My Unfair Lady
“My Unfair Lady” is Summer Wine Lee, an Arizona-bred prospector’s daughter, determined to be accepted by New York society. And what better way to do that than to go to England and be presented to Queen Victoria? It is 1895, when such things were possible if one could afford a Worth wardrobe and hire the impoverished Duke of Monchester to play Pygmalion to Summer’s Galatea. This duke has a hard time convincing Summer not to strap a knife to her leg, let alone teach her how to be a lady. Then there is Summer’s ménage: her eccentric companion, Maria, and assorted rescued animals, including a monkey, which Summer takes with her everywhere, even to a house party with the Prince of Wales. Of course the Duke, who is at first appalled by her, falls in love with Summer. Amid a myriad of subplots are several attempts on the Duke’s life.
Kennedy has won awards for her “magical romances.” However, this heroine, a combination of Ellie May Clampett and Eliza Doolittle, has all the charm of a cannonball. This story has a good premise, but it disappoints. Tarnation! to borrow the heroine’s favorite swear word.
