Colonel Sandhurst to the Rescue: Being the 5th Vol. of the Poor Relation

The fifth volume of The Poor Relation series is a lively, entertaining comedy of errors set amid the grandeur of Regency England. When heiress Frederica Gray runs away from home to escape an arranged marriage, Colonel Sandhurst and his eccentric partners grant her sanctuary at their Poor Relation Hotel. Their motive is less than charitable, however, since they plan to ransom the woman back to her father, who has skipped out without paying his bill. But it is Frederica's jilted fiance, Lord Bewley, who pays her ransom and then moves into the hotel, hoping to seduce her. Frederica has another suitor at the hotel, the dashing Captain Peter Manners, who has become so obsessed with her that he plays outrageous tricks on his own fiancee to make her jilt him. While Frederica moons over Peter's betrothal to another, Lord Bewley, who has never met his intended bride, is busy romancing the maid under the misconception that she is Frederica. At the same time, the outlandish hoteliers are undertaking bizarre matchmaking schemes of their own in hopes of uniting the heiress and her captain. The prolific Chesney ( Sir Philip's Folly ) employs a delightful cast of memorable, unconventional (and fabulously named) characters--and she also does a good job of setting up volume six. (June)