Never Trust a Lady Book

Reading this was like time traveling, in more ways than one. Robinson's book is a well-researched historical romance with an exciting theme: the United States' Civil War and the relationship the two sides tried to establish with England. England was against slavery, of course, but its most lucrative industries also depended on the cotton from the American South. Therefore, espionage between the North and South is inevitable as both sides try to enlist England's support or, if nothing else, keep England out of the war altogether (as mighty England, at the time, would ensure victory for whichever side She chose). In the midst of this intrigue is the romance between Eva, a spirited English lady with connections, and Ryder, a southern abolitionist and undercover spy for Abraham Lincoln.

Now, I mentioned time traveling. In addition to transporting us to the Civil War, the book also takes us back to the turn of the 21st century, or 2003, when historical romances were more widely published. It's almost quaint at this point to read a romance novel in which no one is a werewolf or a vampire. Not that I mind. Some of my favorite romances are "straight" that way, without the paranormal involved at all, but added to the mix in "Never Trust a Lady" is a rather surprising lack of sensuality. Eva and Ryder do not seem to have much spark. In fact, I think they'd be better suited as friends than lovers. Ryder's undercover work with a treacherous widow actually has more sizzle, which is extremely problematic when said treacherous widow is not the heroine of the romance. Talk about awkward!

Anyway, the book is well-written and it would be unfair for me to pan it just because it's old-fashioned (so weird to say something from 2003 could be "old fashioned!"). I give it three stars with the reminder: this is an old-school historic romance, and a pretty clean one at that.