Review on: The Wife Trap by Tracy Anne Warren
Rating: 4/5
Are you a fan of Irish/Scottish accents? I happen to be a very big fan, and adore books that have characters such as them, since one can almost imagine the way the accent is spoken while the dialogue is being read out on paper. One thing I love about Irish/Scottish characters in books or movies, is that most of them almost seem untamed, proud, free, mischievous and daring. It just so happens that the Irish character in this book is just that.
One thing most novels that discuss English society talk about, are the rules of high society that come with being a lady or gentleman. One must act a certain way, think a certain way, believe in a certain way and behave in a certain way. Lady Jeannette Brantford, the main character of the story decides to escape from all that for a few weeks by convincing her more logical twin sister to take her place. This inevitably leads to problems when Jeannette’s twin ends up marrying and falling for her husband. Her rebellious and independent decision leads her parents to the conclusion that she should be temporarily exiled to the country where some family members live.
Being a woman of high society, Jeannette is not used to the more provincial country life, away from balls, men, London talk and fashionable everything. It is during her stay in the country that she meets a man who teases and taunts her, and makes her “almost” forget about the rules of society. This dangerous flirtation eventually leads to both of them being spotted in an undesirable situation which forces them both to wed each other. What makes it even more interesting is that Jeannette thinks her husband is merely a commoner, when he is in fact a man of status. Their flirtations and teasings throughout the story is a funny but also romantic way of showing their love for each other, even in the end when they are apart and are forced to realize the truth within themselves.
If there’s one thing I love in this story, it’s the dialogue between our English lady and her Irish man. There’s a competition between the two, which show how feisty they both are (and proud), but which also shows their weakness for one another. Wonderful descriptions of the locations describe the simple beauty of the settings each character is present in and how this inevitably affects their personalities within the story. There is a variety of characters which of course keep the story quite interesting, with the inclusion of not only an Irish man but also the inclusion of twin-switching twins. Many parts in the story are surprising and will keep one on their toes, with even the ending giving readers a surprise.
One thing that does not please me in the story though is the freedom which Jeannette acts on throughout the story. She is quite rebellious in the story, but also somewhat quite “primal” in how she proceeds with many of her decisions. It can be quite surprising at times to see how a lady might act if she chooses to do so, and how easy it is for her to let go of some things or beliefs that a lady of her time would hold dear. Of course, I don’t think it’s wrong since the author has her reasons for putting such things in the story, for her character and the plot and flow of the story as well.
If there’s one thing I love about Jeannette’s rebellious nature (despite what I mention in the previous paragraph) is that it leads Jeannette to interesting observations and realizations at the end of the story that give it an ending flair. I’d have wished the story’s flow was more uniform, since some gave too much detail to the present time (within the story) and others (like weeks/months) were summed into short paragraphs that wasn’t enough to stimulate more interest in the character’s relationship to one another.
Quite an interesting perspective though, and the dialogue of course gives life to the story and to the characters. Another interesting read.