Despite the saucy title and questionable cover art, this is not the scandalous book it appears at first glance, but a perfectly respectable Regency romance that isn't even badly written. I first saw this book as a First Read Giveaway on Goodreads. I sign up for lots of giveaways, and the description of this book made me smile, so I added it to my list. I don't mind stepping outside my usual genre preferences where free books are concerned. I probably signed up for 20 giveaways that day, but Goodreads elected to share THIS book on my Facebook profile. "Laura has signed up to win a copy of The Taming of Lady Kate!" Within 10 minutes, I had 17 "likes" on the update, along with many smirking comments from my friends. Thanks, Goodreads! ;)I didn't win the giveaway, but about a month later, my husband received an order from Amazon which just happened to have a copy in it. As it turns out, my husband also thought my choice of reading material (as advertised by Goodreads/Facebook) was both funny and well-suited to HIS interests. Which is to say, we were both expecting the tale to be a good deal smuttier than it turned out to be. In fact, the story is a very proper Regency romance, much in the spirit of Georgette Heyer. It's reasonably well written and only suffers from a few editing/formatting issues, despite the fact that the kind of terrible cover art gives the impression that it was cheaply self-published. The story itself is rather charming, with a female protagonist who is 19, head-strong, lovely, and loving (which I believe describes every female romantic heroine ever written) and a male protagonist who is wealthy, handsome, brave, and rather mysterious (seen that before, maybe?). There's nothing particularly unique or surprising about the tale, but since this isn't my usual literary fare, it was an enjoyable jaunt through English Society, Smugglers, Kidnappings, Fake Marriages, False Friends, Unrequited Loves, and Happy Revelations. The faults I can find with the tale are all completely typical of romance novels, I think (characters slightly too perfect and willfully ignorant of each others' real feelings for the convenience of the plot), and for that reason (or in spite of it), do not particularly detract from the story. I got asked to officially review this for work. I'll share the link when my official review goes live. But here's my unofficial review. This book was hilarious. I was constantly wondering what would happen next and loved Vandagriff's writing style.This was the first book I've read from her, but it certainly won't be the last. Definitely recommend this author and this book. Her characters were intriguing, the plot led to hilarious moments, and overall the novel was beautifully crafted.I love regency era novels and any time a book is centered on two people looking for a marriage of convenience...it's bound to be hilarious.
What do You think about The Taming Of Lady Kate (2012)?
Regency Romance. Forgettable but quick. A good one day beach read for lovers of the genre.
—laura
Fun, quick read, regency romance based on the Taming of the Shrew.
—fishy
