The tale of volatile Serena and masterful Ivo

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There could scarcely be more contrasting characters in one book. This delicious novel deals with two beautiful young women who descend upon Bath. No two ladies were less alike than the gentle, fragile blond beauty, Lady Fanny and the volatile, Titian-haired termagant, Lady Serena Carlow. They were however the dearest of friends - indeed Fanny, recently widowed and several years the younger, was in fact Serena's doting stepmother. The death of her beloved father, the late Earl of Spenborough, has left Lady Serena bereft - and at a loss. Close to a decline, Serena is put into a flame when she learns the disastrous conditions of her father's will. Serena's generous inheritance, by the terms of her father's will, would come to her only after her marriage with the approval of the stern Marquis of Rotherham - the man whom she had just jilted. Rotherham to consent to my marriage! Oh, infamous, abominable! With the vast changes in her life and in Milverley Park ( where the new heir now resides ), Serena feels the need to remove to some other vicinity. Together the girls decide to take a house in Bath where Serena hoped the gay social life would temper their grief. The arrival in Regency Bath of two charming ladies whose attractions are in no way diminished by their mourning could hardly avoid attention. It isn't long before Serena bumps into an old beau of hers whom she has never forgotten. In her mind, he has become almost like an idealized dream. Tall, golden, handsome, Major Hector Kirkby resembled the prince of a fairytale. Almost no fault could be found with him - the charming smile, the perfect manners, the sweetest disposition - and Serena falls for him again. Hector is no less infatuated. Since his return from the war, he has cherished the memories of his early love. His position in life then hadn't been enough to earn her hand in marriage but now after being conferred with land and a comfortable fortune, dare he try again? A host of interesting characters people this novel including the wealthy, eccentric Mrs Floore. Vulgar, low and yet with a heart of gold, she soon becomes one of Serena's dear friends. Her granddaughter, Emily Laleham also plays a part - as the shy, confiding hen-witted girl who soon becomes the object of Rotherham's attentions. The most independent, headstrong female of all Heyer heroines, there is no doubt that anything a man could do, Lady Serena could do better - or at the very least be the equal. Her temper equals the infamous Leonie Saint-Vire but no one could match her sheer passion, energy and zest for life. Brought up by a father who treated her almost like a son, Serena has been her father's partner, friend and hostess. ... so full of vitality that half an hour in her company left the invalid a prey to headache, palpitations, and nervous spasms... With a heroine so ... almost overpowering, how could Heyer not introduce a man worthy of her? Definitely the epitome of the alpha male, the powerful, aggresive Ivo Barrasford seems to be the only man who could match wits with the tempestuous Serena.

Arabella April Lady Bath Tangle Beauvallet Charity Girl The Corinthian Cotillion Cousin Kate Devil's Cub False Colours Faro's Daughter Frederica Friday's Child Powder and Patch Regency Buck Simon the Coldheart Sprig Muslin Sylvester Venetia The Black Moth The Black Sheep The Convenient Marriage The Foundling The Grand Sophy The Masqueraders The Quiet Gentleman The Reluctant Widow The Spanish Bride The Talisman Ring The Toll-gate The Unknown Ajax These Old Shades Emma Pride and Prejudice Scarlet Pimpernel