Rake comes through!

Deciding to take his overbearing brother the Duke of Knighton's strictures to marry, Lord Heath Knight does, in a way guaranteed to grate on his brother's sensibilities.
Cecilia Dudley's father, a wealthy cit, contrives a wiley scheme to have his daughter married despite her wishes. A marriage by proxy to Heath "the infamous Black Knight." (Proxy! There's an interesting explanation about how that might have been valid in these times. Apparently "England recognizes marriages by proxy when they are legal in other countries.") The deal is that Cecilia will stay in town by herself building her independent life. Heath hies off to his property to bring it up to scratch. He's made to realize that in thinking about himself, he's cast his new wife upon the cutting tongues of the ton. He repairs to town. Cecilia is shocked, flustered and totally out of her depth when her husband comes calling.
Cecilia has a long standing conviction to enable charity endeavours. Heath's brother, the Vicar Edmund involves her in protecting and redeeming country lasses and children who'd found themselves working in brothels, preyed upon by denizens of the underbelly of London, and sometimes, those in the top ranks of society.
Cecilia is much put upon. By her father's handling of her wishes to not marry, the absenteeism of her parents due to her mother's ill health, the savaging of her by the scandal papers and the ton bullies, the pointed scorn from the courtesan Lady L who is at pains to tell the world about her relationship with Heath, and by Heath himself leaving her to suffer the outrageous slings and arrows.
Despite this I liked how the relationship between Heath and Cecilia grows. I loved the warmth and respect between Heath and his grandmother, the Dowager Duchess. Something that is often present in these novels, where we have the rakeshell and the beloved older relative who fully appreciate his softer side and hopes they come about. All in all this novel treads a well worn path but with its own particular touches and idiosyncrasies. Nothing radically new apart from marriage by proxy which I'd not realized is still valid. An enjoyable tale woven in its own special way.

A Dragonblade ARC via NetGalley ( )