Jemima has many talents - she can sweep a chimney, climb tall trees and speak the argot, but can she succeed as the wife of a peer? And can she meet the greatest challenge of all - that of making Rob love her? When Rob meets Jemima Jewell, the spirited daughter of a Master Sweep, he has the idea of making a marriage of convenience to meet the needs of both wills. I am setting a condition of celibacy for one hundred days from the reading of this will." “In order to prove himself worthy of his inheritance, I require that my grandson, Robert Selborne, demonstrate the same temperance in his private life as I shall expect him to do with his fortune. The last will and testament of the late Dowager Countess of Selborne: Otherwise all unentailed properties and monies relating to the estate of Delaval will pass to my nephew." "My son is to choose a bride from amongst the young ladies present at the marriage of his cousin, Miss Anne Selborne, and is to marry one of them within four weeks of the wedding. The last will and testament of the late Earl of Selborne: Robert, Earl of Selborne, has a problem - relatives who did not consult each other before writing their wills! Robert & Jemima were very likeablecharacters, & there was a bit of humour throughout. Highly fantastic, of course, but very enjoyable reading. But the bottom line is that this is a lighthearted, joyous read of two people learning to love each other, and I highly recommend it for anyone who loves a good fairy tale. Yes, the plot is hard to believe, and yes, you may find the characters too nice or sweet, or just simply too wonderful that you want them to exist in real time. Even the mean Cousin Augusta is more for comic effect than pure malice.įinal thoughts on the novel: There are no cliched plots in this novel,and everything resolves itself into a splendid happily-ever-after worthy of Disney recognition. The scenes in which Robert tries to battle his lust for his wife is highly amusing.įurther embellishing the story is a wonderful cast of secondary characters, who throughout my reading has invoked a great deal of giddiness and joy. Robert and Jemina both knows that he wants her, and neither can or tries to deny their attraction, but knows that they must stay celibate to receive Robert's inheritance. Another aspect of this novel I really liked is the fact that both parties are honest with each other in what they want. Eventually, Jemina does learn to place trust in her husband, and learns to love him just as much. It was refreshing to find for once a heroine who holds the cynical view on love rather than the hero, as it happens far too often in regency romances. He, of course, falls head over heels in love with Jemina, who, due to her status in life, has a rather cynical view on the notion of love in marriage. The primary cast is wonderful the hero is nice beyond belief and sincerely wishes to find love in his marriage. While many critics of this novel mention the credence of such a fairy tale story, I am not so cynical as to not enjoy a good story when I see it. They quickly strike a marriage of convenience, and against statuses, fall in love with each other. This is when he spies the heroine, Jemina Jewell, who is a chimney sweep's daughter but has received a lady's education. Unfortunately, due to the passing of his father and grandmother, his cousin's wedding has been reduced to having only a few ladies of marriageable age, and none that appeals to him. This obviously puts him out of sorts, but he decides to go through with finding a lady to marry, in order to restore his principal home, Delaval, to order. The story begins comically when the hero, Robert Selborne, comes back from war and finds out that in order to receive his inheritance from his deceased father and grandmother, he must 1) marry a lady who was present at his cousin's wedding (which is the next day), and 2) be celibate for 100 days. While I've read many books where the heroine is of a lower social status than the lord hero, this is the first I've come across where the heroine is actually a chimney sweep's daughter! When I came across this book by chance while browsing, the plot immediately intrigued me.
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