The Grand Hotel

Regency Romance
The Background Man by Carla Kelly is the first story in the book, and it's also the best. The hero is 40-year-old Charles Mortimer, who has been made temporary manager of the hotel while his superior recovers from gout. A former clerk for the East India Company, Charles prides himself on being the perfect hotel employee, expert at fixing problems and fading into the background when he needs to. But when he meets hotel guest Millicent Carrington, he finds himself suddenly bending and breaking all kinds of hotel rules so that he can be near her. Millicent is in town searching for a position as a governess, but Charles just may be able to change her mind. This is a wonderful story with remarkable characterization. Charles and Millicent are richly drawn and convincing as a couple, and Charles' thoughts are clever and funny. The plot is fun with a bit of a twist at the end. Grade: A

Regency Romance
Love Will Find the Way by Elisabeth Fairchild is a gentle love story about Lieutenant James Forrester, a soldier who falls in love with his comrade's widow, Annabelle Grant, through her letters. When he comes home to England, he meets her at the Grand Hotel where she is a guest. Both of them are attracted to each other, and both cherish the letters they shared while Annabelle's husband Archie was injured. But will they be able to find happiness together, or will their loyalty to Archie keep them apart? This story has a somber tone and a quiet pace, but it is still satisfying to watch this couple fall in love. Grade: B

Regency Romance
The Castaway by Anne Barbour features Martha Finch, a widow who goes to London claiming to be the long-lost granddaughter of the Marquess of Canby. Before she can even see the marquess she must first convince his friend, the Earl of Branford (Bran), that she is not an impostor. Bran has doubts about Martha, but he lets her see the marquess anyway, and both of them become convinced that she is the woman they have been seeking. Bran also falls in love with Martha with lightening speed. But who is she really? This plot will be familiar to anyone who has seen the children's movie Anastasia the highly fictionalized account of the daughter of the last Russian Czar. This story has a Dickensian feel that's kind of fun in an over the top sort of way, but it's a bit much to take at times. The hero is also somewhat lackluster. Grade: C

Regency Romance
The Management Requests by Barbara Metzger introduces Captain Hunter, a soldier and diplomat. Because he was injured in the war, he gives up his suite of rooms on the third floor of the Grand Hotel and sleeps in the only other available room, which is the manager's office. Miss Hope Thurstfield has come to London in search of her errant fiancé, but when she arrives at the Grand Hotel she finds that her reservation has been canceled to make room for the entourage of an Austrian princess. Captain Hunter comes to the rescue, offering her his vacant rooms on the third floor. Because she sees Captain Hunter emerge from the manager's rooms, she believes that he must be an employee of the hotel. She is attracted to him, but she believes that he cannot possibly be marriage material. While the hero does perpetuate a Big Understanding for no particular reason, the dialogue is so funny that it hardly matters. Grade: B

Regency Romance
Promises to Keep by Allison Lane is a story about an American woman from Pittsburgh who comes to England seeking her family. Maggie Adams meets Marcus Widmer at the Grand Hotel, and they discover that they are distantly related. Marcus aids Maggie in finding her family, but some of her family members have dangerous secrets which could threaten Maggie's life. This story has interesting elements, but they don't quite come together in the novella format. The romance is promising, but underdeveloped. Grade: C-

The grade averages out to a B-, and the Kelly, Metzger and Fairchild stories are definitely worth reading. All of the stories are interconnected in a tangential way, and characters from one story appear briefly in others. There is also a mysterious fire in the hotel which affects characters from several stories but is only really explained in the last one. The set-up is fun, and Regency readers are likely to enjoy it, even if some of the stories don't work as well as others.

-- Blythe Barnhill

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