When We Meet Again
by Victoria Alexander
ISBN 0-06-059319-9
Avon, April 2005
Victoria Alexander provides a delightful cast of characters, an intriguing plot and a touch of humor to this exciting historical romance with a sensual twist.
Miss Pamela Effington visits Venice in 1818, accompanied by her aunt, Lady Millicent Smythe-Windom, and her cousin, Lady Clarissa Overton. The three traveling companions are inseparable, ever since Pamela fled London rather than face scandal after a cursory affair. Since that horrible mistake, Pamela has blossomed into a competent, independent woman. One determined to experience a little more of life.
What harm could there possibly be in a simple affair with the prince she meets at a masked ball? A prince who has a reputation for bedding half the women of Europe? He would certainly never remember her, let alone recognize her in public. Not with her mask or the darkened room where they are intimate. Even though four years pass, she can't quite forget the prince who called her La Serenissima - the serene one. Or his sexy touch.
Prince Alexei Pruzinsky had it all: Title, wealth and ultimately, a throne. Although his reputation is highly exaggerated, he has had his share of women. Yet only one remains in his memory. La Serenissima.
Then Alexei's father dies and the Russian Empire assimilates his beloved country, Avalonia. Alexei is given an ultimatum: he can become the figurehead of Avalonia, a mere puppet to Russia's rule; or he could fight to keep Avalonia free. The latter would mean war - the ultimate slaughter of his people and the destruction of the country he loves. Both are unacceptable. When his younger brother, Prince Nikolai, insists on fighting Russia, Alexei sends him away. Then, resigned to his fate, Alexei reluctantly heads for London to be in the country where his sister and cousin reside. Since he has to establish residency to obtain the funds that will insure he will have an income upon which to live, he settles into a grand house, a rental more than large enough for himself and his loyal aides, Captain Dimitri Petrov, and his former chief advisor, Count Roman Stefanovich. Then his cousin, Princess Valentina, arrives. She tried to take the throne from Alexei in the past, and is the last person he feels he can trust. She is also a woman without funds or country and, even though she's his nemesis, he doesn't have the heart to send her way.
When Pamela, Millicent and Clarissa are informed that they have inherited funds and an estate in London, they have no desire to return to England. But they are given no choice. In order to inherit, they too must remain on the estate for six months. When they arrive at the estate a short time later, they discover that Prince Alexei and his entourage are already in residence - and that the Prince's lease is legal cannot be broken. Pamela is more than a little upset. She fears that the Prince will recognize her, and is inwardly disappointed when he doesn't. Even so, they have no choice but to share the vast living quarters, out of necessity. Alexei slowly realizes that the haughty Miss Effington is his Serenissima, the woman he could never forget. Now, she is the woman he must forget, for he is a sovereign without a country and believes he has nothing to offer her.
Victoria Alexander has written a thoroughly enjoyable romance! I kept turning the pages, wondering when Alexei would recognize Pamela as the woman he could never forget. The novel is packed with a well-thought out plot and characters who added spark, intrigue, and humor to this delightful, highly recommended story.
Reviewed by
Linda Morelli
GWN Historical Editor
Author of "Fiery Surrender" and "Shadow of Doubt"
4 1/2 masks out of 5 www.lindamorelli.us
