Jennifer Ashley has created a stunningly original love story featuring one of the most unusual heroes I’ve ever encountered. (And no, he has neither fur nor wings.)
The book is set in the Victorian era and is the first in a series about the four Mackenzie brothers. Lord Ian Mackenzie is the youngest. He suffers from what we now know to be Asperger’s Syndrome. Although he is highly intelligent and possessed of a phenomenal memory, he is often locked inside his own mind. Ostracised by his father, Ian spent several years in a lunatic asylum where he was tortured in the name of science. Upon inheriting the dukedom, Hart Mackenzie, the eldest Mackenzie brother, set him free and took him back to live in the family home.
Beth Ackerley grew up in a workhouse in East End London. Far from having the typical workhouse experience, she had the good fortune to marry a vicar, who sadly died the following year. She subsequently found employment as the paid companion to kindly old lady, who left Beth a fortune upon her death. At the opening of the story, Beth is engaged to be married to Lyndon Mather, a fortune hunter & collector of Ming pottery.
Ian is also a collector of Ming pottery and purchases a bowl from Mather. He knows Mather to be a debt-riddled profligate, unable to distinguish a genuine artifact from a fake. When Mather boasts of his engagement to a rich widow, Ian wonders if Mrs Ackerley is a fake or a gem and determines to find out.
Inveigling an invitation to Mather’s box at the opera house, Ian meets Beth and gives her a note warning her of Mather’s proclivities. Beth is taken aback by his strange behaviour and utter disregard for the social norms. She’s even more surprised at the attraction she feels for him. Despite the rumours regarding his alleged insanity, her instincts tell her that although he is different to other people, he is not dangerous.
Ian, in turn, is drawn to Beth, and finds he can communicate with her in a way he has never been able to with anyone before. Despite the opposition of his family, and the dogged interference of an overly-zealous Scotland Yard detective, they have an affair which grows to true love.
This is a wonderful story. It is one of those rare books which I didn’t want to end. I wondered how Jennifer Ashley would make a hero with autism a convincing male lead, but she managed it with aplomb. Ian is a fantastically complex character and Beth’s straight forward compassion is the perfect foil.
The secondary characters were well-developed but not to the point that they stole scenes. The subplot involving the murder of a courtesan was handled very nicely, adding dramatic tension without tipping it over into melodrama.
Jennifer Ashley is an extremely talented author. I’m looking forward to reading future books featuring the Mackenzie brothers, and I’m only sorry that I have to wait until next year to do so. Grade: A
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Excellent review. Isn’t Ian just a fabulous hero? I was in awe at what a wonderful character he was and how perfect ‘his’ Beth was for him. I wasn’t content to read this just once and had to read it again and then again. There’s no question it’s going to be one the best reads of the year!!!
Yes, it’s one of the best romances I’ve read in along time. I got ‘Broken Wing’, by the way!
Thanks for the review. Sounds like a wonderful book.
Kwana: Yes, I really enjoyed it. Hope you do, too!