Eloisa James returns to the Wildes of Lindow Castle series with the next Wilde child who runs and joins a theatre troupe—and the duke who tries to save her reputation.
WILDE CHILD by ELOISA JAMES
Series: The Wildes of Lindlow Castle #6
Publication date: March 30, 2021
Published by: Avon
Genre: historical romance
SYNOPSIS
He wants a prim and proper duchess, not the Wildest of the Wildes!
Already notorious for the golden hair that proves her mother’s infidelity, Lady Joan can’t seem to avoid scandals, but her latest escapade may finally ruin her: she’s determined to perform the title role of a prince—in breeches, naturally.
She has the perfect model for an aristocratic male in mind: Thaddeus Erskine Shaw, Viscount Greywick, a man who scorned the very idea of marrying her.
Not that Joan would want such a dubious honor, of course.
For years, Thaddeus has avoided the one Wilde who shakes his composure, but he’s horrified when he grasps the danger Joan’s putting herself in. Staring into her defiant eyes, he makes the grim vow that he’ll keep her safe.
He strikes a bargain: after one performance, the lady must return to her father’s castle and marry one of three gentlemen whom he deems acceptable.
Not including him, of course.
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Praise for Wilde Child:
"James displays her signature humor...[in] a story as wild as the heroine's family name and one that will reward romance fans who want a funny book about an unusual heroine."
-- "Kirkus Reviews"
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
New York Times bestselling author Eloisa James writes historical romances for HarperCollins Publishers. Her novels have been published to great acclaim. A reviewer from USA Today wrote of Eloisa's very first book that she "found herself devouring the book like a dieter with a Hershey bar"; later People Magazine raved that "romance writing does not get much better than this." Her novels have repeatedly received starred reviews from Publishers' Weekly and Library Journal and regularly appear on the best-seller lists.
After graduating from Harvard University, Eloisa got an M.Phil. from Oxford University, a Ph.D. from Yale and eventually became a Shakespeare professor, publishing an academic book with Oxford University Press. Currently she is an associate professor and head of the Creative Writing program at Fordham University in New York City. Her "double life" is a source of fascination to the media and her readers. In her professorial guise, she's written a New York Times op-ed defending romance, as well as articles published everywhere from women's magazines such as More to writers' journals such as the Romance Writers' Report.
Eloisa...on her double life:
When I'm not writing novels, I'm a Shakespeare professor. It's rather like having two lives. The other day I bought a delicious pink suit to tape a television segment on romance; I'll never wear that suit to teach in, nor even to give a paper at the Shakespeare Association of America conference. It's like being Superman, with power suits for both lives. Yet the literature professor in me certainly plays into my romances. The Taming of the Duke (April 2006) has obvious Shakespearean resonances, as do many of my novels. I often weave early modern poetry into my work; the same novel might contain bits of Catullus, Shakespeare and anonymous bawdy ballads from the 16th century.
When I rip off my power suit, whether it's academic or romantic, underneath is the rather tired, chocolate-stained sweatshirt of a mom. Just as I use Shakespeare in my romances, I almost always employ my experiences as a mother. When I wrote about a miscarriage in Midnight Pleasures, I used my own fears of premature birth; when the little girl in Fool For Love threw up and threw up, I described my own daughter, who had that unsavory habit for well over her first year of life.
So I'm a writer, a professor, a mother - and a wife. My husband Alessandro is Italian, born in Florence. We spend the lazy summer months with his mother and sister in Italy. It always strikes me as a huge irony that as a romance writer I find myself married to a knight, a cavaliere, as you say in Italian.
One more thing...I'm a friend. I have girlfriends who are writers and girlfriends who are Shakespeare professors. And I have girlfriends who are romance readers. In fact, we have something of a community going on my website. Please stop by and join the conversation on my readers' pages.
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Wilde Child by Eloisa JamesMy rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
This had a little bit of a slow start for me and some warming up to the stuffy hero, but Eloisa James brought the charm and fun once again in the latest Wilde installment. This series has been absolutely delightful to read! The Wildes will take up residence in your heart and you'll never want them to leave. Each member, from the Duke and Duchess, to the littlest Wilde hold a unique quality to set them apart and make them special. This installment stars Lady Joan as the heroine and I've been very much looking forward to her story.
