Gayle's review All's Fair in Love and War by Virginia Heath

Today is the day!

In the first installment of a Regency romp of a series, a governess who believes in cultivating joy in her charges clashes with the children’s uncle who hired her, only to find herself falling in love.

When Harry Kincaid’s flighty older sister decides to join her husband on an Egyptian expedition, Harry, a former naval captain, is left in the lurch, minding her three unruly children and giant, mad dog. But Harry has a busy career at the Admiralty that requires all his attention, and he has no clue how to manage the little rascals or when his sister is coming back. In desperation, he goes to Miss Prentice’s School for Young Ladies prepared to pay whatever it takes to hire an emergency governess quick sharp to ensure everything in his formerly ordered house is run shipshape again.

Thanks to her miserable, strict upbringing, fledgling governess Georgie Rowe does not subscribe to the ethos that children should be seen and not heard. She believes childhood should be everything hers wasn’t—filled with laughter, adventure, and discovery. Thankfully, the three Pendleton children she has been tasked with looking after are already delightfully bohemian and instantly embrace her unconventional educational approach. Their staid, stickler-for-the-rules uncle, however, is another matter entirely.

Georgie and Harry continue to butt heads over their differences, but with time it seems that in this case, their attraction is undeniable—and all is indeed fair in love and war.

Imprint Publisher
St. Martin's Griffin

ISBN
9781250896070

A new series by Virginia Heath is always reason to celebrate. 

All's Fair in Love and War is the first in Miss Prentice's Protegees. Miss Prentice run's a school for governesses and she hand picks the students that will be trained there. All's Fair in Love and War is Georgina Rowe's story. Georgie is sent to the school by her indifferent and regimented stepfather. While she is at Miss Prentice's school she makes friends with three very different young ladies, who each have their own interests. Horse crazy Lottie, Portia the resident bluestocking and Kitty who is easily lost to daydreams. I would have loved to read about their training, but that would have to be a different series. There is a time jump to the present, May 1820, when the young ladies are either getting their jobs or have jobs as governesses. Three out of the four young ladies are able to get jobs, but Georgie's personality and opinions stand in her way of finding employment. She is stubborn and has a hard time getting through the interviews with prospective employers because she speaks her mind and believes in a more open system of learning. Georgie ends up teaching at the school until one fateful day Harry arrives in desperate need for a governess for his sister's children. 

Sparks fly at once between Georgie and Harry but instead of sparks of attraction they are sparks of annoyance. The physical attraction is immediate and mutual, but their personalities are incompatible. Their attraction builds slowly, and it goes against what either one of them wants for themselves. Georgie is resigned to her life in service and a loveless life without a family of her own. Harry is resigned to his life in the navy and does not want entanglement. Both characters are chained to the past and it takes the present-day chaos to shake things up. 

All's Fair in Love and War is filled with charming characters, fun situations and witty dialogue that is Virginia Heath's trademark. The author infuses a sense of history in the world that the characters live in, and it gives the book a lovely cinematic quality. I loved the slow burn romance between Georgie and Harry. The children were fun and individual in their pursuits and dog lovers will enjoy Norbert the children's furry companion.

All's Fair in Love and War is another entertaining five-star read from Virginia Heath. If you love a slow burn romance with a dash of family chaos and memorable characters, then All’s Fair in Love and War is for you. 

I can't wait for the next book in the series.

Reviewed by Gayle

Review ARC provided by St. Martin's Press, St. Martin's Griffin via Netgalley

 

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