Much Ado About You (Essex Sisters, book 1)

When you're the oldest daughter, you don't get to have any fun!

Witty, orphaned Tess Essex faces her duty: marry well and marry quickly, so she can arrange matches for her three sisters -- beautiful Annabel, romantic Imogen and practical Josie. After all, right now they're under the rather awkward guardianship of the perpetually tipsy Duke of Holbrook. But just when she begins to think that all might end well, one of her sisters bolts with a horse-mad young lord, and her own fiancé just plain runs away.

Which leaves Tess contemplating marriage to the sort of man she wishes to avoid -- one of London's most infamous rakes. Lucius Felton is a rogue whose own mother considers him irredeemable! He's delicious, Annabel points out. And he's rich, Josie notes. But although Tess finally consents to marry him, it may be for the worst reason of all. Absurd as she knows it to be, she may have fallen utterly in love . . .

Customer Reviews:

A letdown

By SilkStockings "We Were Fated To Be Mated" - February 14, 2005

I am a huge Eloisa James fan, but was not thrilled with this book and had to force myself to finish it. It is very clear even without ever knowing more books would follow that was her intention, a setup. Too much time was spent explaining each sister over and over again so we could truly get a sense of them. I felt that Tess really deserved a true story of her own, not one thrown into the mix of all the many explanations. I thought Imogen would NEVER finally run away with her love as we were told she would by reading the back cover. The story was very slow paced and instead of sitting down and finishing it the way I have done with all of her books prier it took me three days. Then suddenly when there are less than 50 pages left it grew interesting. It was truly a letdown but I hope the ones to follow will be better without all the explaining. We can only hope.

a bit sedate but a nice read nonetheless

By tregatt - December 30, 2004

The Essex sisters are in a pickle: their improvident father is dead, and now the sisters (four in all) are penniless and homeless. But their prospects are not so dire for their father has given them a guardian in the shape of the Duke of Holbrook (a youngish and rich gentleman, even if he does seem to be perpetually tipsy); and he has dowered them each with a much prized horse. The Duke in determined to do his duty by his wards and to see them settled happily in life; while Tess, now that she realises that she can count on the Duke to do right by her sisters and her, is determined to marry as soon as possible. Fortunately, the Duke his two of his closest friends visiting: the urbane and sophisticated Earl of Mayne and the fabulously rich and rakish Lucius Felton. The earl seems all set to woo her, but it is Lucius Felton who makes her pulses race, and whose kisses thrill. Should Tess make the prudent decision of allowing the earl to propose? Or should she wait for Lucius to make his... read more

Her best work yet

By BookWorm - July 19, 2005

I really loved this book. This is odd, because I hated the "Duchess" series, which includes "Duchess in Love", "Fool for Love", "A Wild Pursuit", and "Your Wicked Ways". This book turned out to be way better than the Duchess series.

Tess Essex and her three sisters (the following books in the series are about her sisters) are left alone in the world after their father passes away. He loved his horses more than anything in the world and each girl has been given a dowry of a horse. The Duke of Holbrook agreed to be their ward before their father passed away. He was expecting 4 young children and did not realize that he would get 4 grown ladies, all of which are beautiful. He immediately asks one of his friends to marry Tess, and the rest of the novel is about Tess and who she marries (she has more than one guy interested in her), and what happens when she falls in love.

I liked that the wedding happened before the love (I love marriage of convenience plots). All... read more