Duchess in Love (Duchess in Love, 1)

ISBN: 0060508108

Condition: New

Product DescriptionA Duke in RetreatGina was forced into marriage with the Duke of Girton at an age when she'd have been better off in a schoolroom than a ballroom. Directly after the ceremony her handsome spouse promptly fled to the continent, leaving the marriage unconsummated and Gina quite indignant.A Lady In the MiddleNow, she is one of the most well-known ladies in London ... living on the edge of scandal-desired by many men, but resisting giving herself to any one.A Duchess in LoveFinally, Camden, the Duke of Girton, has returned home, to discover that his nave bride has blossomed into the toast of the ton. Which leaves Cam in the most uncomfortable position of discovering that he has the bad manners to be falling in love-with his own wife!From Publishers WeeklyFresh and witty, this high-spirited Regency-era romance gives a tried-and-true formula a merry spin. Cam Serrard, the duke of Girton, leapt out of a window and ran off to Greece immediately after being forced into wedding 11-year-old Gina. Instead of resenting him, however, Gina spends the next 12 years sending him friendly letters. When Cam finally returns to England to grant Gina an annulment so she can marry a marquess who loves her, the warm easiness between the childhood friends doesn't surprise them, but the flare of desire does. Before long, Gina starts to wonder if being the wife of a nude-sculpting, frequently absent and socially careless duke might not be such a bad future. Chatter among Gina and her friends has the modern ring of a Sex and the City episode, and James's cheeky, sometimes sly humor makes for frequent laugh-out-loud moments. Avoiding easy stereotypes, James fleshes out all of her characters and gives them depths of emotion that romances seldom allocate to supporting characters. Though each chapter is headed by a droll description of the events to come, readers may find themselves too caught up in the snowballing action to take much notice.Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.About the AuthorEloisa James is a USA Today and New York Times bestselling author and professor of English literature, who lives with her family in New York, but can sometimes be found in Paris or Italy. She is the mother of two and, in a particularly delicious irony for a romance writer, is married to a genuine Italian knight. Visit her at www.eloisajames.com.