The Other Countess by Eve Edwards - ADVISABLE

Edwards, Eve  The Other Countess  Delacorte Press, 2010. $17.99  335 pages. Content: Language: PG-13 (12 swears); Sexual Content: PG-13; Violence: G.  

Lady Eleanor, Ellie, is the daughter of a scholar who has lost his money to experimenting in the science of alchemy.  Will is the Earl of Dorset and at a young age he is trying to save his family’s estate from the financial ruin of his late father.  Will and Ellie meet at the court of Queen Elizabeth and regardless of how smitten they are with each other, Will has to save his family from poverty, so he courts Lady Jane.  Lady Jane has a lot of family money, but she wants to be loved for herself, however Will seems like a good person and she befriends Ellie.  When Ellie loses her father to an accident her fate is too tragic for either Jane or Will to ignore.  Disregarding the immediate fix to the family finances that Will would find in his marriage to Jane, he has to protect Ellie.  Jane looking for the kind of love that Will and Ellie share, excuses Will from his commitment, but Will and Ellie still have to gain the Queen’s blessing.  

This is a great historical novel, even if the outcome is unrealistic for the time period.  The characters are great and the romance is fun.  The storyline moves quickly and it’s hard to put down.  There is reference to men’s “codpiece” a few times, and a girl trapping a man in marriage through pregnancy, which would make it only optional in a middle school.  

MS-OPTIONAL.  HS-ADVISABLE.  Reviewer, C. Peterson.