His Yankee Bride

His Yankee Bride by Rose Gordon

Feeling restless and confined by his fate, John Banks takes his brother's advice and embarks on a Grand Tour prior to settling down into his profession of country vicar.  This tour takes him to post-Revolution America where his Britishness is met with a mixture of distaste and outright hostility.  After seeing the perseverance of this proud and determined young nation, John decides to earn his own passage back to England instead of accepting the money his brother has been setting aside for him.  His quest for work brings him to Charleston, and across the path of the one type of woman he has always been determined NOT to marry.

Carolina Ellis is bored by Charleston society.  Since her brother failed to return home from the war five years ago, it has been clear that the fate of her family's indigo plantation will depend on whomever she marries.  The major problem is that she doesn't want to marry the men that her mother keeps throwing at her.  So the minute she sees the ragged Englishman walk in to the Charleston ball she is attending, she knows that he is the one to save her from the fate that is suffocating her.  Now she just has to convince him of that.

I am all for independent heroines, but Carolina's independence was flat out obnoxious.  That being said however, the writer uses her obnoxiousness to prove a point later on in the book, so I will forgive that annoyance.  She really was a caring and light-hearted character, and I loved the game that was created to try to shock her.

It was great seeing John grow up and still not have lost his habit of letting trouble find him.  He has matured, but he still holds on to the naivete of a truly honest and trusting person.  It was also nice hear more about the situation that had him in so much trouble in the previous book.

One of the elements that have come up in book discussions lately is the trend of horrible mothers.  After reading many books in the past few years that have increasingly scandalous, uncaring, and even cruel mothers, I must declare that Ms. Gordon wins my vote for creating the most reprehensible mother in Regency Romance (probably all romance, but I am narrowing the field).  Mrs. Ellis was so awful it was almost addicting to read scenes with her in it.

Overall, this story was a fun read, but insightful at the same time.  It brings attention to the plight of slaves both from the perspective of those who hate it and those who disagree but depend on it.  It also shares a bit about the harm of gossip, even if you are innocent.

Ratings:

(1=unacceptable, 2=poor, 3=acceptable, 4=good, 5=excellent)

Continuity/Flow – 5

Sex – 4 

Language – 5

Storyline – 5

Overall – 5