Lady Joan has always intrigued me because she is something of a black sheep due to her mother's scandalous infidelity. While the Duke of Lindow raised her and considers her his daughter in every sense that matters, her appearance makes it clear that she was conceived out of the marriage bed. Rather than hide away in shame at her obvious illegitimacy, she boldly lives her life to the fullest with a total lack of embarrassment. In fact, she sees her circumstances as an excuse to dispose of the strictures of being a lady. If she's to constantly be reminded that she isn't one, she's going to enjoy the freedom of the low expectations of others. No highborn lord would have her, so marriage has never really been a focus or concern. She flits through balls and dazzles any man of her choosing with her beauty for the fun of it. She audaciously kisses lords in full view of everyone in order to force a proposal of marriage-so she can refuse him. In other words, she's a rule breaker with no concern for her reputation. It was almost unheard of for a gentlewoman of that time to live free of worry about their reputation, and she recognizes it for the gift that it is.
Viscount Greywick (Thaddeus) is a longtime friend of the Wildes. He went to Eton with Jeremy Wilde, his mother is friends with the Duke and Duchess, and he even courted two of the Wilde sisters. He and his mother are more or less treated as one of the family after spending so much time with one another. At first, I wasn't sure that I would care for him. He seemed too uptight for my taste, and very particular about propriety that verged on pompous. His disapproval of Joan seemed excessive-though I must acknowledge that she is Wilde-ly inappropriate at the best of times. (Sorry, pun intended) You can't really blame him for reproaching her attitude, though I wondered how he would be imagined into a romantic figure. I shouldn't have doubted Ms. James, because I came to love him and love him even more coupled with Joan. They were total opposites but once they spent a little time getting to know one another found that they had more things in common than they realized.
She was infuriating, wildly intelligent, better readthan anyone he knew—at least in the genre of plays.Headstrong. Stubborn. Reckless to the point of idiocy.
Thaddeus softened fairly quickly after being exposed to Joan's bright, carefree company. She showed him a side of himself that he never expected to see. He let down his defenses and he found himself being dazzled by their intimate picnics. Rather than seeing the false front she put on for the world, her soft side was exposed as well. She seemed younger, more vulnerable than she let on and he was honored that she was allowing him a peek into her true self. My favorite scenes in the book were the picnic scenes. They spent idyllic time lazing around, feasting on delicious food, and speaking from their hearts. They were moments of joy and laughter-which had been almost non-existent in Thaddeus' strict life.
Although he was raised in privilege, he never knew the love of his father and that hurt him deeply. He always strove to be the best and strongest at everything in the hopes of gaining his father's attention but it was never to be. His appearance of being perfect with the perfect life was artificial. Those who knew anything about his family, knew that his father scandalously chose his mistress over his wife and son. And now, Thaddeus faced the very real threat of his father shocking and embarrassing his mother publicly if he didn't give him what he wanted. One thing that this conflict showed was Thaddeus' devotion to his mother. His only concern was protecting her from public scorn. Although he remained disappointed at his father's antics, he long ago gave up any hope for himself that he would ever grow to care about him.
The main roadblock between this couple was Joan's "tarnished reputation." Due to his father's behavior, he knew that he needed to find a woman who was suitable to be a Duchess. Someone who might repair the damage to his family name. Joan in all of her headstrong glory was totally out of the question. Wasn't she? The longer he spent around her, the less convinced he became. She may be better at playing a hilarious version of Hamlet than needlework or the pianoforte, but she was the first person who frequently made him laugh. They both bore the brunt of a parent's reckless and selfish behavior, but she flourished, while he retreated within himself. They helped each other grow individually, so even though they seemed to rush headfirst into love, it wasn't entirely unbelievable. They had a long established acquaintance already-they just needed to dig a little deeper under the surface to see what was there all along.
Looking at Thaddeus’s hard jaw and flinty eyes,Joan had the distinct feeling that she hadmisunderstood the man.He wasn’t cold, but rather explosive.Not uncaring, but caring too much.
I enjoyed Joan and Thaddeus very much! They were overwhelmingly sweet and hilarious to watch fall in love. The banter was on point (as always), and I had a smile on my face all the way through. Sometimes I get frustrated when the main characters' families intrude heavily on the plot as it may take away from the romantic relationship development. I will never complain about that with a Wilde book. I cherish all the time I have with each and every one, and this was no exception. If you haven't started this series yet, I highly recommend you introduce yourself to this very loving and entertaining family.
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