4.5 stars
Sebastian Grey is handsome, charming and welcome everywhere in polite society because he is the sole male heir of his uncle, the Earl of Newbury, and if said uncle dies before he’s able to father more male offspring, Sebastian will be the new earl. Of course, Lord Newbury hates his nephew and is doing all he can to find a nice, fertile young woman to bear him more children to prevent just this from happening. So Sebastian could be the best catch a young lady could snag herself, or a match-making mama’s worst nightmare. He also harbours a secret, something he can’t even tell his best friends about. Sebastian is the author of a series of ridiculously popular, rather lurid Gothic novels. No one knows that the reclusive Sarah Gorely is in fact Sebastian Grey, even his cousin Sir Harry, who’s translating the novels into Russian.
Annabell Winslow is the eldest of eight children and she’s been taken to London by her grandparents, Lord and Lady Vickers, because Lord Newbury, their close friend, has determined that Annabel’s lush curves (scurrilous rumours say she’s so fertile, birds sing when she comes near) means she’s perfect to be his new bride. That both her mother and grandmother had a huge amount of children doesn’t hurt. Since Annabel’s mother is now a widow, and money is rather tight in their family, Annabel really does need to marry someone well off to provide for her family. She just really doesn’t want to marry the gross, old lech Newbury, who’s literally old enough to be her grandfather. After having been accosted by him at a party, she flees into the gardens to get away, and stumbles over Sebastian (recovering from an assignation, because he’s a rake, don’t you know). The two start to form a friendship, without realising the identity of the other, or their relative relationship to Lord Newbury.
When Sebastian finally discovers that the lovely Miss Winslow is in fact, the woman his uncle is intending to marry, he decides to stay far away from her. But since Annabel’s reputation could be completely destroyed if both Sebastian and Lord Winslow shun her, he decides that he will pretend to court her, just so that she won’t become a complete social pariah. Of course, the more time the two spend together, the less likely it is that Annabel is going to want to accept the uncle rather than the nephew. But will marrying Sebastian Grey mean that Annabel won’t have the money she needs to support her family? More on my blog.