Moonlight and Mischief

November 15, 2004
It was bad enough that her brother inveigled an invitation to Lord Haverstone's house party by informing the rumored to be loose-in-the-pockets nobleman that his sister commanded a large dowry. Now Mariah Thorncroft's matchmaking mother is encouraging Mariah to flirt with the handsome lord. Mariah doesn't care what her family wants; she intends to do exactly what she has done for her past three seasons: ignore any man foolish enough to court her for her fortune. When Mariah stumbles across Haverstone engaged in a moonlit dalliance with another houseguest, it simply confirms her opinion of the incorrigible rogue, but in spite of her determination to avoid him, Haverstone seems constantly to be in her company or in her thoughts. What is even worse is that the more time Mariah spends with Haverstone, the more she suspects that the sexy rake might just be the man of her dreams. With its nicely nuanced characters, richly satisfying love story, and graceful writing, Woodward's splendid tale will delight any Regency fan.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2004, American Library Association.)