Book Review - Lisa Kleypas's Secrets of a Summer Night
Secrets of a Summer Night by Lisa Kleypas
Published by: Avon
Publication Date: October 26th, 2004
Format: Paperback, 390 Pages
Rating: ★★★★
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Annabelle Peyton is desperate. But not desperate enough to become the mistress of Simon Hunt. She is coming to the end of her forth and final season and unless she marries well her family will be ruined. Her brother won't be able to continue his education and maybe she would be better off becoming the mistress to a well heeled member of the aristocracy. Simon Hunt is far from the aristocracy but he is well heeled and if Annabelle is to become anyone's mistress it will be his. Ever since he took a liberty with her during her second season, stealing a kiss in the dark, he has been unable to forget the penniless beauty. But this penniless beauty has taken a drastic step to improve her marital prospects, she has made friends. Why did it take her so long to reach out to her fellow wallflowers? The American Bowman sisters, Lillian and Daisy, are delightful if sadly looked down upon for being Americans, and as for the stammering Evangeline Jenner, she needs someone to just listen to her problems with her overbearing family. The four of them make a pact. They will help each other make the match they need and seeing as Annabelle is the most desperate, she will be their first project. Marcus, Lord Westcliff, is having a three week long house party that the Bowmans can wrangle an invite to. This will be the perfect opportunity to entrap a husband. Because let's face it, Annabelle is desperate, and she is willing to compromise herself, but in such a way that marriage is the only option for the unwitting male. She will be dressed in the finest clothes thanks to Lillian and Daisy, who have more clothes and pocket money than they know what do to with, and all three of her friends will help her choose her mark. The only problem is that Simon Hunt happens to be the best friend of Lord Westcliff and he sees what she is about. He doesn't want her to marry, he wants her to be his mistress. But when Annabelle falls prey to an accident and Simon starts to spend more time with her he wonders, does he really want her as his mistress or as his wife?
I know it might be an odd first reaction, but mine was, why can't we save our families through marriage anymore? Yes, it's very draconian selling yourself to the highest bidder, and love matches only happen in books, rarely in real life, but why can't selling yourself for money in the particulars of this hypothetical discussion still be a reality? Because I want to make it clear, I'm not talking prostitution or being a kept women, I'm talking about marriage and a nice big purse and hopefully an ancestral pile and at least the financial strains of life are lifted. One can fantasize about that right? Moving beyond my trying to get my finances in order by marrying a member of the aristocracy, I loved The Buccaneers vibe of this book. And yes, I'm talking about the 1995 miniseries adaptation of Edith Wharton's unfinished novel. But just the beginning episodes when Nan, Virginia, Conchita, and Lizzy were still happy and carefree and not trapped in miserable loveless marriages. There was such a spirit to these characters in the miniseries that easily translates to their counterparts in this book. Only here that happiness is trapped and allowed to remain. Who wouldn't want to revisit the world of The Buccaneers if you could avoid all the misery that follows? I recently rewatched it and I wanted the light and happiness to persist and here it does. This is now my jam. This right here, and Lillian and Daisy are my buccaneers! And I know I can't be the only one who drew another miniseries conclusion while reading this book. Let's face it, Simon Hunt IS Richard Armitage as John Thornton in North and South. The timing is just right! And if it wasn't planned? Well, then Lisa Kleypass has precognition. It's that simple. But what I love about the idea of this North and South vibe in this book, aside from Richard Armitage, is that it takes the book to another level. It's not just about wallflowers making the perfect match, it's also about prejudices and how society was changing and how the aristocracy, the world so many of these young women have been brought up to, is dying and there are different ways of looking at the world. They just have to have their eyes opened, like Annabelle has.
When I was little I loved Lost in Space. The problem was it aired at the same time as my swimming lessons. Needless to say I connived to try to stay home on an almost daily basis and rarely succeeded. As for the movie with Heather Graham and Joey from Friends, the less said the better. But the failure to reboot the series in the late nineties meant that I had really no expectations going into the new series on Netflix. I mean, yes, the fact that Toby Stephens was attached as John Robinson made me hopeful, and the gender swapping of Dr. Smith and then casting the always fabulous Parker Posey just made me more interested, but still I waited to watch the series. I didn't know if this newest incarnation of The Swiss Family Robinson would try to recreate the camp of the original series or instead go all grim dark like so many reboots do nowadays. I was literally in for a huge surprise. Instead of being camp or grim dark the show is actually just a wonderful adventure series that plays well for adults and can easily be family friendly. It felt like the best of science fiction movies made in the eighties and made me feel like a kid again. I see why Netflix ordered a second series, because I personally need more of the adventures of the Robinson clan as soon as possible. The way they reinterpreted the material, having them flee Earth, get stranded with a small group of fellow travelers, but then get stranded again, setting up season two to be more in-line with the story we remember? It was perfect. But the twists and turns, the surprises you don't see coming? This was edge of your seat television and me and my new best friend The Robot will stop by and have a chat with you if you disagree. 
