Long and Short Reviews

The Reluctant Petruchio by Kay Furness
Awe-Struck E-Books
Historical
Full Length, Sweet
Review by Jasmine

Lady Kate Fitzlynn has spent her entire time since her come-out scandalizing society with her exploits and riding roughshod over her soft-hearted uncle, Sir Henry Wanstead. When she pretends to elope to Gretna with the engaged Lucius Sommers, Sir Henry is at his wits’ end. To his rescue comes the family friend Ally Lavenham, who persuades Sir Henry to let him act as Kate’s brotherly guardian and bring the spoilt heiress to heel.

Finding herself saddled with an infuriating dandy, Kate refuses to change her ways and promptly sets about making Ally’s life as uncomfortable as possible. Armed with her shocking friend Yolanda, a yellow dress and a truly hideous pair of buckled shoes, she leads her Petruchio a merry dance across London. But darker passions are at work, and Kate is about to find out that she is not as clever as she had thought.

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Lady Kate Fitzylnn, rich in both money and looks, has it all according to everybody else. However, everyday there is somebody that the society is talking about: Lady Kate Fitzylnn. It is not about her looks or her money, but it is about her penchant for getting in trouble and her latest escapades. Being raised by her uncle, after her mother abandoned her following her father’s death, she has had a lot of losses in her life. Hence, her uncle was not every firm in raising her, resulting in a woman who is not satisfied with what she has, always looking for more excitement. And the excitement she craves always goes against the norms of what society thinks is proper and good.

Her uncle, at his wits end, agrees to Ally Lavenham’s proposal to tame the wild Kate. Being a childhood friend of the children in the family, he has grown up with Kate and her cousins. However, he stipulates that he gets all authority in disciplining her. Will Ally be able to tame the spoiled and reluctant Kate, who does not want to be tamed? Will they be able to stand against the dark currents that are trying to pull Kate under as she suffers the consequences of some of her outrageous actions?

Initially, I found it a bit difficult to get into the story. I was very amazed at Kate’s actions and I could not imagine somebody acting out so much. But as the story progressed and I came to realize the reason behind her actions, the story became more real and interesting. I really liked Ally’s character. He is someone who is both confident and unsure. He is willing to do anything for his family and friends as evidenced by his agreement to take on Kate. But he unsure, sweet and shy when it comes to matters of the heart. I had an immediate dislike of the heroine, Kate. But as her story unfolded, I found that I could actually relate to her. She often acted without thinking and that is something everybody can admit to. Everybody acts impulsively one time or another in their life; it is just that Kate did it more often and more outrageously than anybody I have ever heard of. I also enjoyed the humor and the wordplay between Ally and Kate. New author Kay Furness has made a strong start. I am looking forward to reading more from her!