I had a lot of fun reading Jane Walsh’s newest Regency romance, Her Duchess to Desire. Historical fiction is one of my favorite genres, and it’s been a while since I actually picked up a Regency romance, especially one with Sapphic characters. I’m very glad I was able to read this one.
This is the story of Anne, the Duchess of Hawthorne and Letitia (Letty) Barrow who is trying to build her own interior design business which is made harder as she is a woman as well as an unmarried mother. When Anne decides to renovate Hawthorne House in London (mainly to keep her philandering husband from coming home) she hires Letty. The longer they are together though, the more Anne’s icy heart melts.
Ms. Walsh did a good job making the setting fit the time, right down to using some of the words and phrases common to the period. The characters are likable and well-developed. Letty does seem a bit unrealistic to me. In reality, a woman of her standing, especially an unmarried mother and a fairly out lesbian, would have never been allowed near folks such as the Duke and Duchess, but this is fiction so I just went with the flow and enjoyed the story. It is a nice tale, low angst, and definitely romantic.
If you love historical fiction like I do, especially Regency romances, then try this novel.
I received an ARC from NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books for an honest review.
Rainbow Reflections 