The Importance of Being Wanton (Wantons of Waverton, 2)
In the prologue of this Regency romance, second in series, the hero Charles Hayden, Lord Scarsdale, climbs a tree at age 13 to escape parental domination after his father and mother arranged his marriage to their best friends’ daughter, six-year-old Emma Gately. In the rest of the novel, Charles descends from his perch of ignorance and resentment, trying to gain footing in the reality of who his fiancée is.
Flash forward from 1812 to 1829 in the posh Mayfair section of London. Emma, now an adult determined to assert her own will, breaks off the engagement. The remainder of the novel, enlivened by steamy sex scenes, shows Charles and Emma discovering their own identities rather than the roles society allots them.
Emma has more to lose. Angered by the forced marriage almost thrust upon her, she organizes proto-feminists into a group—the Mismatch Society—whose mission is to protest women’s powerless role. This feisty element makes Caldwell’s novel stand out from others in the enemies-turned-lovers genre. Emma insists on controlling her body and her destiny, making her a heroine modern readers can root for.
