TEST
Unmasked by the Marquess, the first in Cat Sebastian’s new Regency Imposters series, marks something of a departure for her in that, unlike her previous books, it isn’t a male/male romance. The two protagonists are a man and a woman – but the fact that this isn’t a standard m/f romance quickly becomes apparent when we learn that our heroine – a former housemaid named Charity Church – has actually been living as a man for the past six years and feels far more ‘right’ in herself dressing, acting and living as a man than she ever did as a woman.
(I’m using ‘she’ and ‘her’ in this review, even though Charity is non-binary; the author uses those pronouns throughout the book for reasons she explains in her author’s note, so I’m going to follow her lead).
Robert Selby and his sister Louisa have come to London with the object of securing an advantageous match for Louisa. Unfortunately however, coming from rural Northumberland makes an entrée into the right circles in London rather difficult as they know no one who can introduce them. Remembering his father’s old friend, the late Marquess of Pembroke, Robert hits upon the idea of asking the current marquess for help; if a man of his standing is seen to take notice of Louisa, then surely other men will follow and a proposal will ensue.
Alistair de Lacey has spent the years since the death of his profligate father working hard to rebuild the family finances and to claw back the respectability the late marquess threw away in favour of a life filled with excess and dissolution. When a charming and rather attractive young man named Robert Selby is ushered into his library, Alistair expects to be tapped for money, so is surprised when Selby tells him that the late marquess stood godfather to his (Robert’s) sister, and asks for Alastair’s assistance in launching her into society. But Alistair – who has just received (and turned down) a similar request from his late father’s mistress on behalf of her eldest daughter (Alistair’s half-sister) – isn’t inclined to help and sends the young man on his way.
Charity – the author has her think of herself as Charity in the chapters from her PoV, while Alistair thinks of her as Robert and later, Robin – is disappointed and isn’t sure how to proceed. The next day, however, an unexpected encounter with Pembroke and his younger brother, Lord Gilbert, engenders a remarkably quick volte-face on Pembroke’s part and soon, Charity – as Robert – and Louisa become part of Pembroke’s small circle.
After this, things move very quickly – rather too quickly in fact, because in no time at all, Alistair and Robert are the best of friends, and while we’re told this friendship develops over a couple of weeks, on the page there’s a big jump from their not knowing each other at all to being extremely comfortable with one another. Given that Alistair has been established as overly cautious and very proper, the way he so easily befriends Robert feels somewhat out of character. The way they seem to just ‘click’ is nicely conveyed, but it’s still quite a leap from there to bosom-buddies, and I couldn’t really buy it in context.
Alistair is well aware that he can feel sexual desire for both men and women – although this being the nineteenth century, he hasn’t acted on his attraction to men – so it’s not the fact he’s attracted to Robert that gives him pause. It’s the way Robert has so quickly worked his way under his skin, the way his presence in a room can light it up and the way Alistair feels so much more alive when Robert is with him. So it comes as a huge disappointment when, on the morning after their first kiss, Alistair learns that Robert lied to him about Louisa’s being the old marquess’ goddaughter. He lashes out angrily, even going to far as to accuse Robert of intending to blackmail him over their kiss – and the only thing Robert can think of to allay Alistair’s fears on that score is to confess that he’s not Robert, but Charity.
Of course Alistair is even more furious at this deception – but after a few miserable days and weeks alone, decides that having Robert – as Charity, Robert or whoever she wants to be – is preferable to not having her in his life at all. He doesn’t care what’s under her clothes; it’s the person inside he’s interested in, but the trouble really begins when he asks Charity to marry him. Charity insists Alistair hasn’t thought it through; how can a marquess – especially one as concerned with reputation and propriety as he is – possibly marry a former housemaid? And not only a former housemaid, but a former housemaid who doesn’t intend on living the rest of her life as a woman and will be damned if she’s going to give up the freedoms she’s enjoyed for the past six years?
