Review: Civilizing Frances

 Title: Civilizing Frances                    


Author:  Marguerite Butler 


Publisher: Musa Publishing 


Genre:  Historical Romance


Length: 262 pages


Reviewer: Laci 


Rating: 4 LIGHTNING BOLTS


Blurb: Frances Hatterly is thrilled to finally make her London debut. She means to indulge her passion for fashion and frivolity. But before she can even make her curtsey, she finds herself accidentally compromised by the most arrogant man she has ever met. Desperate to avoid being forced into marriage, she resolves to make herself as obnoxious as possible to drive him away.


The Duke of Ainsley knew he should never have agreed to help launch his friend's uncivilized sister Frances into society. After he is found alone with Frances, he must either marry the brat or find someone else to do so. But what sort of man would be willing to take the hoyden off his hands?


Ainsley must civilize Frances quickly, or risk losing more than his bachelorhood--he just might lose his heart.


REVIEW:  I immensely enjoyed Civilizing Frances. Even though it's number 3 in the Mad Hatterly series, and I haven't read the first two in the series, at no time did I find myself lost or confused. I was able to follow along just fine and Marguerite Butler did the best job of recapping how Pru came to be married to Charles in just a small little explanation that didn't feel out of place or redundant.
Frances and Ainsley are a pair that you would never imagine working well together, but strangely enough, opposites do attract, and they have just the right amount of sexual tension. Where Ainsley is a bit of a stuffed shirt and a bit uptight, Frances is very much the fun-loving hoyden who gets into situations that she can't get out of easily. They end up bringing out the best in each other and play off the other very well. I could relate to both characters, easily seeing the reasons behind the way Frances and Ainsley are portrayed.
One of the best things about the book was the menagerie of animals as secondary characters. They all had personalities that fit the moment and added to the humor and romance of the story. The human secondary characters were just as well-placed. Each fit the moment and benefited the overall theme.
At no time did I feel as if the story was progressing to fast or too slow. The book was well thought-out and well-written. I would definitely recommend Civilizing Frances to anyone who wants a historical romance that has love and humor.