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Ten Things I Love About You, by Julia Quinn
AVON,
June 2010
ISBN-13: 978-0061491894
ISBN-10: 0061491896
Reviewed by Mary Gramlich, May 2010
What a wonderful, amazing and absolutely delightful book.
We are born with some understanding of where we place in the general rankings of society. There is the possibility to move up in stature as a result of a marital match but for the most part we live and die in the same general area. But this would not be true for Sebastian Grey as he was not born with a title but could in fact inherit one were his uncle not sire a son. His uncle however, really wants anyone but Sebastian to inherit his title and is determined to marry and have a son. Sebastian is therefore seen by proper London society as marriageable because perhaps, just maybe there is a possibility that his uncle at his advanced age would not have a son and Sebastian could become a titled gentleman. Sebastian states clearly that he wants nothing that his uncle has — or so he thought until he set his eyes upon Miss Annabel Winslow, the woman his uncle decided to marry and the resulting circumstances will have the Ton talking for many a day.
Annabel is not fond of Lord Newbury with his age being the least of her concerns, but she must marry to help support the family who is dependent on her now that her father is deceased. Her maternal jaunty grandmother is trying to fix her up and marry her off even though she sees Annabel as such the unsophisticated country mouse and explains that a woman can marry one man, yet be affectionate with another. Annabel is resolved to her fate until life takes an unexpected turn when she meets Sebastian after she trips over him, literally. He is charming, handsome and so irresistible to women that you would think Annabel might know better than to steal a kiss from him. But he draws her to him so that she becomes blind to everyone and everything when he is near. He makes her feel different, special and beautiful in ways she never experienced, and lets her know that she is desired for reasons other than to produce an heir. But Sebastian’s uncle will not take this lying down and when he finds that Sebastian is pursing what he rightfully believes he owns, fists are drawn and a competition for Annabel’s affection is issued.
There are 100 things I love about this book but the main one is that it is a joy to read. So much so that it felt like a friend moving away when I finished and had to put it on the bookshelf. Sebastian and Annabel are so full of life and each bring so much of their own story to the book that together they create magic. Julia Quinn is the gold standard for historical romance and her books are something you can anticipate reading with a great story, wonderful characters and a little bit about the gossipy London society thrown in. You know when you read her books that everything will circle around the two main characters and the draw they have for each other, but the additional characters always bring so much to the book without crowding out the main characters.
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