Barbara Metzger is without a doubt one of the top 5 Regency authors writing today. I make a point of keeping an eye out for her latest. This one slipped by me, however, and as it turned out, I probably could have skipped it. It has a surface resemblance to her other work - lots of eccentric characters and humorous unintended consequences - but throughout I had the distinct feeling that she was rushing through this one to meet a deadline, doing a 'paint by numbers' job. I almost didn't bother to finish it! Though always funny, her characters usually have a reasonable depth to them, the emotions are real for all the fun, and there is a plot to keep you interested. Here the plot fizzles after a few chapters, the groom seems primarily fixated on bedding his bride, rather than on any emotional connection between them, and even the humor (a Metzger trademark) falls flat a good deal of the time. I very much hope this was an aberration - certainly I can recommend every other Metzger I've read, highly. Just give this one a pass unless you're desperate. Three stars, because even mediocre Metzger is better than a lot of what's written!

Barbara Metzger has hit a real gem with this one. From the hilarious first chapter, where practically everyone faints i knew that this was going to be a winner. It was a wonderful diversion from the usually melodramatic and serious romances that dominate the shelves. I was laughing the whole time at the situations that Aurora was constantly getting herself into.

I agree with one of the other reviewers that the seperation between Aurora and Kenyon was long and drawn out. It did give time to rectify certain situations but equally took time away from the romance and left the reader hanging for an extended period of time.

All in all a wonderfully hilarious book and definately recommended for a good laugh.

Since everyone else has given a plot resume of this book, I can only say that this is a delicious read, guaranteed to entertain and help you shake off the sullens in the very best Metzger fashion. Bright, fast-paced and fun, it's a thoroughly enjoyable regency and not to be missed.

Signet Regency Christmas collections are the best on the market if you like this sort of thing and I do - very much. However, this year's was not the best but, still, anything by Kelly, Layton and Metzger is a Must Read for me. They did not let me down.

Sandra Heath's contribution, "The Solid Silver Chess Set" irked me, sadly, although it was clever and amusing enough. I just don't like fantasy and especially not mixed with Regency fare. Sorry - this one gave me indigestion! Elves. Yeech!

Amanda McCabe's "Partridge in a Pear Tree" is better. She has used a tried and perfected "winner takes all format" where through the machinations of a rich elderly relative, a poor woman and a poor man trump everyone and walk away with the prize of the inheritance. Using a "scavenger hunt" (in England more likely to be called a treasure hunt) a couple win the ultimate prize as well as riches - true love. Well enough done.

Edith Layton's story is a reworking of the Scrooge story with a twist. A poor woman (and not in her first youth!) wins her love when she is set up by her particular Scrooge. There is sparkling conversation here and a fun few pages. Layton always does this sort of thing well.

You can rely on Barbara Metzger for comedy and wit. Here is a sample "His lordship (our hero) was known to be pockets-to-let, seeking to repair his tattered fortune with a dowry darning needle". And another: "She (our heroine) was used to Hanbury House and Ravencroft, not a ramshackle residence for rats and bats and down-at-heels aristocrats". Enough said - this story is delicious and peopled with amusing characters. Gregory and Claire deserve each other and it was fun to watch them!

Carla Kelly is simply one of the best in the business and she NEVER lets you down. Her story of Mary McIntyre, suddenly set adrift from all she has ever known, and Joe Shepard, a not-so-ordinary simple man from a humble background, is peopled by wonderful secondary characters all of whom add to the story in a tight-knit tale of love, greed, humility and acceptance - all in a few short pages which sum up so well all that is important about Christmas. This woman never ceases to amaze me with her huge talents.

A lovely Christmas holiday read; highly recommended particularly for the Layton, Metzger and Kelly contributions.

This year Signet's Regency anthology is genuinely worth the cover price, despite the absence of stars from previous years such as Mary Balogh - but it does have Carla Kelly, and the Edith Layton's not bad either this time. Layton's anthology novellas have a tendency to disappoint.