There is a lot of plot and backstory stuffed into the book, and I have to admit that sometimes it felt like overkill. Charity’s reasons for becoming Robert Selby are good ones, but it’s complicated, and becomes moreso when an important fact of which Alistair – and the reader – has been ignorant, is suddenly thrown into the mix near the end of the book. The strongest part of the story is actually Alistair’s progress from curmudgeonly stick-in-the mud to a man who is much more forgiving of the foibles of others and comes to realise the importance of love and the difference between living and merely existing. He’s become aloof and inflexible, but once he becomes involved with Robert, the real Alistair, the man who is decent, kind and funny, begins to emerge, and Ms. Sebastian does a very good job of having him recognise just how far from his true self he had strayed. I particularly enjoyed the relationship between Alistair and Gilbert, which is well done and feels very ‘brotherly’. It’s clear that the two care for each other very much, but have lost some of that feeling in recent years because Alistair’s need to be all that is respectable and proper has caused him to lose sight of what’s really important in life. I liked Charity and her determination to hold on to her independence; I liked her gumption and the way she forces Alistair to see that the rules that govern his life don’t work for everybody.
There are some good, meaty points being made about what it’s like not to fit into established roles, about how few options were available to women and the way society treated those who didn’t wish to conform – which is why I was disappointed when the conflict in the romance boiled down to a very old chestnut, and one I’m not particularly fond of – the ‘I will not let you sacrifice yourself by marrying me because I am not suitable’ one, which always feels as though one person is telling the other that they’re stupid and don’t know their own mind. It’s not that Charity is wrong to point the problems out to Alistair – they’re undoubtedly bigger problems than face many a cross-class couple in historical romance – it’s that she’s prepared to ride roughshod over his feelings rather than try to hash out a solution that will work for both of them that I didn’t like. I also found it more than a little jarring that a man who was trying so hard to be as unlike his father as possible didn’t think twice about the fact that he would be doing to his own (future) children exactly what his father had done in making his children a topic of gossip and scandal in a society that, sadly, did visit the sins of the father upon subsequent generations.
Even with those reservations, I liked – although I didn’t love – Unmasked by the Marquess and am going to give it a cautious recommendation. The writing is sharp and witty, and I liked the principals and secondary characters. But while the relationship between Alistair and Charity has plenty of sexual tension and their verbal exchanges are entertaining, the romance is somewhat lacking in the early stages and I never got rid of that feeling that I’d missed something amid all the busy-ness of the rest of the plot.
Buy it at: Amazon/Barnes & Noble/Apple Books/Kobo
Grade: B-
Book Type: Historical Romance
Sensuality: Warm
Review Date: 18/04/18
Publication Date: 04/2018
Recent Comments …
Yep
This sounds delightful! I’m grabbing it, thanks
excellent book: interesting, funny dialogs, deep understanding of each character, interesting secondary characters, and also sexy.
I don’t think anyone expects you to post UK prices – it’s just a shame that such a great sale…
I’m sorry about that. We don’t have any way to post British prices as an American based site.
I have several of her books on my TBR and after reading this am moving them up the pile.
Related Reviews
I just finished reading this one and agree with your assessment, although this would be a C+ territory for me. Not horrible by any means but, like you said, a recommendation with caution.
It definitely has its stellar points though. Alistair’s character development is not only the strongest aspect of Unmasked by the Marquess, but one of the strongest I’ve seen in a romance hero to date. I also love how he initially came across as this stuck up, jerk-wad, early-19th century aristocrat rather than a more palatable 21st century facsimile of one. You know the type, always anachronistically treating the servants like best buddies and having 100% modern views on politics. (Bleh!) But Sebastian managed to make man-of-his-time-and-place Alistair likeable and gave him a great arc that still felt (mostly) period appropriate. That’s surprisingly super rare and difficult to pull off, so kudos.
As for the HEA? Hoo boy. I’d have to say this is Sebastian’s most disappointing one and required the greatest suspension of disbelief. This surprised me considering how well she has used believable workarounds for her m/m couples but somehow let Robin be way more open about her proclivities than would have been societally allowed. In France? Maaaybe. But among the English aristocracy? I’m casting a big side eye here.
I’ve enjoyed quite a few of CS’s books, but she’s not in the same league as KJC. (But then, not many authors are!) I’ve never had to side-eye one of KJC’s HEAs, and I never have to worry about her characters walking down the sidewalk in the fall, or not knowing how to make a cup of tea correctly (!)
