Born Irish with a gypsy grandmother, Fyclan Morris has worked doubly hard with the British East India Trading Co. to amass his fortune and climb up the firm's ranks. Never taking any unnecessary risk, he painstakingly plans every move, until he sees Jennifer Tarleton striding through the street. Fyclan knows Jennifer is the one his grandmother foretold would arrive. Jennifer simply wants to borrow a book to take her mind off of her father, Col. Russell Tarleton, whose gambling has managed to drown her family in debt since his return from the East Indies. Fyclan follows Jennifer to the library, and they begin a secret courtship, as Colonel Tarleton blames Fyclan for his abrupt dismissal from his foreign post. Fyclan is desperate to marry Jennifer, while Colonel Tarleton is desperate for Jennifer to wed a rich marquess or duke but definitely not an Irishman.
VERDICT The gypsy grandmother adds a unique element here, but her prediction reduces the tension as readers immediately know the outcome for Fyclan and Jennifer. Nonetheless, Fyclan is a welcome departure from the typical British aristocratic hero, and his unconditional love for Jennifer, despite her health risks and troublesome family, makes him the epitome of an honorable, self-made gentleman. Maxwell (The Groom Says Yes) rushes the romantic development in this prequel to her upcoming series opener, The Match of the Century, but the smart, literary-loving characters will win readers' hearts.
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