The Earl Next Door

April 22, 2019
Adeline, Dowager Countess of Wake, the heroine in this flimsy First Comes Love Regency series opener, is determined to keep her independence, no matter how diligently the handsome Lyon Marksworth, Earl of Lyonwood, tries to win her hand. Adeline, recently widowed, is young enough to remarry, but her marriage was anything but blissful, so a replay is not in the cards. She’s dedicated her life to establishing and running the Seafarer’s School for Girls and believes marriage would make her and the school too vulnerable to her husband’s whims. When Lyonwood mistakes her for a lady of the night, she is both appalled by his assumption and intrigued by his looks. Lyonwood admires her fire and boldness, and after their passionate first encounter, he knows she’s the only one for him. They begin a battle of wits as Lyonwood woos Adeline and she fends him off. Grey (The Rakes of St. James) rushes the central relationship without developing it; a shocking revelation and the eventual declaration of love feel like nothing more than genre boxes to check off. Grey’s prose is strong and her characters are fun, but the romantic side of this romance is a disappointment.

April 15, 2019
While opening a girls' boarding school, a dowager countess is mistaken for a lady of the night by her aristocratic neighbor, leading to affinity and a scorching affair, but will love be able to overcome divergent goals? Adeline, the Dowager Countess of Wake, doesn't exactly mourn her husband, who went down on a ship. Their marriage was complicated, and he'd bullied her when she couldn't conceive. After befriending two fellow widows of the wreck and learning of the dire straits of the crew's families, Adeline decides to start a boarding school for the daughters and sisters of those men. The ideal property is next door to Lyon Marksworth, the Earl of Lyonwood, whose aunt convinces him there's a brothel moving in. When he enters Adeline's home uninvited to confront her, she has just tried on an intriguing piece of lingerie that furthers his misconceptions. However, despite her problematic attire, rather than cowing to him, she berates him for his unacceptable behavior, and he is intrigued by the fiery countess who dresses him down. Once the girls move in, Adeline and Lyon find themselves more and more attracted to each other as they navigate students and lords behaving badly, meddling family, and a neighbor with a spyglass. Lyon has waited his whole life to find Adeline, and he wants to marry her, but she refuses: "Because I've been a wife and found I'm not suited to marriage and have no desire to entangle myself in it again." She's happy to be his discreet lover, but he refuses, wanting more. The impasse may keep them apart. Author Grey's unconventional meet-cute, compelling series backbone, and authentic characters move an interesting plot forward, but the not-completely-surprising surprise ending undercuts the intensity of the central conflict. An engaging series start with hints of secrets to unfurl in subsequent books.

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May 15, 2019
Lyon Marksworth, Earl of Lyonwood, felt like a complete and utter fool. Of course, he should have known better than to accept the theory of his Aunt Delia and her friend Mrs. Feversham as they noted the unusually large delivery of beds next door. Instead, Lyon marched over to his new neighbor, Adeline, Dowager Countess of Wake, and accused her of opening a brothel. It turns out Adelia and friends are planning to open a new girls' school, and embarrassed Lyon finds himself falling for his lovely new neighbor's charms. Grey launches her First Comes Love series with a perfectly matched pair of protagonists, a vividly etched supporting cast, and plenty of potent sexual chemistry and breathtaking sensuality.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)