Miranda Neville has a knack for creating memorable characters. When I read The Dangerous Viscount, the previous book in the Burgundy Club series, I simply adored Diana and her true love, Sebastian.  But I remember clearly how much I really disliked Sebastian’s friend, the dandy Tarquin Compton. A male fashionista in the Beau Brummel mold, he sloped around ballrooms and made pithy comments that could immediately make or break a young lady’s reputation. Usually break, as we all know that being snarky is so much more fun than being kind.

So when I picked up The Amorous Education of Celia Seaton and realized that the hero was that snotty little guy, Tarquin, I almost threw it aside and went back to the TBR pile. But kids, I have to tell you, I’m glad I didn’t. Ms. Neville did the impossible – she explained Tarquin’s character and revealed sides of him that forced me to change my mind about him. I can’t say that he is my favorite of the Burgundy Club members, but his wooing and winning of wallflower Celia Seaton is sweet, funny, and satisfying.

Seems that Ms. Seaton was one of the victims of Tarquin’s alleged humor last season, when a promising suitor heard Tarquin compare her to a cauliflower and promptly lost interest. So when Celia, trying to escape a kidnapper, runs into Tarquin alone and amnesia-stricken on the moors, she gets her revenge by informing him that he is, in fact, her fiancé.

Ok, I know, that’s kind of an involved storyline – and I didn’t even bring up the missing ruby, Tarquin’s meddling uncle and loathsome aunt, the Hungarian countess, the naughty book Celia finds in Tarquin’s pocket, or any number of other plot devices. It ought to be a godawful mess. But Ms. Neville makes them work. 

It’s a delightful romp across the moors as Tarquin and Celia try to find out why there are bad guys after them and make their way to clean clothes and a good meal. Of course, once they find their way home, there’s that pesky business of the betrothal Celia lied about, and Tarquin’s reluctant wish that it was really true. But can a die-hard dandy find happiness with a quiet young lady who is not the toast of the Ton? With a bit of instruction from that naughty book of Tarquin’s, you bet he can! 

This is a fun book. There’s no deep philosophy, not a lot of angst or sturm-und-drang. But I read romance to lose myself in a pretty world filled with interesting people, and The Amorous Education of Celia Seaton meets those requirements to a tee.

~ Donna