I almost almost didn’t read this book because of the author’s introduction. She made it sound so much like a historical textbook it turned me off. But hey, this is Joan Wolf so I tried it and I didn’t regret it. Again, this isn’t the book you’re looking for if you’re uncomfortable about cousins marrying.

Anyway, Margarita is about Margarita, a half-English half Venezuelan beauty orphaned by the war and sent to England to join her grandfather earl. But her grandfather soon died and his will left a strange condition.

Nicholas was the not-so-welcomed nephew and acknowledged heir of the earl. He was stunned when the earl stipulated that he marry Margarita in order to obtain the necessary funds to return the estate he inherited to prosperity.

This is extremely good and the title is really aptly chosen because what moves this book is really the character of Margarita. Okay, Regency heroines are almost always unusual for their times but Margarita is more so because Wolf doesn’t let her off lightly as an orphan of the war. The book truly depicts how it is to survive the grief of losing one’s family in such a tragic way. And Wolf didn’t gloss over the fact that she was raised differently and took note of what needed to be noted. In fact, the cultural difference played quite a role in the story.

Nick is adorable, too, of course.

Rating: 9/10