Well, I do finally have a KJ Charles book checked out on Overdrive: A Fashionable Indulgence. Here’s hoping I’m in for a treat as promised! :-)
As for Cat Sebastian, I have a soft spot for her style and characters despite some of the hiccups in her work. Unmasked by the Marquess was a valiant effort, especially considering the difficulty in pulling off the premise. It could have gone far, far worse…
AFI was one of my first KJC reads, too! (I’m pretty sure my review is a DIK). The next book in that series, A Seditious Affair, remains the one and only A+ grade I’ve ever given here – because it’s Just That Good. I honestly think you’ll notice a big difference in quality between the two authors.
Yeah, Caz, you might need a quizzing glass to see the similarities (LOL!). I do find it interesting what fans compare books to or what authors are inspired by even when the actual product doesn’t turn out to resemble the inspiration very much.
I’ve read reviews that state this book was a little bit inspired by Heyer’s Frederica. That wouldn’t have occurred to me until it was pointed out.
I enjoyed this, but didn’t love it, and I agree with Em’s comments about struggling with how Charity saw herself before she began masquerading as Robbie. It’s very superficially addressed. This was for me, a light and fluffy depiction of a woman masquerading as a man. Enjoyable, yes, but not very deep. I did enjoy how Alistair slowly thaws once he begins interacting with Robbie.
I love Frederica and had no idea about that either. Quite honestly, I don’t see it as the similarities are very general and could apply to many, many other books.
I agree with your other comments and I felt the same about the lack of clarity regarding Charity’s genderfluidity. Alistair’s gradual ‘thaw’ was definitely the best part of the book.
Elaine, here is the page with your original post, and I responded to it on page 7: https://allaboutromance.com/forums/topic/the-aar-seventeen-in-17-reading-challenge/page/6/
I loved Soldier’s Scoundrel, but as I said, I was disappointed at how the gay protagonists’ sisters seemed to accept their homosexuality so easily. I know it flies in the face of Romancelandia, where the harsh realities of the times are usually ignored so as to not put a damper on the romance (whether gay or straight), but I prefer more realism in my historical romances. Having one of the sisters, or another family member, disapprove of and admonish or shun one of the protagonists in Soldier’s Scoundrel would actually probably have made the romance itself a little more interesting and enjoyable to me.
I will say that as a straight woman, I noted and appreciated that female author KJ Charles’ A Gentleman’s Position was dedicated to Alexis Hall, a gay male writer who, per Ms. Charles “doesn’t skimp on the crit”. That comment made me feel that the M/M relationship in that book was not just based on the author’s imagination but on actual input from a gay man.
Julie: So much yes! A woman mentioning she has a husband isn’t the same as saying she’s straight (same goes for guys who have wives). Thank you for delurking to say that. :)
Just delurking to say I think it’s presumptuous at best to assume the author is straight. She mentions a husband in her bio but that doesn’t mean she’s heterosexual.
I’m not quite halfway through this and so I won’t comment further until I finish the book, but so far I’m really enjoying it.
I am still not sure exactly what audience Cat Sebastian is writing for.
I read CS’s first book. After that it it was like taking a trip down Disney gay-land. Which is not a real thing. I am still unclear as to why straight women write m/m romance. That is not to say some don’t write it well, or they are not allies to the LGBTQ+ community. But my thinking is that publishing world, and society at large, would sooner accept a gay story written by a straight white woman than from an actual, real life gay man, regardless of his race. Just like the publishing world/readers would sooner accept a book with characters of color written by white author than from an author of color. It’s an endless cycle, imho, that feeds the wheel of bigotry and racism, from authors and bloggers alike.
