Trouble

Croucher (Infamous) brings a wonderfully modern aesthetic to the Regency setting of this energetic and lighthearted romance. Millworker Emily Laurence intends to masquerade as her much more refined and compassionate sister Amy in the role of governess to the teen daughters of widower Captain Ben Edwards just long enough to make sure Amy doesn’t lose the position while recovering from an illness. She also hopes to steal a few things from the household along the way. Emily has her work cut out for her: her younger charge is a chatterbox desperate for attention, while the older sister is morose and prone to disappearing at the first provocation. Meanwhile, the rest of the small staff determinedly involves her in their socializing, the attractive Captain proves a strange mix of aloof and casually hands-on with running his household and raising his children, and a stranger in the local pub presses her for answers behind the Captain’s departure from the Navy. Croucher excels in building quirky, sympathetic characters and social dynamics which, even when antagonistic, brim with warmth and a familial feel. In incorporating the queerness of several of the characters, Croucher hits the right balance between an easy and accepting attitude within the Edwards household and a recognition of more general social censure typical of the era. A similar balance concerning class issues gives the eventual romance between Emily and the Captain just the right amount of tension. Fans of come-as-you-are romance will find this a delicious, and not too guilty, pleasure. (Mar.)