Search - Miss Wonderful (Carsington, Bk 1)

Loretta Chase is easily one of the the funniest of the historical romance writers. If you like to read a hero and heroine trading quips back and forth, with a lot light-hearted banter, almost like a 40s movie, her books may be for you. Reading about the "Episodes of Stupidity" (as the hero's father calls his son's amorous adventures) will keep you smiling. Alistair, a hero returned from the Peninsular Wars, is a dandy, obsessed with clothing, which helps him keep a handle on what appears to be a case of post-traumatic syndrome (only they hadn't identified or named it back in those days). Mirabel, the heroine, is a capable, smart, busy woman who's forgotten that she's actually quite pretty and attractive. They come together over plans to build a canal. Some of the strife over the canal (he's for, she's against) drags a bit. But these people are endearing and funny and make it worthwhile.

Due to his history of expensive romantic entanglements, Alistair Carsington now has six months to find either a useful occupation or a wealthy heiress to wed. To prove he is not an idle fop only concerned with sartorial pleasures, Alistair agrees to help his old friend, Lord Gordmor, by traveling to the wilds of Derbyshire to convince Gordmor's neighbors to support the nobleman's proposal to build a canal. Upon arriving, Alistair, a famous war hero and eligible bachelor, finds everyone couldn't be nicer, everyone except for respectable, practical, spinsterish Mirabel Oldridge. The last thing Mirabel wants is for her tranquil little corner of England to be destroyed by a noisy, nasty canal, and she is prepared to use every weapon at her disposal--including her disheveled coiffure and unstylish wardrobe--to stop Alistair. RITA Award-winning Chase presents a splendidly written tale of two people trying desperately not to fall in love. Chase's beguiling blend of deliciously complex characters, potent sexual chemistry, and sparkling wit give this superb romance a richness and depth readers will treasure.

I really enjoyed this book! Chase makes very good use of characters and history in her work. Her novels never make you feel like you're reading the same book or about the same people time and again.

Things I loved:
~ Chase's wonderful sense of humor as displayed in the characters banter - wonderfully, delightful!
~ Alistair - he is such a fun and interesting twist on the regency hero. He is a dandy (although there are deep
seated reasons underneath.) He lets his emotions rule him - often to his detriment. He also embraces
those emotions and doesn't try to squelch all feeling as most are written to do in this era.
~Mirabel's quirky inattention to style, her horrible fashion sense and unruly hair that never stays in place.

Things I disliked:
~ Mirabel's obnoxious behavior in every reference to the canal project. Even when Alistair works to find
alternate solutions that would make her happy, she refuses to even consider and continues to fight blindly
and for no apparent reason other than to be disagreeable.
~ Again, Mirabel's antics - in reference to the steam factor. Her behavior just didn't ring believable (finding a
ladder, climbing into his bedroom, throwing herself at him when she barely knows him, hmm????)

I really enjoyed this book. Wonderful hero/heroine!

(from back cover)

Alistair Carsington really wishes he didn't love women quite so much. To escape his worst impulses, he sets out for a place far from civilization: Derbyshire--in winter! There he hopes to kill two birds with one stone: avoid all temptation--and repay the friend who saved his life on the fields of Waterloo. But this noble aim drops him straight into opposition with Miss Mirabel Oldridge, a woman every bit as intelligent, obstinate, and devious as he--and maddeningly irrestible.

Mirabel Oldridge already has her hands full keeping her brilliant and aggravatingly eccentric father out of trouble The last thing she needs is a stunningly attractive, oversensitive, and overbright aristocrate reminding her she has a heart--not to mention a body he claims is so unstylishly clothed that undressing her is practically a civit duty.

Could the situation be any worse? And why does something so wrong feel so very wonderful?