I read The Soldier’s Scoundrel recently as I wanted to read in a totally new genre for me and it was getting rave reviews everywhere. After reading it, I had a lot of questions. I am sure that I posted about it here but the comment seems to have vanished. Basically, I wondered who the author was writing for: straight readers, gay readers, men, women, both ??? And do gay people read this genre themselves? It didn’t seem clear to me why a woman who identifies as straight (according to her website she is a married mother) wanted to write about a relationship she could (presumably) never herself have experienced. And then set it in a timeframe when homosexuality was a capital felony and allow her protagonists to enjoy surprising freedom in their relationship when, frankly, it would have been difficult for an unmarried heterosexual pair to behave in a similar manner. So, this is a big puzzle for me. As you say, it does seem a bit of a Disney gay-land with a questionable HEA. I really wish someone would post here who is openly gay and comment on what they think about this and authors who write completely outside their ken. Do they enjoy it, is it realistic or is it merely a frison of fun for the straight readers and the gay readers are smirking at them for doing it.
Elaine – the argument about straight women writing gay romance is not relevant in this context. They are authors, it is their raison d’etre to have the imagination to convey stories to their readers. Presumably, authors who write about vampires are not the undead and do not associate with them. I know a bi man married to a gay man who writes lesbian texts try pigeon holing that! If we are discussing why there are not MORE GAY writers being published, or why there are not MORE POC being published then that is a different argument altogether.
If we only allow authors to write about themselves and their experiences we will have a lot of middle aged housewives reliving how they met their partners and divorce horrors.
I cannot comment on this particular romance text as I havent read it, but from some of my colleagues comments and ANON – speaking as a gender fluid non binary author and reviewer it does seem a little crowded and maybe covers too many bases at once.
Lastly, two comments were made about who is Cat S. writing for…. My answer would be whoever wants to read it. You dont write and think “oh if I add a gay man, I’ll get gay readers, or if I add a child it will appeal to mothers.” Books are written for anyone who wants to read them. My 92 mother in law read romance all her life. At 80 she started reading Queer romance and no she wasnt a closet bisexual. She just fancied the stories and enjoyed what she read. It is not our place to say who should read what or why. Reading is the ultimate freedom. We dont tell people what to read or not. We just say how qe found the text and the reader makes the decision.
Oh and ANON why shouldn’t there be a gay Disneyland HEA? We had to put up with a lot of AIDS romances and beating up stories and homophobic heroes.
I think everyone deserves their own ____________ Disneyland HEA. I personally am hoping for one in which middle aged women are portrayed as powerful and sexy and those who love them empty the dishwasher and love watching rom coms.
I haven’t read Cat Sebastian before though her books are on my TBR list It doesn’t sound as if this is the best book in her backlog though.
I do however want to say that your response, BJ, is perfect and I loved reading it here. Of course authors should not be limited to writing only about that in which they have experiential knowledge, and you are absolutely correct that fantasy authors do not get questioned for their creative constructions of worlds far beyond “realistic” ones. It’s also not really a reader’s place to assume much if anything from an author’s bio. That falls into pseudo-science at best and ad hominem at worst. It’s fair to assess a text on its own merits and I think Caz’s review does this very well.
p.s. this would have been my grade as well.
I enjoyed this departure from Ms. Sebastian’s regular m/m historical fare although I think maybe she tried to do a few too many things in one story. We have a supremely likeable non-binary con artist (who isn’t a villain), a bisexual duke, a virginal and naive friend, a gay manservant, a former mistress and her children, pets and more…oh my! It’s a lot! I liked it but it felt overstuffed.
I loved the evolution of Alastair’s character and his inherent goodness – which Robin unwittingly coaxes out of him and the authors treatment of their relationship. That they like/love each other isn’t the question – its what do to after they acknowledge it one another that proves challenging. I struggled a bit with Charity/Robert/Robin mostly because although Ms. Sebastian writes the character as non-binary, there’s little to indicate this is how she identified before Robert Selby convinced her to impersonate him at school. Did he suggest it because she identified this way when they met…or did her identity form later in life? I felt like Ms. Sebastian didn’t sufficiently answer the question for me. I had a hard time making the leap from female, heterosexual house servant to Robert/Robin, but perhaps that more my lack of imagination/understanding than the writing itself.
I love Ms. Sebastian’s unique voice and marvelously entertaining historical romances – but I wish she’d try to do a bit more w/less in her next novel.
I had similar questions and issues. The book had so much plot there wasn’t enough time for character development – apart from Alistair’s storyline, which was well done and reminds us what Ms. Sebastian can really do in terms of characterisation.