I liked these books. The only problem I have with them, is that the heroines are always absolutely gorgeous, with a rich Lord hanging around in the background who just can't seem to get her out of his mind. She gets into trouble, he rescues her, she turns him down because she doesn't think she's good enough for him, or he's good enough for her. Very good light reading, and a pleasure, but not up to the Gone with The Wind class by a lot.

I enjoyed this novel, along with all of the other "A House for the Season" novels I have read. The plot and characters were simple but the story was amusing and uplifting. I was able to read The Miser of Mayfair in one night and despite the simplistic nature of the novel, I was not disappointed in the experience.

This is the first and best of the series. It introduces the eclectic group of servants of the unlucky house: the resourceful ring-leader of a butler, Rainbird, sympathetic and downtrodden Lizzy, and the effeminate, vain Joseph, and the rest.

Fiona Sinclair, taken from an orphanage to be raised and educated as a lady for her benefactor's dubious purposes, is accustomed to using her wile and cunning to dodge the exploiters and schemers of her day. Usually, she gets the upper hand until she meets Lord Harrington. His aloof manner and haughty views leave him the only man in London society impervious to her extraordinary beauty, or so it seems. To that end, he is the only one who does not want to exploit her. To Fiona, for this reason, he is the only man who will do.

For an orphan of questionable birth, albeit a beautiful one, to ensnare an autocratic Lord who is rich and handsome would require a miracle, one which the servants of the House on Clarges Street are all too ready to manufacture- a plan to make this arrogant Lord see the beauty of Fiona's heart.

This novel plays out like a situated comedy much like Chesney's others with the same twists and turns, yet with the undertone of sweet melancholy unique only to this book. Fiona appears to be too wily and stoic at first to deserve such fortune until she ventures to risk everything by revealing her heart. Miser of Mayfair portrays the harshness of Regency society and the triumph of those who gamble and win, weaving not only a poignant love story, but more, a lasting impression.

Marion Chesney books seem to run hot or cold with many readers. Her characters are not fully developed in the books that I have read, but it does make for easy reading. This novel is the 2nd in the Waverly sister's saga. Three "orphans" raised by a man- hating Mrs. Waverly grow to adulthood with a very skewed view of society and gentlemen in particular. Though we never find out why Mrs. Waverly feels so strongly, we do come to understand she only wanted the three girls to assure company in her old age and set out to make them rivals to each other. She remained cold and emotionally remote throughout this book.

Frederica makes a delightful heroine because her views are strong in wanting to be an equal to men but not radically so (at least in today's standards). She seemed rational compared to Felicity, her younger sister. Lord Harry Danger (Danger??) is not dangerous at all but a true gentleman in every way seeking to capture Frederica's heart by solving the mystery of who the "orphans" really are. That mystery is NOT solved in this book. Maybe it is solved in the sequel about Felicity which I hope to obtain.

I enjoyed this book and hope to find the prequel also. There are some escapades involving drunks, thugs and thieves which add a rather odd element but seemingly the only way to introduce a little adventure into the dull Waverly's lives. Other characters are introduced but they are not fully developed -- one is Harry's mother -- very strange woman who does not appear to have a good head on her shoulders due to the constant bullying of her late husband.

Oh well, take the book as it is -- a light read with some appealing people.

This is one of the better Chesney's of the few I have read. The characters are appealing, especially Lord Harry Danger who is a delight. The book is very short however and would be much better longer and more developed. I enjoyed reading it though, even if the pleasure only lasted a few hours!

This book is the third in the Waverly series. Three sisters are raised by their adoptive mother to disdain men. The third, and last, of the sisters still resists romance. However, there's a mystery about her adopted mother that she needs to solve. A fun, whimsical book.

This book is my favorite of the series. I think the reason I like it above the others is because Rachel, unlike her sisters, is not really obsessed with getting Mannerling back. She is quiet, loving, and not overly ambitious. Ms. Chesney develops the romance nicely, with the standard obstacles to true love thrown in (scheming romantic rival, interfering relatives). However, those standards are a great deal more fun in a Chesney book than in anyone else's. The hero's children are believably written and actually add to the story rather than distracting from it. I recommend this novel to any Regency reader who wants an undemandingly fun read.

The attempt to marry back the family mansion should be getting a little boring by now, but never fear. Marion Chesney brings us another delightful story through the fascinating trials and tribulations of the new owner of Mannerling; a widower and his charming two kiddies. But, will Rachel succumb to another eligible bachelors charms instead? Intriguing...

First title of Chesney's I've read. It was a good plot and had some interesting characters I would have like to have seen more of. It was a short read at under 200 pages. The ending was quick and not really to my liking in dept. It needed some more dialogue between Isabella and Harry.

This book is vintage Chesney, with all the wit and insight into Regency times she inserts into all her books. Isabella and Harry have real human foibles and their path to true love is full of laughter and misunderstandings. A must for any Chesney fan.