We begin with Layton's The Amiable Miser. Joy, orphaned in her teens, has lived with her miserly uncle for several years, and she works in his bookshop, mainly because he realised that a pretty young woman would bring in customers. One of Joy's innovations is a romance section: Minerva Press books for the ladies, run as a circulating library. As a result, a number of local ladies meet there regularly to swap recommendations. The hero comes into the picture when Lady Gray, a regular, is ill and her nephew Niall returns a book on her behalf. Joy's uncle engages in a bit of matchmaking by ensuring that Joy and Niall have to spend some time in each other's company. This is an enjoyable little story, although I'm not really convinced that it's all that credible.

A Home for Hannah is second; Barbara Metzger borrows what is now a very over-used idea, that of the poverty-stricken hero. Gregory, Viscount Bellington, has inherited the family title and estates, but his late father and brother gambled all their money away. So he needs to marry someone wealthy in order to survive and rescue his estates. Unfortunately, his proposal to an heiress is interrupted by the appearance of a child who is Gregory's image. Everyone thinks that she is his illegitimate daughter; Gregory realises that she must be his brother's child from one of his many liaisons. The only person who will help Gregory with Hannah is Clare Haney, sister of a neighbour. Is it possible that together they could make a home for Hannah?

Amanda McCabe's A Partridge in a Pear Tree is an unusual and delightful short story. Lady Kirkwood is trying to decide which of her relatives to make her heir. So she decides to hold a house party, and to give the guests a challenge: find the gifts of the eponymous Christmas song. Allison Gordon and William Bradford form part of one of the teams, and come up with some extremely imaginative ways of meeting the challenge. The story is a lot of fun and has some delightful moments. The only thing which bothered me was that I really couldn't see Allison and her sisters leaving their mother alone in the family cottage for Christmas.

Sandra Heath's The Solid Silver Chess Set is the poorest of this collection. The chess set of the title is being carried by an elf as a gift from one elf lord to another, and the elf is present as part of the need for intervention between the two estranged lovers of the story, Philip, Earl of Allensmore and Julia Talbot. However, I found Philip and Julia - especially Julia - rather immature and unconvincing as lovers; both were too quick to jump to conclusions, and Julia especially came across as extremely fickle.

Finally, the gem of the collection is Carla Kelly's No Room at the Inn. Kelly specialises in unusual situations and heroines, and this novella is no exception. Having been brought up as the daughter of an earl, Mary now discovers that she was adopted shortly after her birth and is in fact the illegitimate daughter of a courtesan. The true circumstances of her origins having emerged because her grandmother traced her, Mary's adoptive parents had to tell her the truth - and effectively evicted her from their home. So she is now travelling to her grandmother's home, escorted by the family solicitor and his wife and children. Her new status is evident in the way the solicitor now treats her. Brought up as a lady, but now the bastard daughter of a nobody, where does Mary belong? But when her party is forced to seek shelter at the home of Joseph Shephard, son of her 'father's' estate steward, she realises that there is indeed a place where she belongs.

With one excellent and three very good stories, this is a collection I'll certainly want to keep.

This is the fourteenth Regency Christmas Collection issued by Signet. From the very first edition, the quality has always been high, although to be sure, some have been higher than others. To me, this one is the very best of the bunch. It is as though each author has gone a little beyond her normal wonderful skills, and created something a bit more special than usual for this year of 2002. Four of the authors are favorites from past years; Edith Layton was in the very first book, so it's only appropriate that she lead off. Sandra Heath, Carla Kelly and Barbara Metzger have each been in several of the books, while Amanda McCabe is a worthy newcomer to the collection.

In some years, the books have had a theme, but this year they're just wonderful, heart-warming stories. Edith Layton's "The Amiable Miser" gives us a different look at a miserly sort of fellow, but one with the proverbial heart of gold. And even though he didn't really have to spend any of his valuables, he was still able to provide his niece with her heart's desire.

