Review: The Wedding Affair by Leigh Michaels

A wedding is a wonderful event. Love is in the air and everyone is happy.

Well, not quite. Not if you're the Simon, the Duke of Somervale, whose sister's twelve (twelve!) bridesmaids are on the hunt for a ducal matrimonial prize. What to do? Why, hire the beautiful widow, Lady Olivia Reyne, as your pretend fiancée until after your sister's wedding. Especially after she propositions you. And not if you're Charles, the Earl of Townsend, who married cit's daughter Penelope for her money to save the bankrupt estate he inherited. But her father's purse strings haven't opened, and Penelope is as much a victim of her father's machinations as you are. And not when you're impoverished vicar's daughter, Kate, and you again meet Andrew, the man you fell in love with when you were seventeen, and who never came near you again.

With a setup like this, how can Leigh Michael's latest Regency historical, The Wedding Affair, but anything but lots of fun?

Ms. Michaels has given us another whopping good read with three intertwined stories of unlikely love threaded with secrets, and all with a wedding theme. The duke's sister's wedding forms the backdrop of the novel, while the three couples are in various stages of wedded bliss--or non-bliss. Each story also has a different emphasis. Simon's and Olivia's story is mainly funny, Charles's and Penelope's sad, and Kate's and Andrew's poignant, although all these elements exist to some degree in each tale. I love Simon, the mighty duke, when he's spattered with grape juice, the way Charles and Penelope circumvent her father, and the real reason Andrew never came near Kate again. And the secrets remain secret until the end.

Again, Leigh Michaels has nice-guy heroes (my favorites) and heroines who fight for what they want. And she manages to fit all this action, doing justice to each couple, into one book. Truly the hallmark of a master. I loved each hero, but my favorite is Andrew. I like a man who makes his own way.

Funny and sad situations, witty and pointed dialog, and a quick pace keep us turning the pages until the end. The Wedding Affair is another winner from Leigh Michaels. I can't wait for her next book.

Thank you all,
Linda
ARC provided by Sourcebooks