by Jen Turano
Apart from the Crowd #3
After running into her childhood friend Gilbert Cavendish, Temperance Flowerdew has decided to throw off the meek, quiet, wallflower persona she adopted after her parents' death and loss of their fortune forced her into the station of unwanted familial obligation in the household of her relations. She quickly finds it a good thing that she has returned to her spirited self, as she is abducted off the streets on New York, stuffed into a coffin in a Pullman car, and taken to Chicago. While she manages to free herself of her captors, that's only the beginning of her adventures. She soon crosses paths with Gilbert, who was sent to Chicago to rescue the damsel in distress--only to find that the damsel he thought he was finding, Temperance's cousin Clementine--isn't there and that Clementine herself may have had a hand in the abduction gone awry.
When a society matron sees Gilbert and Temperance together, straight-laced, rule-loving Gilbert knows they must do the proper thing and wed--and he finds himself becoming more and more interested in marrying his friend. Free-spirited Temperance, however, rejects him time and again, insisting that the gossip will blow over and that they're not suited for each other. Back in New York, besides trying to convince Temperance to accept his suit, Gilbert also finds himself trying to protect her and himself as they are embroiled in mystery and mayhem that go far beyond a kidnapping attempt. As Gilbert throws aside some of his lists and rules and stuffiness, and even as he uses them, Temperance comes to see that maybe their differences aren't that great--and maybe those differences actually balance each other out.
Okay, how can you not love a book that has such gems as these:
"I don't think anyone in their right mind would consider what you've gone about as being even remotely close to a marriage proposal."
"You think she'd change her mind about marrying me if I got her a puppy?"
"How did you get that solution out of what I just said?"
"One would have thought you'd become less contrary with age, not more."
"I spent three years not being contrary at all. I'm simply trying to make up for lost time."
"And that right there," Gilbert began, "is why I'm thankful my mother never had any other children, especially daughters. They seem to turn scary as they age."
"I'm going to see to it that you acquire the love of your life, and I'll hear no argument about that from you, if you please."
"You [...] sit around talking about unmentionables?"
He nodded. "We also talk about romantic gestures."
"You've apparently not picked up many pointers about those."
Seriously, there are SO many spots where you'll be laughing so hard (actually, if you're the type to snort with laughter, I would advise reading this book in complete isolation in order to prevent anyone thinking you're crazy).
This book was just tons of fun to read. There's never a dull moment; it moves quickly and is highly entertaining. I liked seeing the mystery element unfold nearly as much as I liked the romance (which is saying something because I don't do mysteries). My one quibble is that the characters, while they all have their distinct quirks and traits, tended to sound alike sometimes. All in all, though, this was so much fun to read, and I'm eagerly looking forward to more of Jen Turano's books.
I recommend reading this series in order so you can get a proper introduction to all the characters. There is a delightful cast of characters, and you don't want to miss out on any of them.
I read an ARC from the publisher via #NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
4.5 stars.
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