Barbara Metzger turns from her usual menagerie to the 'infantry' in the delightful "A Home for Hannah". Hannah is an orphan, or so she and the rest of the world thinks, until one day in the park, she spies a likely candidate to be her new 'Papa', thus setting in motion all sorts of interesting activities. Her new Papa is a penniless gentleman who discovers that love can indeed conquer all.

"A Partridge in a Pear Tree" by Amanda McCabe proves that the eye of the beholder may not always see the same things as the rest of the world, but in the end, it is the one who sets the rules that wins the game. Simplicity is, in many instances, much better than grandiose ideas, as established by Lady Kirkwood with her competition. Of course, the Lady wins out, bringing together two young relatives, Allison and William, who discover the true meaning of Christmas.

Certainly there are elves afoot at Christmastime; if you have doubts, you need do no more than read "The Solid Silver Chess Set" by Sandra Heath. If you then still have doubts, you can have no heart, no soul, and no sense of humor, either. The trials of poor little Bramble Bumblekin will bring a smile to your heart if you will but let them, and your soul will be warmed by the reunion of the formerly-fickle Miss Julia and her erstwhile suitor, Philip. Even young Bramble's holiday is made brighter by the inventive imagination of the author.

And finally, Carla Kelly unveils the solution to a mystery in "No Room at the Inn", allowing the young Mary to find not only her identity but her family as well. Twice over, in fact, when Joe also settles her into a love-filled home she'd never thought to have.

Any of these stories will provide a magnum of holiday cheer; together they'll warm your chilly nights and make you think of happy holidays! Enjoy!

When Lady Victoria Keyes is trapped in a burning building she vows that if she is saved, she'll marry right away and do her duty. She'll even marry the man who saves her. Well as you can probably see, she is saved. And the man that saves her is none other than Wynn, Viscount Ingall who has been exiled from society after rumors of him killing someone during a duel.

When Torrie (Lady Victoria)tries to complete her vow and marry this handsome hunk, who has obviously been wrongly accused, he begins to run in the opposite direction because getting caught in the parson's mousetrap is the last thing he wants to do. But the more and more he sees Torrie, the more and more he wants to be with her. And she is the same with him, vow or no vow.

What follows is a great story filled with action and romance. This story was overall a good story. The minor characters and problems that Wynn is face with keep the story moving smoothly for the most part. There are a couple spots that seemed to drag on but not that many. The characters were well thought out and the reader is easily able to feel what they're feeling!

So yes, I do recommend this book to everyone!

One of the best at regency comedy, Barbara Metzger has offered up another winner with The Diamond Key. Others have summed up the plot well so there is no point in going over it again. As always, with this author, it is the witty writing, colourful characters and bizarre supporting cast that makes her work so attractive.

Metzger's command of farcical writing is brilliant. She uses word-play so effectively and gives us wonderful comedic situations so very well. I love her use, in particular, of alliteration such as "preening pea-geese" which gives a bright sparkiness to her writing.

The best running joke in this novel was the search for the perfect valet for our delicious hero, Lord Ingall. Torrie, our heroine was not Metzger's best (hence 4 instead of 5 stars) as she was a bit two dimensional which made her effect on the plot a little heavy. However, Ingall grows in the reader's eyes throughout the story and you want to cheer for him at the end. By the way, the last chapter is a delight!

This was my first outing with Barbara Metzger and I have to say that it was a trully enjoyable ride! Refreshing and light-hearted. I found myself chuckling out loud at the antics of Wynn and Torrie. The characters were very well written and believable. I also enjoyed the secondary characters. I cheered when Wynn FINALLY found a valet who could tie a proper cravat. I've gone out and bought up every book I could find by this author.

After five years of marriage Minerva Caldwell's cruel old husband, the Earl of Sparrowdale, died. She soon found out that her deceased husband had several illegitimate children scattered about. She decided to hire a young private eye, Lord Lowell, to help her locate them so she could offer them the home and love they deserved!

