I have quite enjoyed many of Cathy Maxwell’s historical romances. All Things Beautiful is one of my all-time favorite angsty love stories. On the other hand, sometimes I just don’t like them at all. The Fairest of Them All was somewhere in between for me but overall I just didn’t enjoy it nearly as much as some of her other work.

The Fairest of Them All is the second in Maxwell’s Marrying the Duke series. I did like the first installment, The Match of the Century, very much and had pre-ordered this one with high hopes. The Fairest of Them All continues the story of Gavin, the Duke of Baynton’s search for a bride. Gavin meets Lady Charlene, a penniless beauty with excellent bloodlines and he decides immediately that she is the one for him. Charlene is charmed by the Duke and needs to marry in order to support her eccentric aunt who raised her.

All would seem to be perfect for these two except for the reappearance of Jack Whitridge, Gavin’s twin brother who has been missing for seventeen years. Jack catches Charlene pickpocketing and their attraction is immediate. While the two initially fight their romance, it becomes impossible for them to deny it and their story unfolds.

My biggest problem with The Fairest of Them All is that it’s a sad story more than a romance. Gavin has lost his first bride to his youngest brother and now faces losing another to his twin. The portions of the book written from Gavin’s point of view were the most attractive to me, I felt like he really could love Charlene and her disregard for him made for an unappealing story. Jack was not the kind of hero that I want to root for. He abandoned his family for no apparent reason and doesn’t seem to have any real remorse for the pain he caused them. Jack’s decision to pursue Charlene was selfish and I didn’t believe that there was anything more than lust between them. The subplot with the Seven was weak and was resolved too easily and the diplomatic reasons for Jack’s reappearance seem particularly odd. One would think he would have written his family before showing up looking for favors, it just added to my low opinion of him.

Cathy Maxwell writes well and the story does move at a good pace, I just found the characters unappealing and I was hoping for a different outcome for Gavin. I give The Fairest of Them All a C.

 

You can order The Fairest of Them All from Amazon by clicking on the cover below.