For Clara Deverill, standing in for the real Lady Truelove means dispensing advice on problems she herself has never managed to overcome. There’s nothing for it but to retreat to a tearoom and hope inspiration strikes between scones. It doesn’t—until Clara overhears a rake waxing eloquent on the art of “honorable” jilting. The cad may look like an Adonis, but he’s about to find himself on the wrong side of Lady Truelove.
Rex Galbraith is an heir with no plans to produce a spare. He flirts with the minimum number of eligible young ladies to humor his matchmaking aunt, but Clara’s the first to ever catch his roving eye. When he realizes that Clara—as Lady Truelove—has used his advice as newspaper fodder, he’s infuriated. But when he’s forced into a secret alliance with her, he realizes he’s got a much bigger problem—because Clara is upending everything Rex thought he knew about women—and about himself. . . .
The Trouble with True Love is the second installment in the Dear Lady TrueLove series. Clara is Irene's sister, the heroine of the first book. She is left on her own when Irene cabled her about lengthening of her honeymoon, which left Clara in devastated state, because she knew she's not a material to be in charge of their family business - newspaper - and also not the one to give advice to others, when she herself has so many problems to overcome. She overhears a conversation between two gentlemen, one of whom is obviously Rex, and feeling the need to save the woman in question from such schemes she published a fictous story that included the above-mentioned monologue almost word for word. But because Rex had a feeling he knew those brown eyes from somewhere he put two and two together and uncovered the secret the entire London was buzzing about - the true identity of Lady Truelove.
I love how Laura managed to put them together, she brilliantly crafted a simple situation in which they had to work together and he became the main writer behind Lady Truelove for a period of time and this, of course, brought them closer together.
What I really like about Guhrke's novels overall:
The beauty in the eye of the beholder
I don't think so far I've met an author whose emphasis on it was so strong. Or you feel it so strong. Usually, we meet many gorgeous women who become a sensation in the eyes of the ton, but with Guhrke I often feel like what is described is how main character sees the woman he likes, like they find those features of hers so lovely or her temperament so interesting. The heroine should not be a star in the eyes of others, but she will be such in his eyes. For example Rex's impression at their first meeting.
❝Many, he knew, would have deemed her plain. Rex wasn’t prepared to go that far, but in this room of glittering, bejeweled beauties, she did seem easy to overlook, rather like a bit of shortbread on a tray of French pastries.❞
But later he was so caught in the image of her smiling that it was the moment that sent his heart beating stronger. And not to mention he also shared this notion with her and the fact that he loved shortbread. Which I find absolutely cute.
Guhrke also writes about beautiful women, like Irene for example, she's beautiful and thus in comparison Clara felt not worthy of mention. But they're always has something that might not click with the society and there is something about them that breaks that perfect image of beauty.
Which leads me to another point I like in Guhrke's novels - female characters:
Funnily, her male characters are often quite gorgeous, so in such comparison with female characters it has a tiny feel of catering to female fantasy of 'I might not be the most stunning, but my man is a stud'. But the most important, as mentioned, is that female characters has something about them that becomes the hook to pull the male character to them. But I truly like that they might choose more down to earth characters, as it seems, but you still feel beautiful about them, because you feel their beauty through the eyes of the man who loves them. It doesn't really mean that they are realized through a man, but that sometimes this man becomes their catalyst of their own rebirth.
Same could be said about Clara in this novel. She is shy, she confesses to that, she stammers when talks to people and feels like the entire room is watching her jokes and making mistakes. Her entire life she was protected by her sister, she lived in comfort of that protection, her wishes were small, a good husband who loved her madly and a bunch of children she liked so much. She just wanted to make a tiny step out of this comfort zone to enter another. But their connection made it possible to walk out from that state completely and quote: "..to bloom". Even her prejudice towards him worked in her favor, she felt free to talk and they could discuss what was important to her. Especially when she used the letter of distress by one of Lady Truelove readers to receive an advice how to conquer her shyness, the advice she desperately needed so much too. And I think this moment was the breaking point for her, she might not have believed it would work, but she still tried to follow it and found how life changed for her, her mindset changed, her mentality and her confidence grew with it. And along with it her heart was seeking something more than the comfort she initially hoped for. The situation itself sent the initial comfort in jeopardy, her being caught as the Lady Truelove was also dangerous, their agreement and working together was a step away from the scandal. He made her feel beautiful, he made her feel desired. In the end she changed and loved this change and never regretted it. Her words to Irene:
❝Dearest Irene,” she murmured. “All this must be so hard for you, for you have always tried so hard to protect me. But I cannot marry a man who does not love me just to be safe and protected. And I can’t always take the easy way through life, even if a life of ease is what you want for me.❞
The author really makes you feel the growth of her character. And his character too. But for men it's more like they haven't really grown, but realized something about their hearts, that their previous convictions can be thrown out the window and at some point they haven't realized, they can't imagine their life without the woman they love.
All in all a happy and wonderfully light read. Simple and witty situation, characters you can emphasize with and a touching love :)
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