52954

Plain, spinster schoolteacher Lydia Clark is suddenly the object of two men's interest -- too bad they're not men she would ever consider marrying. Meanwhile, the man in whom she is interested solicits her professional help to gain the attention of another woman.

This was once my favorite book in the series, as I could relate to Lydia's circumstances. It's probably the lightest and most humorous book in the series, what with Harold Sanders' ham-fisted courtship, and the antics of various other characters. There's a secondary plotline about a cast-aside mistress of a member of parliament who is sent to Gresham to get her out of the way, which adds a little more weight to the book (if not more believability, as I find her story line stretches credulity). All in all, still a fun outing, especially if you've enjoyed the rest of the series, but I wouldn't recommend it as a stand-alone. ( )

This was a good end to the trilogy. The author had several romances, but also kept us in touch with Julia Phelps who was the main protagonist of the first book, which is my favorite of the three. ( )

4.5 ( )

Sweet & religious. Spoilers no doubt. Silly in places. The satire focused on the silly lady writer was pretty heavy handed & went on way too long. The secondary love story -- the love story of the working people -- was designed I guess to counter the notion of romantic love without content.