His Heart's Delight (Zebra Regency Romance)

Rating:
Summary: an engaging read
Review: "His Heart's Delight" by Mary Blayney is the first book in a projected series that features the romantic ups and downs of the Braedon family. And the hero of this first book in the series is Morgan Braedon, the younger son of a marquis (a rather dark and dour individual who has managed to not only keep his entire family at arm's length but to also maim them emotionally as well). The novel opens with Morgan being told that he has to find a wife by the Season's end, or else lose all financial support from his father. And since Morgan is a man of very little money, and who makes his way as a gambler, such a threat would definitely make his life more difficult than it already is. So Morgan comes up with a plan to find a young woman who would be willing to enter into a sham courtship with him. And this is where Miss Christina Lambert comes into the picture.

Christina is in London to make her debut into London society along with her elder (and more quiet by nature) sister. However Christina, a rather bubbly and flirtatious young lady, is no ordinary young debutante: she is actually engaged to her childhood sweetheart, Richard Wilton, who is currently serving with Wellington's forces in the Peninsula. Christina's parents however want to keep the engagement secret for the time being, and will only agree to making this engagement official after Christina has had her Season. Christina's dilemma then is how to enjoy a Season, to dance and flirt, without raising the hopes of any eligible bachelors. An innocent dance with Morgan leads to a whole slew of gossip, but which allows both parties to realise that they can each help the other achieve their means: Morgan will have his sham courtship, and Christina will have a male escort who has no expectations that she will reciprocate his feelings. However the more time the couple spends with each other, the more they both come to the private conclusion that they were meant for each other. But what of the complication that comes in the shape of Richard Wilton?

The test of a really well written book in my opinion is if the characters and plot engage the reader whether or not you take to the primary characters. And I was definitely engrossed with the on-goings in this novel. In spite of the fact that Christina Lambert is not really the type of heroine that I usually take to -- she's a little too flirty, stubborn and supremely sure of herself for my taste -- I found myself becoming totally involved in the quandary she found herself in, and rooting for to make the right decision. (In fact, I wouldn't at all mind reading a novel featuring a much, much older Christina, to see if she's still the same stubborn, supremely-sure-that-her-opinions-and- notions-are-the-right-ones woman, and how her children deal with this managing aspect of her character!) Mary Blayney did a wonderful job of depicting Christina's confusion over her conflicting feelings for Richard and Morgan. And while Morgan Breadeon belonged to the tortured hero club that we're all vastly familiar with, I thought that Blayney did a wonderful job of depicting the dilemma he faced when he realises that Christina was exactly the kind of young lady he would want to spend his life with. Blayney also did a wonderful of bringing to life the secondary characters in this novel and making us care for them -- Christina's elder sister, Joanna, for example. I also enjoyed the interaction between the sisters, which allowed us to see not only the deep and affectionate bond between them but also allows us to better understand their characters, and which makes this novel a more substantial read as well more richly textured. Another aspect of this novel that I really liked was the pacing. Blayney does a really good job here -- nothing was rushed, and events unfolded and came to the right conclusion at exactly the right rate.

All in all, "His Heart's Delight" is quite the enjoyable read -- entertaining and engrossing, and one that I would have no trouble recommending.

Rating:
Summary: an engaging read
Review: "His Heart's Delight" by Mary Blayney is the first book in a projected series that features the romantic ups and downs of the Braedon family. And the hero of this first book in the series is Morgan Braedon, the younger son of a marquis (a rather dark and dour individual who has managed to not only keep his entire family at arm's length but to also maim them emotionally as well). The novel opens with Morgan being told that he has to find a wife by the Season's end, or else lose all financial support from his father. And since Morgan is a man of very little money, and who makes his way as a gambler, such a threat would definitely make his life more difficult than it already is. So Morgan comes up with a plan to find a young woman who would be willing to enter into a sham courtship with him. And this is where Miss Christina Lambert comes into the picture.

