiriting abused wives away from their abusers to providing information to women about their spouses, business partners, etc. And it is because of her latest errand to spirit an abused wife across the Border that Aurora's path crosses with Alex's again.

The death of his father and both his elder brothers has made Alex the new Earl of Woodbridge; and as such, he must now sell out of the army and return to civilian life. This he is loath to do; however a request from Wellington to ferret out a rather dangerous female spy who is operating in England, sweetens the pot somewhat. Alex begins his search in earnest, and believing that the lone woman traveling in her own personal coach is the spy he is after, he forces his way in Aurora's coach and arrests her. Aurora is incensed; and too late, Alex realises that he has made a mistake. But before he can undo his error, one of the spy's paid assassins is on their trail; and now Alex must keep Aurora at his side for her own protection as much as because he feels deeply attracted to her. Danger aside, Alex realises that Mrs. Sprague is not someone with whom he can dally carelessly with, mostly because, notwithstanding her sharp tongue, Alex senses that Aurora is someone who has been badly hurt by the men in her life, her absent husband especially. What would happen if Aurora discover that he has (like her own husband) abandoned his own wife? As for Aurora, she never thought that she would ever succumb to the dubious charms of any man, and yet she is becoming quite dimwitted because of a pair of startling blue eyes! Could Major Woodmore (Alex is also traveling under an assumed name) really be very different from most men? And what happens when Alex and Aurora discover the other's real identity?

Exciting though the hunt for the spy was, the reason why I fairly 'ate' this book was to get to the part where Alex and Aurora discover each other's real identity. I liked the manner in which Andrea Pickens handled that plot development from that point on until the happy denouement very much -- she didn't drop the ball or the pace, nor did she 'betray' the characters by having Alex or Auroroa behave in a manner that was contrary to expectations. And the subplots dealing with the spy chase and the developing romance between Aurora and Alex was splendidly done as well. "The Banished Bride" is a grand read. The plot unfolded smoothly and at a fast pace. And the characters of Aurora and Alex (as well as the minor characters of Robbie, Aurora's governess, the gambling fathers, and Jack, another English spy) were sketched out brilliantly and realistically as well. All in all, "The Banished Bride" is a well written grown-up romance, and one of the better Regencies I've read so far.

Rating:
Summary: Booklist - "This is a Regency to savor"
Review: THE BANISHED BRIDE
On the way back from delivering a woman to safety in Scotland, Aurora Sprague, proprietor of the Sprague Agency for Distressed Females, is abducted by Major Alex Fenimore, the husband who abandoned her immediately after their wedding years ago. On the trail of a female spy feeding British secrets to the French, Alex has no idea that the woman across from him is the bride he left behind, and Aurora has no inkling that the man she considers "the most bumbling British agent in all of hristendom" is in fact her legal husband. Their search for the traitorous spy pushes Alex and Aurora together, but once the truth about their past surfaces, it threatens to destroy any feelings developing between them. A bit more sensual than most traditional Regencies, Pickens' latest romance offers a
wondrously spirited battle of wits that readers will just adore. Spiced with tart humor and graced with an intelligent, resourceful, and unconventional heroine, this is a Regency to savor.

BOOKLIST

Rating:
Summary: What a thoroughly original story!!
Review: The plot is interesting - even though the spy bit was a little less played out than I would have liked. Other than that, I loved the characters, the way they converse with eachother, and the way they discovered eachother's identity.. I can definitely see this developed later on as a longer novel because it has so much potential. But in its current form, it's still a wonderful story.

Rating:
Summary: A wonderful Regency romance!
Review: To settle a debt between their fathers, fourteen-year-old Elizabeth Jane Aurora Taft is married to twenty-year-old James Hadley Alexander Fenimore, the third and youngest son of the Earl of Woodbridge. After the ceremony, the groom, who recently bought a commission in the Horse Guards, leaves for India to join his regiment. Their fathers arrange that Aurora will return home until she turns sixteen; thereafter she will reside at Rexford House, the smallest, most run-down, and isolated of the Woodbridge lands, which Alex inherited from his grandfather.

Ten years later, Elizabeth Jane Aurora Fenimore has discarded her married name for her mother's family name, Sprague, and lives quietly at Rose Cottage with her former governess. Aurora, founder of the Sprague Agency for Distressed Females, has earned a reputation for solving women's problems with efficiency and dispatch. Local ladies with philandering husbands -- husbands who are, as a result of Aurora's investigations, willing to spend money on their wives instead of their mistresses -- and women Mrs. Sprague has spirited away from their abusive husbands view her as an angel sent from heaven to aid them. The men, no doubt, think her a devil sent from Hell to plague them, but Aurora is not concerned with the opinions of men. Having herself suffered a gross injustice at the hands of a man, she feels empathy for the women she helps.

Alex is shocked when the news reaches him on the Peninsula that he has inherited the earldom. Not only did he never imagine he would accede to the title, he doesn't want to leave the army. The War Department is adamant that he take up his duties as earl, but gives him one last mission to perform on his way home: To capture a traitor passing vital intelligence to the enemy. With the meager information available, Alex sets sail for Ayr, Scotland in search of the agent -- a female. An ambush leaves him with a pistol ball in his shoulder, but Alex catches up with the woman again...or so he thinks. After she has a doctor treat his wound and then nurses him through a fever, Alex realizes Mrs. Aurora Sprague is not the havey-cavey female she seems. When the traitor again tries to kill "Major Alex Woodmore," and threatens Aurora, they flee...but will the secrets they keep, despite the passion that blazes between them, destroy their chance for love and a happy ending?

THE BANISHED BRIDE is absolutely wonderful! This compelling story of second chances and the healing power of love evokes, in turn, smiles and teary eyes. Alex and Aurora are marvelous, multi-layered characters with whom readers cannot help but fall in love. Both learned, at an early age, not to expect love or support from their families -- and rejection hurts, even when it comes from people undeserving of regard. Although they both have faults and hide their vulnerability behind a brave façade, Alex and Aurora have many admirable qualities -- qualities the other has never encountered in a member of the opposite sex. During their journey, they learn a great deal about each other -- and themselves -- and the more they discover, the more they want to know. But they must face their failures, and come to terms with the past, before they can embrace the future.

Andrea Pickens has penned an outstanding tale of two lonely people, scarred by past betrayals, who find love unexpectedly, and with a seemingly improbable partner. The evolution of Alex and Aurora's characters is wonderful to behold, as is the flowering of their irresistible attraction. In addition to marvelous character development, this well written, perfectly paced book contains evocative descriptions of places and events, a charming cast of secondary characters, and deft humor -- the latter most often displayed in Alex's teasing of Aurora and in their battles of wit.

I highly recommend THE BANISHED BRIDE. Regency devotees will adore this book, which will be a contender for the best Regency romance of the year, and all romance readers will be captivated by this wonderful, heart-tugging tale.