Lawson’s review of And Then He Kissed Her (Girl-Bachelors, Book 1) by Laura Lee Guhrke
Historical romance released by Avon 27 Feb 07

Oh, how did women survive the Victorian Era? With the rules and etiquette one must follow, it is really rather amazing. Not just the fashions and making sure to wear gloves everywhere, either. 

Miss Emma Dove is a secretary who moonlights as a writer of etiquette books for what she calls “girl-bachelors”. These girl-bachelors are the nineties women who work, and are trying to support themselves. That is the women of the 1890s.

Emma’s boss is a publishing magnate named Harry, Viscount Marlowe and he is also adverse to the institution of marriage and so he parades his mistresses around and since Emma is his secretary, she has to buy them gifts and such, and being the sensible, well-mannered girl that she is, Emma is embarrassed by this task.

After Harry rejects her fourth manuscript and Emma realizes that he has not read a single word, she quits and embarks on her writing adventures, which Harry does not like because his life is thrown into turmoil when his efficient secretary leaves him high and dry.

For a modern woman of the 1890s, the advice that Emma rights is very straight-laced, but that is a product of the Victorian Era, and some of the things she does recommend does got in a more modern direction of social interaction. Poor Emma had a sheltered childhood with people out to protect her and she finally finds her voice in all her morals and rules.

In the interest of being objective, I the reviewer, don’t want to get on my soapbox, but this book (like so many others) to me has an undercurrent that’s going on in the country today. Emma is the conservative, guarded, “this is the way it’s always been and should be” sort of person. Harry is freer, wanting to move foreword and sees the benefit of change.

The problem as I see it is this: today there are girls around who act too much like Emma. As modern women, there are many who say they are freer, but they do not act as such. Emma has been sheltered and influenced by others on what is right and what she should do to the point where she loses herself in their rules and not her own judgment. And she worries way too much about what other people thing and embarrassing the memory of others rather than living her own life as she sees fit. Harry is cynical and overly into proving himself with women. There are too many references to older women thinking men are “beasts” and women are the ones that control chastity in the world.

Not that I’m disagreeing with any of this, and Guhrke does a great job through the end of the book proving that the Victorian morals and rules have no place after the time, but all the snappy dialogue, great sexual tension (and even a food scene, yummy), and obvious caring by the main characters, these facts of real life distracted me some away from the story. The emphasis on etiquette as a theme didn’t bother me so much, however, because it’s true manners matter. But not to the point where you stifle yourself and turn your actions into those of someone else. Off the soapbox now. . .

Though it takes a full 200 pages for the titular kiss of And Then He Kissed Her, it’s well worth the wait for the characters are well matched and are very believable in their roles as employer and employee. Who really doesn’t love a good boss secretary romance? After the kiss it steams off the page and that makes everything worth the wait.

Grade: B+