Christina is in London to make her debut into London society along with her elder (and more quiet by nature) sister. However Christina, a rather bubbly and flirtatious young lady, is no ordinary young debutante: she is actually engaged to her childhood sweetheart, Richard Wilton, who is currently serving with Wellington's forces in the Peninsula. Christina's parents however want to keep the engagement secret for the time being, and will only agree to making this engagement official after Christina has had her Season. Christina's dilemma then is how to enjoy a Season, to dance and flirt, without raising the hopes of any eligible bachelors. An innocent dance with Morgan leads to a whole slew of gossip, but which allows both parties to realise that they can each help the other achieve their means: Morgan will have his sham courtship, and Christina will have a male escort who has no expectations that she will reciprocate his feelings. However the more time the couple spends with each other, the more they both come to the private conclusion that they were meant for each other. But what of the complication that comes in the shape of Richard Wilton?

The test of a really well written book in my opinion is if the characters and plot engage the reader whether or not you take to the primary characters. And I was definitely engrossed with the on-goings in this novel. In spite of the fact that Christina Lambert is not really the type of heroine that I usually take to -- she's a little too flirty, stubborn and supremely sure of herself for my taste -- I found myself becoming totally involved in the quandary she found herself in, and rooting for to make the right decision. (In fact, I wouldn't at all mind reading a novel featuring a much, much older Christina, to see if she's still the same stubborn, supremely-sure-that-her-opinions-and- notions-are-the-right-ones woman, and how her children deal with this managing aspect of her character!) Mary Blayney did a wonderful job of depicting Christina's confusion over her conflicting feelings for Richard and Morgan. And while Morgan Breadeon belonged to the tortured hero club that we're all vastly familiar with, I thought that Blayney did a wonderful job of depicting the dilemma he faced when he realises that Christina was exactly the kind of young lady he would want to spend his life with. Blayney also did a wonderful of bringing to life the secondary characters in this novel and making us care for them -- Christina's elder sister, Joanna, for example. I also enjoyed the interaction between the sisters, which allowed us to see not only the deep and affectionate bond between them but also allows us to better understand their characters, and which makes this novel a more substantial read as well more richly textured. Another aspect of this novel that I really liked was the pacing. Blayney does a really good job here -- nothing was rushed, and events unfolded and came to the right conclusion at exactly the right rate.

All in all, "His Heart's Delight" is quite the enjoyable read -- entertaining and engrossing, and one that I would have no trouble recommending.

Rating:
Summary: Good plot but doesn't have many sparkles
Review: Courtesy of A Romance Review

His Heart's Delight is the first book of the Braedons family, featuring Christy and Morgan's story. Christy is a little country girl without much experience in life. She always seeks advice from her elder sister, Joanna. Morgan is a charming bachelor with a sense of humor. He finds Christy' s laugh most attractive, so he always makes her laughs. He is also a perfect gentleman, although he wants to seduce Christy badly, he still controls himself. Ms. Blaney's first regency in the series has a good plot but it doesn't have many sparkles.

Rating:
Summary: ending subpar
Review: Tregatt pretty much sums up the plot well. I will just add that while the book was, at times, entertaining, there were issues. What exactly do they all look like? I know exactly what Christy's sister, Joanna, looks like as well as her intended. Physical descriptions were too vague for me. Christy also had a never ending supply of giggles. Was that supposed to make her appear more interesing or fun loving? It was rather boring and made her appear flighty and younger than her 17 years. But the biggest disappointment is the ending. Lord Morgan Braedon declares his love but Christy, after a moment, also declares her love, but the story does not end with them planning a wedding but rather Morgan declaring that "I am going to wait until you are ready to accept the future but I am going to be impatient". What? While, as readers, we can assume they will get together, leaving it unspoken is really cheating the reader. The reader had to wade through 250 pages to an incomplete ending. Not well done.

Rating:
Summary: ending subpar
Review: Tregatt pretty much sums up the plot well. I will just add that while the book was, at times, entertaining, there were issues. What exactly do they all look like? I know exactly what Christy's sister, Joanna, looks like as well as her intended. Physical descriptions were too vague for me. Christy also had a never ending supply of giggles. Was that supposed to make her appear more interesing or fun loving? It was rather boring and made her appear flighty and younger than her 17 years. But the biggest disappointment is the ending. Lord Morgan Braedon declares his love but Christy, after a moment, also declares her love, but the story does not end with them planning a wedding but rather Morgan declaring that "I am going to wait until you are ready to accept the future but I am going to be impatient". What? While, as readers, we can assume they will get together, leaving it unspoken is really cheating the reader. The reader had to wade through 250 pages to an incomplete ending. Not well done.