This book was recommended and I found it pleasant enough except for the irksome issue of the British class system, which the author appears not to understand: the heroine's father had been a Sergeant in the English army and the hero had been an officer. There was no explanation for her gentility (for want of a better word). It could have easily been part of the plot - a mother who had married beneath her, an unexpected time at boarding school when her father was in funds, etc. Given her father's status, it seems very unlikely Cressida could have become friends with Julia Hayes, the daughter of landed gentry and sister of the (disgraced) hero. Even worse, Cressida and her sister Callie share their home with a former soldier who had served with their father. Tom came home with their father (although the two men were far from friends) and stayed on as a man of work. Even after the father disappears, the young ladies' grandmother serves as a chaperon of sorts, but even if it was possible that Julia would invite the Turner family to stay, despite their low birth, it seemed impossible her mother would include them and Tom at a dinner! Surely the neighborhood would be scandalized at such behavior.These inconsistencies, not to mention the hero and heroine behaving improperly under his mother's roof, lessened my enjoyment of the book and made me question the author's (and editor's) knowledge of the period.
Another good story in the series. This time we have Brandons story only we find out that Brandons real name is Alec Brandon Hayes. He is sent back home for two reasons one his older brother has died and he is the heir and two to investigate the disappearance of a Sargent Tucker. He was accused of being a traitor to England so he has let his family believe he was killed at Waterloo. During his investigation into Sargent Turners disappearance he meets Cressida his daughter and things progress from there.
