Summertime Splendor (4-in-1)
by Marion Chesney (Contributor), Cynthia Bailey-Pratt (Contributor), Sarah Eagle (Contributor), Melinda Pryce (Contributor)
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Heartwarming stories of summer romance from four acclaimed Regency authorsFrom the zestful tale of the mistress of a manor masquerading as a servant girl-and its surprising consequences to the story of a love that blossoms at a royal birthday fete, here's a collection of romantic summer regencies sure to delight. Stories include "The Summer of Discontent" by Marion Chesney, "Lady Fair" by Cynthia Bailey-Pratt, "A Summer's Folly" by Sarah Eagle, and "Tides of Love" by Melinda Pryce.Tags
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I'm going to review these one story at a time
The Summer of Discontent--First Cassandra isn't the mistress of Bramfield Park, she's the youngest daughter. Now that that's out of the way, I mostly enjoyed this story. I had a little trouble coming to grips with the treatment of Cassie by her family, they genuinely had no remorse over their callous disregard for her. By the end of the story the only way Cassie managed to make them give her what she was due was by demanding it, emphatically. Miss Stevens, a spinster friend of Cassie's, was a wonderful secondary character. I'm glad in the end things worked out for those who deserved it.
Lady Fair--I didn't like this one much at all. The two in love were so completely overrun by their well show more meaning relatives that I had trouble feeling bad for their inability to be together. Perhaps it was because the story was so fast paced I didn't believe the two fell in love. It felt more like they both saw in each other a way out, and yes attraction, and leapt at the chance. I will admit the ending, with the two overbearing relatives, was funny at least.
A Summer's Folly--I enjoyed this story the most. I quite enjoyed Eliza and understood her predicament. I was not in the least sorry for her cousin. Thalia was a shrewish calculating fluffbrain who deserved what she got. Randall, her suitor, I liked the best of the four love interests in the book as well. I will mention that Thalia's problem is left hanging, which was unsatisfactory for me.
Tides of Love--Another story with a callously mean relative mistreating the main character. This lady however bordered on hussy the way she was so forward! I don't think I've ever met anyone so wrongly certain about how she is perceived! I half-expected murder (especially after her mean tricks) by the end of the story.
All in all it was a quick diverting regency read. The stories might have held up better with either more space to plot out and flesh out or with less happening and baggage (In Lady Fair there was at least one secondary plotline that could have been left out with little problems and given more space to development of the relationship). show less
The Summer of Discontent--First Cassandra isn't the mistress of Bramfield Park, she's the youngest daughter. Now that that's out of the way, I mostly enjoyed this story. I had a little trouble coming to grips with the treatment of Cassie by her family, they genuinely had no remorse over their callous disregard for her. By the end of the story the only way Cassie managed to make them give her what she was due was by demanding it, emphatically. Miss Stevens, a spinster friend of Cassie's, was a wonderful secondary character. I'm glad in the end things worked out for those who deserved it.
Lady Fair--I didn't like this one much at all. The two in love were so completely overrun by their well show more meaning relatives that I had trouble feeling bad for their inability to be together. Perhaps it was because the story was so fast paced I didn't believe the two fell in love. It felt more like they both saw in each other a way out, and yes attraction, and leapt at the chance. I will admit the ending, with the two overbearing relatives, was funny at least.
A Summer's Folly--I enjoyed this story the most. I quite enjoyed Eliza and understood her predicament. I was not in the least sorry for her cousin. Thalia was a shrewish calculating fluffbrain who deserved what she got. Randall, her suitor, I liked the best of the four love interests in the book as well. I will mention that Thalia's problem is left hanging, which was unsatisfactory for me.
Tides of Love--Another story with a callously mean relative mistreating the main character. This lady however bordered on hussy the way she was so forward! I don't think I've ever met anyone so wrongly certain about how she is perceived! I half-expected murder (especially after her mean tricks) by the end of the story.
All in all it was a quick diverting regency read. The stories might have held up better with either more space to plot out and flesh out or with less happening and baggage (In Lady Fair there was at least one secondary plotline that could have been left out with little problems and given more space to development of the relationship). show less
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Author Information
M. C. Beaton's real name is Marion Chesney. She was born in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1936. She has written over a hundred books under her own name and other pseudonyms: Ann Fairfax, Helen Crampton, Jennie Tremaine, Charlotte Ward, and Sarah Chester. She started her writing career while working as a fiction buyer for a bookstore in Glasgow. Working at show more one time or another as a theater critic, newspaper reporter, and editor, she used her British background to write a series of regency romances set in England and Scotland. Some of her regency romances include The Folly, Colonel Sandhurst to the Rescue, and Regency Gold. In 1986, she was awarded the Romantic Times Award for Outstanding Regency Series Writer. She has also written two mystery series under the pseudonym M. C. Beaton: The Hamish Macbeth Series, which became the inspiration for a television show in England, and The Agatha Raisin Series, about a retired advertising executive. Her title His and Hers made The New York Times Best Seller List for 2012. Marion Chesney passed away on December 31, 2019 at the age of 83. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Summertime Splendor (4-in-1) (4-in-1)
- Alternate titles
- The Summer of Discontent (Marion Chesney) (Marion Chesney); Lady Fair (Cynthia Bailey-Pratt) (Cynthia Bailey-Pratt); A Summer's Folly (Sarah Eagle) (Sarah Eagle); Tides of Love (Melinda Pryce) (Melinda Pryce)
- Original publication date
- 1992-07
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 25
- Popularity
- 1,071,271
- Reviews
- 1
- Rating
- (3.13)
- Languages
- English, Russian
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 8
- ASINs
- 2
