MISCHIEF, by Amanda Quick

MISCHIEF, by Amanda Quick

• Publisher: Bantam 
• March 31, 1997
• Pages: 374

 Rating: 3/5

Synopsis

Imogen Waterstone has always prided herself on being a thoroughly independent young woman, but now she needs a man of implacable will and nerves of iron. That's why she invited Matthias Marshall, infamous Earl of Colchester, to her home in Upper Strickland. Who better than the legendary explorer to help her lay the perfect trap?

Her scheme is simple, really: She plans to let it be known that when she inherited her uncle's collection of antiquities, she also inherited a map to a fabulous ancient treasure. She's sure that her enemy would risk financial ruin in pursuit of the mythical artifact. And to make doubly sure the scoundrel took the bait, she wants Colchester to pretend that he's out to seduce Imogene so that he, too, could get his hands on her map.

Yet in all of her plotting, Imogene never anticipates Colchester's violent reaction to her request or her own electrifying reaction to him. Neither does she expect that a malevolent threat would emerge from the labyrinth of London--sinister enough to endanger her and Colchester's lives.

Review

Amanda Quick is fantastic! She can come up with the most electrifying twists. I'm a bit new to romance, and there are a few instances where my entire body blushed at the detail given - and what detail it was! I'll have to be more careful in choosing in the future.

Another consideration would be the feminism she brings to her stories. Set in a Victorian-style London, Quick makes good note of the differences in acceptable behavior - Imogen, the main character, being fashioned to a woman that would be the norm today, was considered 'immodest,' unladylike and an outcast overall. It is interesting to see the comparisons, and I think, Quick did her homework. 

The only qualm of the book might be the density of the main characters - reading this book was like watching a B-thriller movie. Every five minutes you have an urge to yell out, "Don't go through that door," "he's in the closet," or "look out behind you!!!" The characters dismiss the obvious constantly. Then again, I imagine, as a reader, I have an aerial view, so what might be obvious to me, would not be if I were in the realistic position of the character.

Overall, I enjoyed this story. I think any book that has the ability to surprise me, whether in plot or cleverness or humor, is a success. This book did just that.