Captain Peregrine Tracey was humiliated when the rich but common Ansteys rejected his suit for their eldest daughter Mary, but he never gave up hope that they would one day marry. After 10 years of serving in the military, Peregrine inherited the title of the Earl of Devenahm and was instantly acceptable to the Ansteys as a son-in-law. Determined to erase the memory of his earlier humiliation, the new Earl immediately sets out for the Ansteys country estate to claim Mary's hand in marriage. Unfortunately, it is immediately apparent to Emily, Mary's younger sister, that whatever affection used to exist between Mary and Peregrine is no longer there. Indeed, Mary seems quite in love with the vicar, Reverend Peter Cummings and he with her. However, Mary would never refuse to do her duty and she knows that her family is counting on her to help them rise in social prominence, so she is determined to go through with the wedding. Emily cannot bear to see Mary unhappy so she promptly drugs Mary's morning tea, slips on a brown wig and marries the earl herself. Unfortunately, her whole plan backfires when the earl refuses to get the marriage annulled. So Emily is swept off to the Earl's estate and determines to make the best of her new life as a countess. She finds herself increasingly attracted to the handsome, taciturn earl, yet unwittingly alienates him every time he comes near her. The Earl is very frustrated with his newly married state and turns to his mistress for comfort. When her charms pall, he returns to Emily and tries to woo her, but her dratted cat seems to receive more of Emily's affection than the Earl ever will. Will the two of them ever show their true affection for each other?

This book is a typical regency romance, if a tad more far-fetched than most. I usually enjoy regency romances, but I did not care for the characters in this one. Instead of a being a charming young miss, Emily seemed like a featherheaded twit who should have been sent back to the schoolroom to grow up before she tried to marry someone. I liked the Earl, but the author didn't spend a lot of time on his character. Emily and the Earl spent much of the book apart and the whole book seemed to be filled with rather boring incidents to keep the plot going, but were never really followed up on. The author would introduce something, like Emily's charity work with the poor at the Earl's estate, and then just drop it for the rest of the book. If you are not going to use something to further the plot along then it simply isn't necessary in the book at all. Anyway, I was disappointed in this romance. The author has a nice writing style, but the book has little else to recommend it.

Emily Anstey noticed with consternation that her beloved sister Mary dreaded marriage to Earl of Devenham. Though the pledge to marry had been made out of love 10 years ago, both wished they had not made it as the wedding neared. Even though Mary was now in love with another, she is honor bound to go through with it. What else for Emily to do, but to go in her sister's place.

The premise of switching places in a wedding ceremony seems too incredulous, even for a Regency Romance. But Marion Chesney (MC) explains Emily's silly, but nonetheless, sweet character and how she plays out the part of the heroines in her Romance novels, very reminiscent of young Catherine in Austen's NorthAnger Abbey, MC is forgiven. And when MC makes reference to Duke of Wellington's true life long courtship, you realize that the derivitive plot is merely a vehicle to get Emily and Peregrine (Devenham) together in a quasi-marriage of convenience. It is there where the real fun begins.

Emily finds herself outgrowing her old dreamy girlhood, into a useful countess, managing her husband's estate, but finding it increasingly more difficult to manage as his wife when his mistress is looming in the background.

MC knows how to depict a sweet and romantic marriage courtship. Emily is heartachingly vunerable not only as a Cit's daughter marrying a formidable earl, but as a young woman ruled more by her heart than her head. The sweet part is when Devenham finds that he is not impervious to this endearing young charmer, and endeavors to capture the heart of his wife more than his former mistress. This book is one of MC's more quaint novels because of the lovable characters, not to mention the YEOWLING cat! It's too, too funny!

Chesney's usual wit and style is slightly subdued in this novel. The heroine, Lucinda, shows the most spunk and character as a child when Captain Chamfrey kidnaps her in an attempt to get her father to pay his gambling debts. The abduction, naturally, does not go as planned. Her father forces Chamfrey into an unwanted betrothal with the then little girl.

Time passes, her abusive father dies (under mysterious circumstances), Lucinda's grandmother takes the now beautiful young woman to London for a season. Unfortunately, Lucinda becomes rather placid as an adult, taking very little action of her own accord. She runs into Chamfrey, now a marquess, but is frightened that his forceful personality might lead him to be as abusive as her father was. He finds her fascinating and lovely, then discovers who she is and that she's engaged to be married to another man. Chamfrey falls in love with her, Lucinda finds herself drawn to him, but her grandmother, determined to protect Lucinda from the unwanted betrothal, tries to block Chamfrey's courtship.

The plot in this one gets a bit too tangled and a bit too dark (with several murders) to sustain the lighthearted romance. I am not certain, but I would guess this to be one of Chesney's earlier efforts. I find that her other novels generally have much more humor, warmth, and character development in them. This is a decent read if you have a few hours to kill, but don't judge Chesney's other works by this one.

Lady Lovelace set out to enjoy her new widowhood, only to find out that her wayward cousin squandered her estate while she was away. She must find money quickly and the only way she knew how - to marry an elderly doting husband with money. Having married twice before to provide for her younger sisters, marrying seemed no difficulty for Lady Lovelace. She believed herself impervious to love, and marriage seemed to be a means of survival.

