Scandal of the Year

Being jilted. It’s awful for a guy.

Especially if you’re a duke, and your fiancée left you for that other duke, the one who came back from Egypt just before your wedding. Humiliating, right?

But what if you managed to recover, got engaged to another girl, and then got jilted again, this time because of a notorious woman, a lot of champagne, and a moment of utter stupidity? Well, that’s beyond humiliating. That’s a scandal.

Ah, but what if you manage to put the scandal behind you and begin searching for a new bride, only to have the notorious woman who ruined everything reenter your life? What if she’s as enticing as before? What if just being near her threatens to ruin your marriage prospects and your reputation all over again? For Aidan Carr, Duke of Trathen, the unluckiest man in England when it comes to matrimony, another scandal is the worst thing he can imagine. It might also be the best thing that ever happened to him. ((Synopsis from Laure Lee  Guhrke’s website)

Aidan Carr, the jilted duke from  Wedding of the Season, the first book in the” Abandoned at the Altar” Series, continues his complicated relationship with Julia Yardley.  Aidan and Julia met when they were both very young and she was engaged to Baron Yardley.  After years of avoiding her abusive husband, Julia maneuvers Aidan into being named the other man in her divorce which causes the breakup of his second engagement.  Julia has learned to shut off her feelings so she could survive in her marriage and thinks she will never be happy in a relationship again. This being Edwardian England, she is left penniless in the divorce and ends up going to Aidan for help getting employment of some kind, as marriage to another rich man is not an option. She ends up acting as his social secretary and vets the young ladies for him.  Being thrown together at balls and house parties forces both of them to re-examine their feelings for each other.  There are obstacles-her reputation and his aversion to another scandal- but they work it out.

I enjoyed Julia in the first book and felt bad for Aidan as he seemed a nice but stuffy person.  It was good to get a little explanation about why Julia would never go home and was constantly avoiding her husband.  Both characters had issues to deal with and it was done in a realistic way. I’m hoping the next book in the series will be about Julia’s cousin Paul and his mysterious American wife.  I have not read Ms.. Guhrke  prior to this series, but I am planning to go back and read her earlier books.  It’s always fun to find someone new to enjoy!