The Legend of Lyon Redmond

Long’s ardent 11th Georgian-set Pennyroyal Green romance (after It Started with a Scandal) is vivid and tender but lacks historical verisimilitude. Lyon Redmond and Olivia Eversea are meant to be together; from the moment their eyes meet at the Sussex Christmas Eve Assembly, their connection is intimate and powerful. They know fate is against them—the Eversea and Redmond families have been at odds since before Lyon and Olivia were born—but their innocence, passion, and youthful optimism drown out the obstacles preventing their happiness, until Lyon’s father hands down an ultimatum: Lyon must abandon all thought of marrying Olivia, or be disowned and left penniless. Can their love survive such a choice? Long’s take on young lovers torn apart by circumstance has a conventional sweetness, but modern language and mannerisms jar the reader out of the period on more than a few occasions. Agent: Steven Axelrod, Axelrod Agency. (Oct.)