Review: Strathmere’s Bride

I’m my “other life,” I’m a travel writer, with much of my work focusing on the Jersey Shore. I’ve set up Google Alerts for the names of the shore towns in my region – Atlantic City to Cape May – so I can stay up to date on news.

One of those towns is Strathmere, and the Strathmere Google Alert kept sending me notices about Strathmere’s Bride (Harlequin Historical, No. 479)by Jacqueline Navin, a Harlequin Historical romance novel about the Duke of Strathmere and the governess winding her way around his heart even though he’s supposed to be marrying someone of a proper bloodline – or something like that.

So when I saw a copy for sale for $.75, I bought it, and I read it on the plane to and from Chicago this weekend.

It wasn’t bad. I don’t generally dig historical romances, but this one wasn’t too couched in proving the author did her historical homework, and Chloe, the governess, was likeable. The Duke wasn’t too prideful or mean, either, as heros in historical romances can be (a former popular plotline in these types of books books involved rape – thank God that’s not popular anymore). For $.75 (plus shipping), it was a good buy, and kept me company on airplanes and in restaurants.

Yes, folks, a smart, professional woman can read a romance novel and not feel bad for it – really!