THE MATTER OF THE SECRET BRIDE
In her quest to become self-sustaining, independent of father or husband, Rosalind has met with a great deal of success. She earns enough helping other women solve their domestic problems to own her own home, complete with cook and footman. She no longer relies on the generosity of her clients; her man of business now negotiates a fee for her services. And she’s able to pay former police detective Adam Harkness for his help. But success comes at a price. When Maria Fitzherbert summons Rosalind to her gracious home on Tilney Street, Rosalind can hardly decline, even though some consider Mrs. Fitzherbert “the most notorious woman in the kingdom” because of the rumor that she married the Prince of Wales, now King George IV, when both were young—a marriage that would have been forbidden by British law, since Mrs. Fitzherbert is Catholic. George went on to marry Queen Caroline, with whom he’s now embroiled in a bitter divorce. Mrs. Fitzherbert has discovered that her marriage contract with George was stolen from her bedroom, and she wants Rosalind to find it. Her reasons are personal, but the political stakes are enormous. The burden of the task takes its toll not only on Rosalind but on the reader. This case just isn’t as light of heart as the heroine’s earlier outings, and sorting out the amorous tribulations of the king and his multiple wives weighs heavily on the narrative. The series has created quite a dilemma: If Rosalind doesn’t climb the ladder professionally, she risks stagnation. But climbing too fast makes her queries more consequential, more fraught, and a little bit grim.