A Regency Romance with a serious plot, for a change! Most Regency Romances show the couple forced together for reasons that in today's age would be considered ridiculous. (Such as a nosy person seeing the couple kiss.) Not so here! THIS book has an all together different approach to bringing the main couple together. I thought this to be a wonderful story!

Although I enjoy humor in Regency novels, I usually find Barbara Metzger's usual style something of a distraction and frivolous - so I bought this one on the strength of the review that said is was "darker" than her usual fare. True! and I liked it for that reason.
This book features a couple of complex characters not from the usual background - Minerva(Mina) daughter of a wealthy Cit, recent widow of a truly apalling old man who left behind a string of illegitmate children and Lord Lowell (younger son of a duke) still living with his mother (who is NICE) and with not a lot of money - doing detective work to add to his income and have an interesting career (NOT hobby). Through their search for the lost children we watch them grow to like and respect each other as well as fall in love.
Although there is humor aplenty with the antics of a mongeral dog and a dieaway cousin, there is also plenty of a serious nature - conditions in the orphanage come immediately to mind - drawing a picture of Regency England not usually shown in the books of this genre.
Recommended! However, fans of a lighthearted romp - avoid this one - you won't like it!

A mixed bag of reviews, I note, for this Barbara Metzger story. I liked it immensley. Not only do we have a sweet heroine and a kind-hearted hero but we also have an entertaining adventure and mystery. The concept of a duke's second son (and a spectacle wearer at that!) setting up as a regency Lord Peter Wimsey was clever and unusual.

Minerva, the widowed Lady Sparrowdale is the daughter of a cit and Lord Lowell, the endearing second son who doesn't have enough money to live up to the standards expected of him, gradually fall in love whilst looking for a seemingly unlimited number of by-blows from Minerva's late husband.

Although Metzger is a master of the beautifully written regency comedy, she does here hit on a number of serious points. Minerva's late husband pursued virgins in a quest for a "cure" for rampant VD (based on fact - this was a well known belief at the time); the by-blows grow up in poverty; Lord Lowell denies himself a family because of his straightened financial circumstances and Minerva shoulders responsibility for a financial empire. Some meaty issues here which provide a background note to the banter and comedy Metzger does so well. I particularly liked Harkness, the multi-purpose butler - especially with a noted butler in the news right now!

I always enjoy Metzger and this was no exception. I think Lord Peter Wimsey would have recognised his predecessor, Lord Lowell the Regency PI. I do recommend this!

Barbara Metzger is an excellent author. The heroine in the first book needs money to see her sister through her season. Her housekeeper's twin sons are pressed into service as footmen, one of these Wally is a boxer, and winning a match is just the way to repay her loan. Needless to say the hero happens to be in the moneylender's office when the moneylender is indisposed...

The second book is a definite favourite of mine. "After all we are only going to Almack's". "Miss Grimble did not know the haute monde in the sense of acquaintance; she knew them more in the way a confirmed gambler knew every racehorse, each one's stable and stud."

My personal recommendation is to buy it. If you find you like it and my review is to your taste then use my member page to find other authors I have reviewed whom you may like to read.

Barbara Metzger shines through with two of her classic regencies reprinted in this combo book. The first, "An Affair of Interest," has a loose plot and it's hard to get into. How, the Metzger wit shines through. (I'd give this one 3 stars.)

The second, "Luck of the Devil," is one of my Metzger favorites. Definitely a 5-star book! This book is perhaps one of Metzger's most bittersweet. Again, the writing is superb, but also one of Metzger's most emotional books. I find myself holding back a tear each time I read it. Yet, somehow, the raw emotion this story evokes makes this tale a poignant classic.

Any which way, I highly recommend this duel book.

By the way, Barbara Metzger didn't write "Sir Sham" or "Heart on His Sleeve." Marion Devon wrote those.

