Thirty-Six Valentines

Short Story in The Further Observations of Lady Whistledown Anthology

By Julia Quinn

Avon - February 2003

Regency Romance


It is an unseasonably cold winter, and the members of the ton are returning to London to see if the Thames will indeed freeze over. With such an unusual influx of society's elite in attendance, impromptu parties are popping up. However, through it all, Lady Whistledown manages to attend all of the most exclusive events, gather and write the most intriguing pieces of gossip while still remaining anonymous.

Miss Susannah Ballister had thought she would marry the Hon. Clive Mann-Formsby, in fact, it was a foregone conclusion of the entire ton. Clive had an energy about him that made everyone enjoy being with him. He was a bit reckless and carefree, but a life of leisure encourages this. Then he had turned around and, without any warning to Susannah, he had married someone else. The light that had brought Susannah to be one of the most elite in the ton, had gone out. She was relegated to standing on the sidelines. When she tried to escape one of these events, she found a savior in none other than Clive's older brother, David, the Earl of Renminster.

David had never thought Clive and Susannah would make a good match, but now he wondered if that was because he was the perfect match.

Ms. Quinn has brought back one of her most interesting characters - