Wendy the Super Librarian‘s review of His Substitute Bride by Elizabeth Lane
Historical romance released by Harlequin Historical 1 Apr 09
Readers who have read last year’s The Borrowed Bride are already well acquainted with the hero in His Substitute Bride. He’s none other than Quint Seavers , the charmingly handsome adventurer who knocked up his childhood sweetheart before he took off to find his fortune in the Alaskan gold rush. These same readers also know that when Quint seemingly dropped off the face of the Earth, Hannah had no choice but to marry his stoic older brother, Judd. Taking place six years after The Borrowed Bride, I can’t help but think that Quint’s story will work a whole lot better for readers who haven’t read book number one.
Quint left Colorado behind for the life of an investigative reporter in San Francisco. It’s 1906, and he’s currently racking as much muck as he can trying to uncover a political corruption scandal involving the city’s water works. He’s succeeding in stepping on plenty of toes, and powerful men are starting to take notice. However that’s all on hold. His sister-in-law, Annie Gustavson, is bringing his daughter, Clara, for a visit.
Annie has been in love with Quint since she was a girl. Now 23, with a successful career as a seamstress, she’s been turning down suitors left and right. This visit to San Francisco is her last chance; her last chance to convince herself that Quint is too footloose and fancy free to settle down. Annie wants love, marriage and babies. Quint wants adventure and excitement. But her good intentions immediately fly out the window when Quint meets them at the train depot. Damn, the man is even more charming and handsome than she remembered.
What follows is Annie’s inner turmoil between her love for Quint and her desire for a life. At 23 she is officially “on the shelf,” and she knows it will be a lonely life indeed to sit home in Colorado pining for a man who doesn’t know she exists. Plus, she’s convinced that Quint never got over her sister, Hannah, who has always been the real beauty in their family. Adding further complications to the proceedings is Quint’s investigation into city corruption, which puts him squarely in the sights of some very greedy, very bad men.
I give Lane a lot of credit for being consistent with her character development. The Quint in this story is essentially the same Quint we first met in The Borrowed Bride – and therein lies the problem. This is a man whose every decision smacks of selfishness. Certainly, he claims his investigation is for the greater good – but one can’t dismiss the fact that his decisions have a way of hurting the ones he loves. It happened in the first book, and it happens here in the second one. I couldn’t help thinking that Annie deserved better.
I also wasn’t convinced by the happily-ever-after. For one thing, there is not nearly enough fall-out from the events that take place during the second half of this story (oh, like big brother Judd knocking Quint’s teeth in) and for another? I couldn’t shake the feeling that the minute Quint gets an itch, he’ll be off on some adventure to scratch it while sweet Annie is left lingering on the sidelines.
On a final note, I wanted to mention that the author does a wonderful job of bringing early 20th century San Francisco to life, a setting that is criminally under-utilized as a historical romance setting. It’s rich, evocative, but not enough to convince me that this romance will “last.” For Annie’s sake, I hope Quint drops the Peter Pan act and grows up.
Grade: C+
Summary:
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Dashing but cynical Quint Seavers lives for danger. A past betrayal has made him wary of love, and he has no idea that independent, practical Annie Gustavson holds a secret longtime passion for him. Nor does he realize that the only reason Annie has traveled to San Francisco is to win his love—or walk away forever.
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When disaster strikes the city, Annie’s courage and determination match his own—and suddenly Quint knows that she is exactly what has been missing from his life all along….
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Read an excerpt.
Other books in this series:
Hmmm… too bad. I really liked the first one. You know I’m gonna read it anyway, though. Just cause I can’t help myself.
Lori – It’s an enjoyable story, so it’s not like it’s a slog to read. Seriously, you’ll probably knock it off in an hour or two. The San Francisco setting in particular is very well done.
I think I was most bothered by the fact that 6 years had past and Quint didn’t really “grow up” at all. He’s still making selfish decisions that are adversely impacting the people he supposedly cares about – and by the end of the story, I’m not convinced he’s learned his lesson. Oh well. All in all, the very definition of a C read for me. I liked parts, I didn’t like parts, and it sort of all came out in the wash.