Priscilla Wentworth is a precious jewel. She is graceful, educated, accomplished, and must work for a living. Misfortune has caused her to end up as a prostitute in a very elite brothel. It is not a difficult job and she learns to do it well. She is a practical and cheerful woman and has a knack for looking on the bright side. She begins to fall in love with a new client and to her surprise, he asks her to become his mistress. Sir Gerald Stapleton hates marriage and attachments but he is worried about the safety of his new paramour. He sets Priscilla up as his mistress for her own safety and to keep her exclusively for himself. Despite Gerald’s attachment issues and Priscilla’s unsuitability, they become deeply attached to each but neither will admit it. Mary Balogh wrote this book in 1993 and re-released it in 2009. Priscilla and Gerald were 2 characters in another book she had written. She wrote this book in 2 weeks and it has been a very popular book. I especially like the character development of Gerald. At first, he seems like a typical young hero of the Regency time period. He is a handsome, selfish, gambling, drinking, social young man. As time progresses, you learn that he is insecure, not very bright, and lacks self confidence. He has issues about attachment and being loved. I like that he is so flawed. He is not who you would expect to be the hero of an historical novel. I also like the novelty of having a prostitute as the heroine even though her character is not very realistic. You will like her and feel sorry for her. If you can fall in love with these interesting characters, you will like this book. It chronicles the ups and downs of their budding, impossible romance as you get to know them.Read full review
This novel was rather coase dealing as it did with life from the prospective of a prostitute in Regency England. I found the premise a little difficult to accept that a youthful lady of noble family would have NO alternative other than prostitution.....particularly if the choice was between postitution or continuing to live in the manor house with relatives who were unfriendly or disagreeable as opposed to dangerous. The character of the story's beta male was incompletely drawn: he was interesting in that we saw how the sum of his life experiences produced such a man relative to his sexual preferences, nevertheless, we have no clue why he was liked & accepted by other men or what made him become aware of the prostitute in the story as a person rather than an object. Yes, Balogh's given is that "Love changes all" - but really, after a pattern of a lifetime,what made the man change? Is that kind of character change really possible without some primal change in value system?Read full review
This is a story about a sweet girl,Priscilla Wentworth . She must take a job in a brothel to support herself. She becomes a favorite of one of her clients, Gerald Stapleton. Gerald becomes concerned about Priscilla after she is ruffed up by another "gentleman". Gerald offers to set her up in a house of her own as his mistress. Priscilla is thrilled to think Gerald wants to do so much for her. He lets her decorate the house and he visits her as often as he can. Priscilla falls in love with Gerald even though she tries not to. She knows that in time Gerald will get tired of her and ask her to move . This is a great story even though it starts out rough!!
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
thanks
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
I love Mary Balogh's books. This Regency romance is wildly unlikely. A proper member of English society marries a prostitute from a brothel he frequents. Still, the characters are engaging and I ended up rooting for them to make it against all odds.
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