Not really her best, but still better than the average Regency. Liked her "Sir Sham" and "Heart on His Sleeve" better, but if you like the Regency with a little humor, this is for you. Let's face it, the deadly serious, bordering on gothic style is not what we want in a Regency!

A very different kind of book! I've never read anything like this one before! Not so perfect, not quite dead Lucinda is on a mission to save a soul from Hell -- her own! But to do this she must reform a rake (Kerry), who in the end was not so bad. This book was so interesting, I finished it in a day. And it brought tears to my eyes in the end. Unique way of showing how Kerry's backsliding affects the "angel" Lucinda -- her clothing (or lack of) is the indicator! Well worth reading - and a KEEPER!! P.S. I don't think what Lucinda did was bad enough to put her in Hell ... but then there would be no story!!

This is a surprisingly charming book. The heroine is fine but the hero is the interesting character as an unabashed rake with a secret heart of gold. It's an offbeat regency but well worth the read.

This story is about a beautiful young debutante (who happens to own a fabled racing horse) and a devil-may-care lord who is being pressured by his father, the Duke, to marry.

Elizabeth ends up at a ball hosted by the Duke & Duchess of Carlyle. Resentful at being put on parade in front of young Lord Alexander, she seeks refuge in a secluded room, where Alexander is also hiding...

What young lord finds horse racing a bore?

I first read this novel almost 10 years ago; I enjoyed it then, and I enjoyed again when I reread it a few days ago. The plot of this novel revolves around Cristabel Swann, and the unfortunate set of circumstances that cause quite a few people to mistake her for a high-class courtesan.

Cristabel teaches music at a borading school. Her only outlet from this rather deary task is her day dreams of owning her own home and having a private income to go with it. And her only hope of ever achieving this dream lies in the belief that she will one day inherit her uncle's house and whatever monies comes with it. So, when Cristabel receives a letter from her uncle's lawyer requesting her presence in London, she impulsively quits her job and sets out to receive her inheritance. Imagine her horror when upon her arrival she discovers that her uncle has gambled all he owned away to a loutish naval captain!

Aghast at her situation, the captain offers Cristabel a job as the landlady of a boarding house in Kensington that her uncle formerly owned. What neither the captian nor Cristabel realise is that the house is actually a high-class bordello. And so the sweet and somewhat naive Cristabel finds herself looking after a stable of young "working" women who seem to have a lot of admirers and who seem not to have to go to work very much. Soon Cristabel is making friends with her "boarders" and meeting all kinds of people. And for the first time ever, she even seems to have a beau of her own, even if he is a tad too familiar in his attentions. Things are looking up indeed for Cristabel Swann. But what will she do when she discovers exactly what kind of house it is she is running, and why her beau is so forward?

What really makes this book work is the central character in this novel: Cristabel Swann. I really felt for the young woman who had so few friends and who spendt her time daydreaming about having her own house and possessing at least one pretty dress; I entered fully into her feelings of anger and disappointment when she discovered that she had no inheritance at all, only a mountain of her uncle's debts; and I cheered when Cristabel started her rant on the perfidy of men. The men in this book, and there were a few, while playing somewhat pivotal roles were completely secondary to the plot -- this is Cristabel's story. And Barbara Metzger tells it in a deft, capable and magical manner. Cristabel Swann in a heroine that will charm and win hearts. A thoroughly fun read.

Lisanne Neville, the wealthy and orphaned daugher of a baron, becomes the ward of her uncle. She has a miserable existence except for the time she spends in the woods. Then she learns that her beloved woods are to be sold for timber. She takes action by proposing to the almost-destitute Duke of St. Sevrin. If he marries her, she will help his finances and he will protect her woods. The first half of the book is wonderful and the second half is disappointing. Still, this book is better than most Regency romancies.

