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I grew up hooked on historical romances written by Judith McNaught, Johanna Lindsey, and Julie Garwood. The plot is always the same—the heroine is virginal, beautiful, and is always friendly with the servants, while the hero starts off a bitter and cynical man. Just when they are about to live happily ever after, some scandal / miscommunication / past secret surfaces, testing the relationship, but eventually all is resolved and they all live happily ever after.

Fortunately, The Secret Diaries of Miss Miranda Cheever by Julia Quinn is not that kind of historical romance. For one thing, the heroine, Miranda, is not drop-dead gorgeous, a fact repeated throughout the book quite often. What she has going for her, though, is a sharp wit and keen intellect. Our hero, Turner, on the other hand, is bitter and cynical, but he is never mean-spirited and is actually charming at most times.

They first meet when Miranda is 10 years old and Turner is 19. He is the older brother of Miranda’s best friend, and it is Turner who assures the young Miranda that she will grow up into a beautiful young lady. Naturally, Miranda thinks the world of him, and falls head over heels in love with him.

Fast forward eight years later—debutante Miranda is still no raving beauty but has her own intriguing qualities, while Turner is the handsome but angry widower, forever swearing off women and marriage. But she still loves him, and the novel shows how Turner is finally redeemed by that love.

Secret Diaries has the usual clichés of a historical romance—i.e. they have their first official intimate counter after getting stuck in a deserted cabin due to a rainstorm, Turner’s servants all adore Miranda—but these are relatively minor and, I suppose, integral to the story. What’s unique about the story is that there are no villains here; in fact, all the secondary characters, from Turner’s sister to Miranda’s other suitor, are quite likeable. Moreover, the tone is more Bridget Jones-esque—snappy, witty, and fast-paced. Overall, this is a funny, well-written, and absolutely romantic novel. Which is how all love stories should be.

Available at Fully Booked for P379.

This entry was posted on Friday, November 23rd, 2007 at 6:00 am and is filed under Media (Books, CDs, DVDs, Movies). You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.