home.”
response to those words from his father. Everything is not well at home and he
finds himself in a bit of a fix. A little warning that his father had made
tentative arrangements for his marriage would have been nice but Luke really
wishes it had been anyone other than the young lady chosen. After all, Phoebe
Ramsey had always been an annoyance and any time they had spent together had resulted in physical injuries for one of them. Just when Luke thinks he’s escaped that particular future, he finds himself courting a young woman he doesn’t want, a furious best friend who wants a duel to satisfy honor, and the responsibility of finding who and why
someone had caused an accident for his mother.
has loved reading books. That love of words extended to writing as she grew older and when it became more difficult to find a ‘clean’ book, she determined to write her own. Among her favorite authors is Jane Austen, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and Georgette Heyer.
to laptop keyboard), she can generally be found with a book in hand. In her spare time, Bethany reviews books for a book site called More Than A Review.
CHARACTERS, PLOTTING, DEVELOPMENT:
Ah, Regency England, a fine time period for love. Swafford created a sweet clean Regency romance in Not My Idea. A strong, independent, handsome man, unwilling to let his father harass him into marriage, they butt heads. He finds Phoebe has changed during his absence into a beautiful young woman who he still considers silly. Then Swafford added in the fact Phoebe did not want to marry him anymore than he wanted to marry her. She has her sights set on Miles. By the way, you have Phoebe’s lovely friend, Miss Darkin, thrown into the mix. What a tangled web. So, how will it all shake out? Will Lucas and Phoebe succumb to their fathers wishes or will they hold fast to their decision? What a mess their fathers created.
Swafford fleshed out her characters skillfully. Lucas’ regard and caring for his mother, showed a different side of him. Rather than a gad-about, he’s a loving son who always felt he’s a disappointment to George and his father. Even the wealthy have insecurities. To say I disliked Rosamund would be an understatement; what a character and her brother was no better. However, I thought George full of himself also. With well-developed characters, Swafford created a solid story with a few twists and interfering families.
In concluding my romance book review of Not My Idea, I found a solid clean romance with well-developed characters and pacing in line with the length of the book. I would not hesitate to buy this book for a friend; great for an afternoon of light reading.
NOT MY IDEA RECOMMENDATION: STARS 4
