Novel Addictions

Ahhh, Julia Quinn. She never fails to make me smile, page after glorious page. 

The Lost Duke of Wyndham is Quinn’s first novel in a new series about the Cavendish family. In this particular novel, Jack Audley is believe to be the long lost son of a prior Wyndham duke. It’s a bit of a prodigal son tale, if you will. Jack was raised in Ireland by his aunt and uncle and carries a bit of a haunted past himself. 

The dowager Duchess of Wyndham, Augusta Cavendish, is convinced that Jack is her favorite son’s heir–even when no one else wants to believe it, including Jack. The dowager is the devil incarnate…or at least, everyone seems to think she is. But she may have more layers than meets the eye at first glance. 

Grace Eversleigh is the dowager’s lovely, witty, and underestimated companion. How she puts up with the dowager’s tantrums and tangents is anyone’s guess. But she feels beholden to the dowager and has nowhere else to go, so she remains at Belgrave, the Cavendish family home. 

It’s clear from the beginning that Grace and Jack have a connection. And despite their best intentions, they can’t seem to stay away from each other. In the search for Jack’s true identity, they fall in love. A bit of a love triangle is created since–by all indications–Thomas Cavendish, the current Duke of Wyndham, seems to fancy Grace at least a little. Even worse, Thomas is betrothed to Amelia Willoughby, Grace’s childhood friend. It’s a tangled web that does eventually sort itself out by the end of the novel. 

Ever since I discovered Quinn’s novels several years ago, I haven’t failed to read them as they’re released. During this particular story, I found myself smiling and laughing out loud at Jack’s outrageous and charming sense of humor. Quinn has a witty repertoire she manages to keep up throughout the entire book. Actually, most of her novels carry this same vibe, which is why I like them so much. I can always count on a lighthearted, comfortable read. She obviously heavily researches the novels before she writes them as I found myself looking up references to Boucher and Watteau.