The Other Countess

Gr 9 Up—Her full name is Lady Eleanor Rodriguez, Countess of San Jaime, but Ellie's title counts for little with her family impoverished by her father's obsession with alchemy and her Spanish heritage more often a liability than not in Queen Elizabeth's court. A good marriage would improve her fortunes, but fate keeps throwing Ellie in the path of William Lacey, whose grievances against her father and his own need to restore his family fortunes through an advantageous match make him and Ellie thoroughly unsuitable for each other. Inevitably, the two trade barbs, misunderstand each other, fall in love, and must contend with their circumstance and the machinations of others. Tournaments, feasts, fancy dress, and Catholic-Protestant tensions provide a veneer of Renaissance pageantry, but it's not enough to elevate the flat characters and rote plot. Libraries with a high demand for historical romance may find this a useful additional purchase; others can pass it by.—Christi Esterle, Parker Library, CO