I found this book to be a little more interesting then other historical romance I've read because the leading lady, Annabelle (love that name by the way), was a little more strong willed then most. And our hero of the story, Simon, actually needed her as much as she needed him at times.. It was a rather nice change from the usual "Night in Shining Armor come to rescue his Damsel in Distress".
So all in all I really enjoyed this book and am looking forward to the next book in the series. ( )

Annabelle Peyton has a serious problem -- after the death of her father and the collapse of the family's finances, she, her mother and brother Jeremy are in a desperate situation. In her mid 20s, still unmarried and part of an illustrious group of "wallflowers" who seem to be shunned by the upper echelons of English society, beautiful Annabelle has some hard decisions to make: will she continue to attempt to snag the affections of a mawkish, geeky lord, or is she doomed to become the well-paid mistress -- and unwed maid -- of another?

Enter Simon Hunt -- the wealthy, handsome and charistmatic businessman who remains on the outside of well-to-do British society himself. While Annabelle and fellow Wallflowers Lillian, Daisy and Evie hatch a desperate plan to win the attentions of a wealthy, if timid, lord at the estate of Lord Westcliff, Simon has plans of his own -- namely, to finally win over Annabelle, a woman he's admired for years. Annabelle is used to deflecting Simon Hunt's attention, however -- until she's forced to admit there's something tender to him she hadn't perceived before.

I started reading Kleypas's Wallflowers series in reverse order -- I grabbed A Wallflower Christmas without knowing a thing about the characters or series. I thoroughly enjoyed it and decided to back-track! Secrets Of A Summer Night was a fun, interesting peek in Regency England, I loved the character of Simon -- even though he did seem a bit of the archetypal "bad boy" with a heart of gold. It was fun to watch the bonds of friendship form between the Wallflowers, and I thought that progressed naturally and reasonably. I also felt the romance between Simon and Annabelle was mostly natural, without one seeming to magically "fall" for the other overnight.

The book had plenty of twists -- and I definitely didn't see the over-the-top final scenes coming -- but it didn't bother me. I enjoyed the novel for what it was -- a uniquely plotted, sweet romance. I'm definitely grabbing book two in the future! ( )

The main theme of this romance is old money vs. new money in the face of the industrial revolution in England in the 1840's. The aristocrats are resisting the influx of commoners with money, yet at the same time, they need the money since their fortunes are sadly depleted. This parallels with Annabelle's dilemma, will she be able to marry well, or will she become some rich man's mistress to save her family?

http://ktleyed.blogspot.com/2008/07/s...
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London 1841 - Stony Cross, Hampshire 1843
The search for a husband is tough enough without having to be the one that has no dowry to help. Annabelle Peyton had family problems and the only asset they had left was her beauty. She needed a good match that could bring her family out of the hole that the death of her father had left. The scheming of four friends (the wallflowers) finally found what they thought would make Annabelle a good match, and the plan was in motion. The rich and powerful businessman Simon Hunt had always been interested in Annabelle, but she wanted a peer, not the son of a butcher. His hope was to take what he wanted, but as he watched and waited, he found he may not ever be happy with just that little bit of her.

Another great story by Lisa Kleypas. The introduction of the Wallflowers and their personalities was wonderful, I have heard so much about this series and enjoyed finally getting to know them all. The strength of Annabelle and Lillian are wonderfully contrasted with the comedy of Daisy and the shy timid girl of Evangeline. “Somehow I’ve never thought of husband-hunting as a team sport” has to be what sums up the idea of the Wallflower series. The strength and patience of Simon draws you in, but his passion is the stuff dreams are made of, that is why (I believe) that we read romance novels, to see this kind of passion, to dream of this kind of devotion. Excellent characters and a good story, I found myself laughing and tearing a bit with them. On to the next of the series, (It Happened One Autumn), which I believe is Lillian and Lord Westcliff’s story based on the ending of this one. ( )

This book was an enjoyable read, its most appealing aspect being the positive portrayal of genuine, female friendship, a scarcity, in my admittedly rather limited experience, among romance novels. Of course I've come across other romances that provide a cursory attempt at friendship among women, but it's never been so well done as I think it is here. Secrets of a Summer Night introduces "the Wallflowers," four girls who give themselves this title (not without appreciable irony) in their decision to join forces and help each other find husbands. It sounded kind of silly to me at first, but Kleypas managed to avoid most of the clichés I was worried about by showing that the Wallflowers were friends with or without the incentive of their professed mission. Added to which, the presence of friends in the story allows a broadening of perspective, wherein the heroine's life doesn't shrink to encompass solely a life-altering obsession with the hero. (Ideally, at least. Here, that's not so much the case because the friends mostly talk about husbands and how to catch them - but the theory is nice anyway.) Of course, Secrets of a Summer Night is mostly about Annabelle and Simon, but the Wallflowers added something different to the story, a little bit of dimension, that made me care more about the characters than I would have otherwise.

As for the romance itself, Secrets of a Summer Night doesn't quite offer all that I would have hoped. Kleypas is mostly concerned with the hierarchies of class and wealth in this book - some might think she's heavy handed with a moral to the story, punishing Annabelle for her initial prejudices against the working class. (Simon is a businessman with everything but a title to recommend him). However this didn't bother me too much, even if it was a bit transparent. I think Kleypas dealt pretty honestly with Annabelle, who was unapologetic and honest in turn about her attraction to wealth and luxury. She didn't have to compromise herself in this regard, for which I was grateful. Other than the melodrama of a final climactic scene, which seemed an external plot contrivance to me and detracted from the romance, I liked this book enough to continue with the series. ( )