In Want of a Wife

A country mouse does the London Season, with entirely unexpected results.



It is spring, the beginning of the London Season, and the beginning of what will be a season of surprising and far-reaching change for Hertfordshire sisters Rosa and Arielle Lane. Sent to stay with their London aunt for the purpose of finding suitable husbands, Rosa does not rate her chances of success very highly. She is a country mouse of the worst kind, with almost nothing to recommend her. She is small and slight, timid, chronically shy, possesses no fortune, and is afflicted with a mortifying stammer. All she has to bait her hook with is her girlishly pretty face and her sweet, obliging nature.

Beautiful, vivacious Arielle could not be more different. She is set on one thing: falling in love with the handsomest man in London. And she does not care whether or not he is a good match.

However, Rosa, one of the closest to the wall wallflowers of the Season, soon finds herself receiving interest from an entirely unexpected quarter. Torn between a marriage of convenience to a wealthy and eligible gentleman who makes no declaration of love, and her growing attraction to a sullenly mysterious man who makes no offer of marriage, Rosa has a difficult decision to make. To choose sense or sensibility, safety or danger?

Big-town rats, and the cats who know their ways, are to be found aplenty in London, and with Mrs Gently taking little interest in her two country nieces, they will have to navigate their first Season largely unaided. For the naive young sisters, it is a difficult and deceptively treacherous task...

Content: A sweet and clean, authentic, traditional (but with a twist!) PG 13-rated Regency romance (kissing only, no strong language).

Length: 33,000 words

In a book from the 19th Century Love Stories series you will find:

A swoon-worthy hero who knows how to treat a woman right Real woman with real issues Truly meaningful romance Atmospheric, enticing settings lovingly rendered in poetic, image-rich language Fresh, original writing, plots and characters A rich and zesty mix of irony and wit, contrasted with poignant, heartfelt emotion and involved drama A lively, dialogue-focused narrative style An uplifting and entertaining read which will also leave you satisfied on a deeper level