Not too long ago, I had the opportunity to review The Elusive Miss Ellison by Carolyn Miller, and I enjoyed it immensely. So, when The Captivating Lady Charlotte, book two in the Regency Brides: A Legacy of Grace series, came available for review, I was delighted to take the opportunity.
Once again, readers can visit a world where the meeting of social class expectations is critical and deviation is frowned upon. Novel after novel has been written about socialites who have bucked against the expectations of their class or their parents, declaring that love or personal ambition is more important than fulfilling social expectations. But is that always the case? Can embracing the expectations sometimes be the correct solution?
That, in a nutshell, is the conflict in The Captivating Lady Charlotte. And Carolyn Miller handles the conflict beautifully, processing through both the spiritual and social aspects of the question. How does independence flow with maintaining a relationship of honor and respect with one’s parents? Can social constraints and expectations always be categorized as positive or negative? When is a desire to break free of social expectations honorable and when is it self-centered?
Throughout the process of grappling with this conflict, Carolyn Miller also explores spiritual growth and relational dynamics while weaving a beautiful romance. Readers who enjoyed getting to know Nicholas and Lavinia in The Elusive Miss Ellison will enjoy seeing them again as their lives intersect with Lavinia’s cousin Charlotte.
Once again, my lack of familiarity with the culture and social construct of British high society in the early 1800’s left me pulling out the encyclopedia or running quick web searches now and then to explore just what the author was referring to when a specific destination or “current” events story was mentioned. What induced daily conversation among Britain’s elite in 1814 did not always reach the American history books of my day! But, although it might have been easier for me as the reader to have had a little more explanation worked into the storyline, it was also fun to stop and do a bit of research on my own, learning something new about a segment in history with which I have limited interaction.
Carolyn Miller’s second installment in the Regency Brides: A Legacy of Grace series is definitely one that I both enjoyed and gladly recommend. My daughters are enjoying the series right along with me, and we look forward to reading book three, The Dishonorable Miss DeLancey, when it comes out this fall!
Not Quite Ordinary 