Lady Merry’s Dashing Champion by Jeane Westin

This is the third in a Restoration England set series by Westin. The first two books are Lady Anne’s Dangerous Man and Lady Katherine’s Wild Ride. It’s an interesting period in history and I’ve got to say that after reading this book, I learned quite a bit I didn’t know before (through the story and some research on my own).

Meriel St. Thomas, called Merry, is happy enough as a lady’s maid to one of the Admiralty’s diligent officers, Sir Edward Cheatham. Sir Edward has treated Merry kindly, educating her and saving her from the workhouse, and he takes her to London and Whitehall with him when he’s summoned by the king. Merry is excited to go because she may glimpse her hero, Giles Harringdon, the Earl of Warborough, somewhere in Whitehall.

Merry, however, is mistaken for Giles’ wife Felice, a horrific harridan of a woman, who Merry can’t believe is stupid enough to constantly cheat on her paragon of English masculinity. Merry is suddenly swept into court intrigue when she finds out Felice has been spying for the Dutch and the king’s spymaster wants to use Merry to pass along faulty intellegence to stop an invasion into England. Merry is given a week to learn to be Felice and thrust into the court, where she manages to swim rather well, except where her husband is concerned.

Giles knows something is different with his wife, but he can’t place exactly what. She’s suddenly become the wife he’s always wanted and showing she’s the good person he’d hoped she’d be. But when she’s kidnapped by her lovers he whisks her off to Norfolk to the family manse to get her with child so he can finally get an heir and perhaps have the life he’s always wanted.

There’s some odd pacing to this story, there are some cliched characters and situations, and some predictable things, but there’s something here that kept me reading and made the whole thing worthwhile. It’s got to be the hardest thing for a romance writer to center a story around a married man. Not only that, but one who doesn’t know he’s being deceived. Even worse, having a heroine who knows he’s married and tups him in a treehouse anyway.

And that author makes the reader care about the characters that you root for them even when you know the horrible fact that HE’S MARRIED.

The fact that his wife is a traitorous b****h probably helps in this, but marriage, even a bad one where they both cheat on each other in true historical aristocratic fashion, should still be honored, yes? I’m not wrong on this right? Giles is a noble, patriotic, caring hero who got the shaft when he realized his wife was not the woman he thought he married. The fact that he’s being duped by his own king and country not withstanding (because he does find out the truth way before the end of the book) he holds up admirably well and is someone I wouldn’t mind ending up with myself.

Merry herself has some odd mannerisms and her storyline of why she looks like Felice is not a surprise to the reader, it’s hinted at rather broadly. And the reader (or at least I did) wants to see these two overcome the odds and marry each other, even while staring down the barrel of a gun held by the hero’s maniacal wife.

The other great character in this story was Charles II, who I’d always thought of as a footnote to history, but he seems to have been a decent enough king and truly had the benefit of England in mind. That is when he wasn’t pleasing his harem and giving ex-mistresses and his illegitimate children titles. It’s interesting to note (’cause I found this researching) Diana, Princess of Wales, can trace back to four of Charles’ children by mistresses, thus making William the first heir (and in essence monarch) to England a descendant of Charles II. Go look it up here, and look at Royal Descent.

Though some of the history begins to overwhelm the story, it’s a fun read with dashing scenes, sweet love, and believable characters. And a plot that overcomes something that could be thought of as just plain wrong.

Grade: B