Contrary Cousins

To thwart an earl was Lady Pendleton's dearest desire, so she had taken it into her head to invite her two delightful young American nieces to England. Her brother, the pompous Earl of Cumberford, positively loathed the American branch of the family, and when the Powell cousins took London society by storm, he would be livid with rage. Lady Pendleton was certain her plan would succeed, for lively Antonia was irresistibly pretty, and Serena merely required the attentions of a first-rate dressmaker and a more confident manner to attract the notice of London’s most eligible bachelors.

But if Lady Pendleton could have foreseen how well her scheme would work and just which lords would soon be courting her charges in earnest, she would never have let Antonia and Serena off the boat from America.

Jane Austen fans will delight in the reissue of this classic Regency Romance. With a light touch and witty eye for human foibles, Harkness paints the fashionable world of Regency England, when styles were dictated by Beau Brummel, the Duchess of Devonshire held court, and dandies paraded in their phaetons and four. Groomed by their mamas to capture the hearts of the most eligible bachelors of the day, fashionable young ladies passed the Season in London and at Bath, where they were presented at a string of assemblies and balls in all their finery and feathers.

Brimming with period detail, Contrary Cousins will delight readers craving a good, old-fashioned romantic caper in the tradition of Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer.

Judith Harkness is the author of five classic Regency Romances: The Montague Scandal, The Admiral’s Daughter, The Determined Bachelor, Contrary Cousins, and Lady Charlotte’s Ruse, all originally published by Signet. She is the co-author of a screenplay, EMMA in New York, an updated version of the classic Jane Austen novel set in contemporary Manhattan. As J.H. Richardson, she writes non-fiction on subjects ranging from children with learning and developmental issues to profiles of notable creative artists. She lives in Rhode Island with her husband, Will Taft.