I've said in previous reviews that there are two downsides to anthologies: one being that the stories are frequently too short for good character and plot development, and the other that poor authors are mixed in with the better ones. This anthology suffers from both of these problems, and as a result is really not good enough to be considered a keeper.

The first story is Barbara Metzger's Little Miracles, an unusual tale centred around a poor and run-down parish church and the few remaining church mice, who try hard to hint successive vicars in the direction of St Cecilia's riches. Evan, the current vicar, is in love with Alice, daughter of the local squire. But his stipend is a pittance and the vicarage has a hole in its roof; how could he ever ask her to marry him? It's a sweet story with amusing moments, but too short for real character development.

Allison Lane's The Marriage Stakes is typical of this author; the characters are all far too informal with each other, and minor characters are one-dimensional caricatures. She uses a plot device which appears in many other novels, where the hero holds a house party in order to choose a bride. The heroine, Sophie, who has been offered shelter after her carriage met with an accident, somehow manages to spy on the various eligible young ladies and report back to Westlake. None of this is at all convincing, and there are a number of scenes which are simply embarrassing to read.

The Gift of the Spoons, by Nancy Butler, is an unusual story and I'm not entirely convinced that it works. It helps if you believe in magic and healing and psychic powers, which I don't. Christopher Herne's son is dying, and as a last resort he is tracking down a woman he's been told about, who has healing powers - Pippa Spoon. Unfortunately, the woman he finds is the original Pippa's daughter. Still, he persuades her to come home with him to treat his son. Lots of strange goings-on and fits of temper from Christopher, and the fact that he never calls his son by his name, make this a difficult novella to like. The resolution is also too quick, and the diagnosis pretty much incredible.

On to Diane Farr's Reckless Miss Ripley; shades of Georgette Heyer's Friday's Child here, but done very well in Ms Farr's usual style. Fred Bates is hurrying home to spend Christmas with his family. He's feeling very sorry for himself, and guilty, because the family's new state of poverty is all his fault. Taking shelter from the snow at an inn, he encounters a young lady travelling alone; it transpires that she's trying to get to Bath to stop her friend Harry from marrying someone else. Claudia persuades Fred to drive her to Bath, and a delightful story ensues.

Finally, we have Edith Layton's The Christmas Thief. Max Evers has lost all his money and can't even afford to buy his niece a Christmas present. Unable to come up with any other solution, he decides that he will steal something for her. But committing a crime turns out to be not as simple as he'd envisaged. This novella was a disappointment: there are too many unconvincing events and leaps of logic and I simply can't see how certain things would have happened. The element of romance is also far too brief: the heroine gets perhaps half a dozen pages in a 60-page story.

Overall, just about so-so.

Four of the stories in this anthology were entertaining and helped me pass several pleasant hours on a winter evening. The fifth one, by Diane Farr, was simply outstanding! I was practically giggling in delight the whole time I was reading, especially from the moment I figured out that this was Fred Bates's story--the Fred Bates whose honor Trevor Whitlatch was defending in Ms. Farr's second novel, Fair Game. In this novella, we discover why Trevor was so eager and willing to help his friend out. Fred Bates is one of the most likeable characters I've ever come across, and the heroine in this story, Claudia, runs a close second. Their story is interesting and engaging. At the inevitable happy ending, you're giddy with joy right along with them. If you are a Diane Farr fan, you must find this book! Her story alone made this book a keeper.

Every year I look forward to the Signet Christmas regency anthology, and so far I've never been disappointed. This year's is no exception. The Barbara Metzger story about the mice is truly charming, and the Edith Layton story is a classic I know I will reread again and again. The Diane Farr, Allison Lane and Nancy Butler stories are all very enjoyable as well. I won't go into detail about them because a previous reviewer did it so thoroughly -- I will just say that this collection got me out of a really bad mood and into a really good one, and I surely got my money's worth! (I don't know what book "a reader from Rochester NY" read, but it can't have been the same one I read!) Hey, Merry Christmas, everybody!!!