A Study in Seduction
Lydia Kellaway is a mathematical genius whose scholarly explorations of complex theorems have earned her the respect of her contemporaries. What she truly wants, however, is a locket that her grandmother pawned, a cherished reminder of her deceased parents. Lydia discovers the identity of the locket’s buyer, and attempts to retrieve her property, only to find herself in a battle of wits with Alexander Hall, Viscount Norwood. What begins as an affair of the mind rapidly becomes an affair of the heart, and it soon becomes apparent that both parties have something to hide. Meanwhile, Lydia’s precocious teenage sister, Jane, is embroiled in a correspondence with a mysterious man who seems to know things about the Kellaway family — things that Lydia would rather keep secret. Rowan’s debut is an engaging mid-Victorian romance with a razor-sharp heroine and a hero who is her intellectual, though not her social, equal. The secondary characters, including Norwood’s crotchety father, are entertaining and well-drawn. Though the plot twist at the end is slightly predictable, the enjoyable love story makes up for it.
