Review: The Viscount and the Vicar’s Daughter by Mimi Matthews
“What of your heart, Miss March? In Yorkshire you said it was mine.”
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The Basics
Title: The Viscount and the Vicar’s Daughter
Author: Mimi Matthews
Published: 2018
Publisher: Perfectly Proper Press
Pages: 224
Format: Paperback
Genres: Fiction — Historical fiction, Victorian fiction, Romance, Historical romance, Victorian romance, Clean romance
Book Synopsis
Following the death of her father, the vicar of a rural parish, prim Valentine March accepts a position as a lady’s companion to Lady Brightwell. When Lady Brightwell travels to Yorkshire to attend an infamous house party in the hopes of securing an engagement between her daughter and the wealthy Tristan Sinclair, Viscount St. Ashton, Valentine accompanies her. The viscount is a notorious womanizer, and Valentine intends to keep her distance from him. After a chance encounter, however, she finds herself reluctantly drawn to him, and when the two are caught in a compromising situation, their fates become inextricably bound.
My Review & Overall Thoughts
TLDR: A so-so historical romance.
A notorious rake and a do-good vicar’s daughter: this book has such potential. I mean, who doesn’t love a good opposites-attract romance? Unfortunately, The Viscount and the Vicar’s Daughter falls flat.
The book’s primary fault is its rushed plot. Events unfold quickly without any buildup, and secondary characters are introduced only to play a brief role before being unceremoniously cast aside. This hurried nature is especially true of the romance between Valentine and Tristan. There is no slow burn, tension-building romance between the two leads; rather, they kiss within the first few chapters and profess their love to one another shortly thereafter. Had the author drawn out the romance and allowed it to develop over more time, it would have made for a much more captivating story.
The hastiness of the book also causes the characters to feel surface level and at times, a bit like caricatures. Even by the book’s end, I felt as though I did not know Valentine and Tristan that well. You only see them in a few contexts interacting with a small set of people, and you have but a bare-bones understanding of their backstories. This latter point is especially true for Tristan: his past is broadly described as a blur of women, drinking, and gambling. Owing to this lack of character depth, it was difficult to invest in their romance. After all, how can I root for a couple when I don’t know much about either person?
Lastly, the dialogue and overall writing are not the greatest. To be fair though, they’re also not the worst I’ve encountered.
The good
This is a quick, easy read, and the book includes an epilogue that nicely ties things up. Also, if sex scenes in romances aren’t your thing, you’ll like this book (the steamiest it gets is kissing).
Overall
The Viscount and the Vicar’s Daughter is a mediocre book. Have I read better books? Yes, but I’ve also read books that are far worse. It’s good for what it is: a short, easy-to-read historical romance with a guaranteed happy ending.
Have you read The Viscount and the Vicar’s Daughter? What did you think? As always, share your thoughts with me in the comments below!
