Trapped at the Altar

Feather’s dress-up drama set in 1684 has plenty of zest, but not enough to compensate for its flaws. Ariadne Fairfax is the tiny, feisty daughter of a titled family that fell from grace in England’s Civil War. Now she makes her living by smuggling. Ari is betrothed to the man who was raised as her foster brother, Ivor Chalfont. Although Ivor is muscular, hairy, authoritative, and her dearest friend, Ari doesn’t want him as her husband. Instead, she yearns for a poet by the name of Gabriel Fawcett. Though she gives Gabriel her virginity, she can’t escape Ivor’s steely determination to honor family obligations. There are some interesting moments when newlyweds Ivor and Ari frankly discuss Ari’s divided loyalties, but these are too few to overcome the clichés, the stock plots, and the cheesy caricatures that pass for characters. (July)