Just when I was worried I had exhausted my favorite themes! Chubby, abused heroine runs from her wretched husband and hides away in the country. She falls for her dashing landlord but is too insecure to believe he might feel for her. Angst and drama ensue. Plenty of sex. This is the second book by this author that has appealed to my favorite themes. I'll be reading her other works, for sure.

Stands up on re-read - I really love this book! I hope that Lord Vale gets his own book! ( )

Just when I was worried I had exhausted my favorite themes! Chubby, abused heroine runs from her wretched husband and hides away in the country. She falls for her dashing landlord but is too insecure to believe he might feel for her. Angst and drama ensue. Plenty of sex. This is the second book by this author that has appealed to my favorite themes. I'll be reading her other works, for sure. ( )

Not exactly your typical Regency-set historical romance, this novel has a countess escaping her dissolute, abusive husband by pretending to be a soldier's widow and a penniless nobleman who was wounded in the war, both physically and emotionally. The two cross paths when Lucinda and the foundling she's adopted are found renting the dower house on Hugo, Lord Wanstead's estate. What makes this a not exactly typical novel is not that the two main characters don't fight their attractions to each other (they do), nor that they don't fall into bed together (they do), nor that they fall in love with one another (they do), nor that they each have secrets that threaten to tear them apart (they do). What makes this non-typical is that not only does Lucinda give in to her desires and sleep with Hugo, but that she does it while still married to the odious, very much alive Lord Denbigh. And furthermore, she feels no guilt over her infidelity. That's quite a departure.

But Lucinda is an unusual heroine in many ways. She is not the tiny thing that often populates romances, nor is she statuesque and willowy. Instead, she a solid woman who likes to eat, tall and Rubenesque. In running from the abusive all-around horrid Lord Denbigh, she finally asserts herself and nothing and no one, including Hugo, will ever be able to rein her in again. She has invested money carefully, giving herself something to live on and it is the fact that she paid to rent the dower house in cash that means the reclusive Hugo, impoverished as his estate is, cannot turf her out like he would prefer. Once Lucinda's good heart forces her to confront Hugo for the good of his tenants, they start developing a relationship. She pulls him out of his shell, slowly convincing him to interact with his people again. But she cannot heal the biggest hurt of all, his belief that he is responsible for both his mother and his wife's deaths. Even worse, she has led him on by not telling him that she is a married woman.

The denouement of the novel is fairly conventional despite the originally unconventional bits. But that ending is just what fans of the genre want and expect so it works. It felt a bit rushed though and Hugo as a character was never fully fleshed out, aside from his clearly mistaken sense of guilt. Young's focus seemed to be on Lucinda and drawing a heroine who would be believable to historical romance readers while still infusing her with many 21st century ideals and opinions. This mostly succeeded although witnessing Lucinda's transformation from cowed victim to strong lead could have been better developed and shown. Overall an interesting entry in the Regency-set historical romance genre. ( )

Back of the book:

She's desperate for peace and safety...
Lucinda, Lady Denbigh, is running from a husband who physically and emotionally abuses her because she is unfashionably plump and has failed to produce an heir. Posing as a widow, she seeks refuge in he the quiet countryside.

He's returned from the wards, wounded and tomented...
Lord Hugo Wanstead, with a wound that won't heal, and his mother's and Spanish wife's deaths on his conscience, finds his estate impoverished, his sleep torn by nightmares, and brandy his only solace. When he meets Lucinda, he finds her beautiful--- body and soul --- and thinks she just might give him something to live for...

Together they can begin to heal, but not until she is free from her violent past...

*

This book was an amazing story of 2 people living different lives brought together during harsh and difficult times. I loved how the author, Michele Ann Young, wrote about 2 'out of the norm' main characters. Lucinda is a larger sized woman wanting to be loved, but her husband is so cruel and condescending that she finds she has to leave him to really live. Hugo is tormented by his past and having been in the war. His mood is dark, but he is a lonely man just wanting to be left alone with his bourbon. From deception to emotional fireworks to forgiveness, this book has everything. The romantic tension between Lucinda and Hugo kept me reading the book and I didn't want to put it down! The buildup of whether the two end up together is filled with enough twists and turns you'll never be sure until the very end. I'm looking forward to reading more books by Michele Ann Young.

Thank you to Sourcebooks for the book to review! ( )

Reviewed for queuemyreview.com; book release Oct08

“The Lady Flees Her Lord” is my second read by Michele Ann Young, and a very satisfying read it was. Young’s historicals have all too human characters with flaws who are placed in situations that require difficult choices. These books aren’t light, fluffy reads. But they are books that will draw you into the lives of their characters and have you encouraging and cheering for them as they make their way to happiness.

Lucinda had no choice but to run away. When her husband offered her to one of his dissolute friends, Lucinda knew she couldn’t stay. Her only hope is to disappear to a quiet country town far away from London. While on the run, she is duped into watching a child whose mother then runs off. It doesn’t take Lucinda long to realize she finally has what she’s always wanted…a child and freedom. But Lucinda’s husband isn’t about to let his golden goose get away, without her presence, Lucinda’s father has cut off his allowance. He’s sure it’s only a matter of time before he finds her and then he’ll make her sorry she ran!

Hugo returned to his family estate from the war wounded both mentally and physically. His huge body almost killed his mother at birth, and ended up killing his wife when she tried to bear his monstrous young. So…no wife, ever, for Hugo. Instead he’ll concentrate on rebuilding his estate as his father let it go to wrack and ruin. When he runs into a child and the beautiful statuesque widow who is her mother, he’s immediately attracted. As they spend time together, he begins to have feelings for this wonderful woman who isn’t afraid of his size or his temper. But how will Hugo feel when her legal husband comes calling?

When I read books like this, I always silently thank God that we no longer live in a time where a husband could treat his wife like chattel and the wife had no recourse. Young does a good job of depicting the lack of choices for Lucinda without dragging the reader into depression. Likewise, Hugo’s character has his own demons to live with and reacts just a child raised in those conditions would. Their time and their world is much different than ours and Young’s descriptions and plotting make that clear.

I enjoyed the growing and development of both the relationship and each character during the course of the story. There was even a bit of a mystery that became clear as the author dropped hints at strategic places in the tale. Michele Ann Young caught and held my attention throughout “The Lady Flees Her Lord”. Her novel has passion, mystery, action, and a happily ever after set against the backdrop of Regency England’s tonnish escapades. I’ll be watching and waiting for her next release. ( )