Review: Mr. Malcolm’s List

Synopsis:

It is a truth universally acknowledged that an arrogant bachelor insistent on a wife who meets the strictest of requirements–deserves his comeuppance.

The Honorable Jeremy Malcolm is searching for a wife, but not just any wife. He’s determined to elude the fortune hunters and find a near-perfect woman, one who will meet the qualifications on his well-crafted list. But after years of searching, he’s beginning to despair of finding this paragon. And then Selina Dalton arrives in town…

Selina, a vicar’s daughter of limited means and a stranger to high society, is thrilled when her friend Julia invites her to London.  Until she learns it’s part of a plot to exact revenge on Mr. Malcolm. Selina is reluctant to participate in Julia’s scheme, especially after meeting the irresistible Mr. Malcolm, who seems very different from the arrogant scoundrel of Julia’s description.

But when Mr. Malcolm begins judging Selina against his unattainable standards, Selina decides that she has qualifications of her own. And if he is to meet them he must reveal the real man behind…Mr. Malcolm’s List.

Rating: 4-stars

Review:

Mr. Malcolm’s List by Suzanne Allain is an enjoyable historical romance read. I really enjoyed the high intellect from both Mr. Malcolm and Lady Selina. Those two made this book worthy of reading. I enjoyed their talks. Both were smart, good looking, and pleasant to be around whereas the Lady Selina’s friend and cousin were tiresome people. In fact, Julia was just a spoiled whinny creature whom I wanted out of the book faster than any other character I have read about…

Julia thinks she far more superior and better than her friend Selina. She plots to get revenge. In this scheme, she uses Selina to get back at Mr. Malcolm. There was plenty of drama and dialogue plus a mystery of how it will all end that kept me hooked from beginning to the last page. I was intrigued. I had to know what the final outcome would be. If Julia wasn’t as whiny and her whining didn’t take up as much as it did, this book would easily have been a 5-star. No doubts. Suzanne Allain still managed to lure me into her entertaining world of fiction. I did enjoy following every other character but Julia. There was some humor and action. Overall, it was a good read.