Historical novel set in Recency London

4.25 stars. "Her Lady to love" by Jane Walsh is a historical novel set in Regency London. I really love that period, so I had to get the book! The narrator Keira Grace also does a very good job!

The two mains, Jacqueline Lockhart (called Jackie) and Lady Honora Banfield (called Nora) are very different.

Jackie is a party girl and in her sixth Season. Although she is extremely popular with the gentlemen, she is heartbroken after an affair with a now married lady. But in total she very much enjoys her seasons and has no intention to wed any man, despite her lack of funds. Her best friend Bea, also a former lover of hers, is in dire need of a husband beause of her father's debts. Bea has set her eyes on the Earl of Sinclair, and Jackie has promised her friend to help her achieve this goal.

Nora is very shy and loves the countryside. After the death of her parents is brought to London for the Season by her aunt, so she isn't one of the very young girls either. She is expected to wed a man, and her dowry and family connections are quite well. Nora has had some experiences with women, but she understands the expectations of her aunt. She too has set her eyes on the Earl of Sinclair. But when she runs into Jackie at her dressmaker's from afar, she is instantly captivated. When she sees a pair of pretty pink slippers, she spontaneously gives them as a gift to Jackie.

Nora's aunt is quite desperate because of Nora's shyness. Therefore, she invites Jackie and her mother to the opera, so that Jackie might be a good influence for her and present her to eligible men. And that's where it all starts. Jackie and Nora form a team to marry Nora off to the Earl of Sinclair, but the more time they spend together, the more it becomes obvious that they are made for each other.

The first part of the story is quite standard, the topics of friendship and matrimony (and sex) are predominant. Just when I was about to get a little impatient, Tim story got much more interesting. Jackie found she wished to be open about their relationship and Nora was introduced to a women's feminist circle which got her thinking. With Jackie's male best friend Finn, also gay, the topic of forbidden homosexuality got introduced, and added a layer of social criticism to the book. I really liked how that was handled by the characters.

All in all, I really liked this book. This seems to be the first one by Jane Walsh, and as a debut it's impressive. Even though I didn't care too much about the two mains, the secondary characters and the descriptions such as Vauxhall were great. I really felt that the author was very much into the period. I overall liked the book very much.

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