Juliet is enamored of diplomat Val, but she believes that her scandalous family and poor prospects would make a poor political wife. But when Val’s fiancée reveals that she’s in love with another man, she supposes it wouldn’t be too bad to pretend to be engaged to him for the length of a state dinner.
This is the second book in the Brazen Burrells series, about a trio of sisters who take Regency-era London with their beauty, wits, and little else. This is the story of Juliet, the middle sister, who is overshadowed by her more celebrated sisters, and Val, who we first met in the previous book as the Burrell ladies’ landlord. I had enjoyed the camaraderie between the pair in the previous book, and was looking forward to seeing how their romance bloomed – but ended up rather disappointed.
The strengths of this book, similar to the previous one, lie in the strong relationship between the members of the Burrell family, and their acknowledgment of their precarious situation. While Viola and Bianca’s marriages have secured their financial safety, the Burrells are still considered somewhat low in the step. I enjoyed the way reading about the strategies they employ throughout the book to control the narrative around them. I also liked the historical backdrop of the story, and how historical figures were woven into the plot.
However, while there were scenes and sequences that enjoyed throughout the book, I found myself sadly disappointed by the meandering plot. Though the summary sells this as a sort of marriage-of-convenience plot, there isn’t much conflict stemming from there, and the idea of Juliet being an unsuitable bride doesn’t come up too often. The trouble is that a lot of the book, perhaps to set up Bianca’s sequel, concerns itself with the Whistons’ marriage – indeed the most striking scenes are a part of this plot. With an already low-angst central couple, there was really nothing left to pull it all together.