Lord Philip found himself in the same position, in dire need of money. He set his cap at Lady Lovelace, believing her an heiress. Both deceived London Society and each other into thinking they were both wealthy and quickly married only to discover they had fooled each other in money and in love.

Normally, I shy away from Marion Chesney's widow heroines as a murder is always implicated. However, I was pleasantly surprised by Lady Lovelace whose hardened realism is balanced by her naïve generosity. Her maternal love toward those near to her redeems her from being truly mercenary. Who could not but love the iron willed Lady Lovelace and wish her happiness for what she had endured? And Lord Philip becomes a true hero when he realizes Lady Lovelace is deserving of love after all.

The only complaint about this touching book is that it gets off to a great start but seems to fizzle near the end. Towards the end, the secondary characters and secondary plots seemed to detract from the central story. This is the only time where I felt the book could have ended earlier than it did. Though similar to the premise in Glitter and Gold, you'll find a unique heroine in Lady Lovelace and a surprisingly refreshing plot.

I have sampled lots of Regency books but after I have gotten a taste of Marion Chesney's work I hesitate to experiment anymore because once you've experienced the best anything less is intolerable.

Therefore speaking as a fan, Regency gold ranks as one of my least favorites. Although it is amusing and set in Chesney's entertaining tally-ho! style and the characters are very well-defined, it contains too many awkward moments that made me squirm constantly while reading. It doesnt let up. It hits you with another embarassing situation without allowing you to recover from the first one.

It is also hard to believe that the main protagonist, Jenny, would not have learned to be more attentive and less disgraceful at least by 3 quarters of the book.

Contrast to Chesney's later work (Rainbird's Revenge) where the character development of both the Duke and another Jenny was handled very smoothly.

But I'm glad to have Regency Gold in my collection. Makes me appreciate the later Chesney books even more.

I often find that the negative reviews are as helpful as the positive ones, and sometimes more so. Both English reviewers of this book were dead on in their assessment of it. The plot was tissue thin. The characters were shallow, their actions were not credible, and their development was nonexistent. How the marquess came to the conclusion he loved Lucinda seemed driven simply by the fact that it was the end of the book, and therefore time to wrap things up. As a minor note, a lot of the regencies I've read have fairly dense, small type, which is necessary to get a fully fleshed out story into the usual number of pages. The type in this book is rather large, and there is a lot more unoccupied space on a page than I'm accustomed to seeing in other regencies, which I think is rather telling. I've come to enjoy regencies as pleasant entertainment, but some are definitely better than others. This is the first one by Ms. Chesney that I've read, and she seems to have a decent reputation so perhaps I'll seek out another one and give it a try. However, with better books out there, I cannot recommend this one.

Is Chesney simply a lousy writer, or is she trying to play a joke on lovers of Regency romances? This book is so bad, its plot so farcical, its characterisation so thin and unrealistic that I can't help wondering whether someone's passing off a spoof here.

*No-one* in Regency times behaved as Chesney's characters do. Lucinda's actions are completely out of place for a young lady of quality of that time. The idea that she would ask a Marquess to marry her, let alone that she would speak to his mother as she did, is completely unbelievable. And as for the Marquess himself, he seems totally irredeemable - so how could she possibly fall in love with him? There is no motivation, either, for his sudden chage of character.

And the other elements to the plot - the servant, the jewellery theft, the attempted murder... I was rolling my eyes in disbelief.

Chesney also needs to take some lessons in technical writing skills: her sentence structure and grammar need a lot of attention.

Finally, I'd suggest that if she's going to write any more, she needs to take a sabbatical first and go and read some English social and political history, brush up on her grammar and period language, and read some books by much better writers such as Balogh, Kelly, Oliver and so on.

Publishers: please be more choosy in what you publish!

This is a very poorly-written book, in a number of ways. To take the plot first, Chesney has created a set of completely unbelievable characters: caricatures, especially the secondary characters who are portrayed in a one-dimensional manner with not one redeeming feature between them. The hero and heroine aren't particularly credible either, and as a reader I had little sympathy for them. As for the events depicted, I find it hard to believe that they are remotely credible within the Regency setting. The heroine, in particular, speaks and behaves in a way no lady of the period would have done whatever the provocation; and the Marquess's mother is similarly incredible.

Leaving aside the thin and barely believable plot, the author seems to me to have little skill at her craft. Her writing style: sentence structure, command of vocabulary and so on, is immature and distracts from the content of the book. While she tries to provide some history for the hero to explain his motivations, her attempts at doing this are very poorly done; in this respect, she has not one-hundredth of the skill of Patricia Oliver, for example.

Finally, there are numerous inaccuracies, both to the period and to the language and vocabulary; a British-born writer such as Chesney should certainly be able to do better at avoiding Americanisms in the dialogue of English Regency characters. And young unmarried ladies in that period would know little or nothing about mistresses or sex.

I have already disposed of my copy, and I cannot recommend this book to any other reader.