A Rose At Midnight by Jacqueline Navin

I'm not a writer, and never really had the urge to write a romance. But when I read a book that seems to come close to something good, and then fail, I find myself mentally rewriting the book to make it more appealing! (However, I'm sure that if I actually wrote a book, I'd probably have my own problems and issues - I have enough problems writing scientific reports for work...)

A Rose At Midnight by Jacqueline Navin
(1999, Victorian) 4/12/08
Grade: 3.5

After realizing that he’s dying, Marcus, the Earl of Rutherford, wastes no time in finding a wife and marrying her. He desperately hopes to father a child before his death. Caroline has been thrown into poverty after the death of her evil father, and hopes this marriage will help her save her sick younger brother - but she didn’t expect to find Marcus so attractive...

This book had moments of touching emotion, but most of the time, these characters seemed like cliches out of “Romance Central Casting”. Marcus was a profligate rake, but it all comes back to the Woman Who Betrayed Him and Issues With His Father. Caroline marries for money, but it’s Only To Save Her Family. And of course, there’s a Big Secret that Caroline can’t confide, even after she’s grown to love and trust Marcus. Have I seen this somewhere before? Some authors can make familiar characters and plotlines come alive, but Navin only succeeds sporadically. There were moments, for example when Marcus looks at his beloved rose garden and realizes he’ll never see it bloom again, when we get a glimpse of what this book could have been - which is one reason I gave it a slightly higher grade. But for the most part, this book just didn’t come to life.

I did find the time period an interesting one - 1847, very early Victorian. Other than the clothes, there isn't a lot that differentiates this one from a typical Regency, but it might be nice to see more books set in this period, rather than either Regency or late Victorian.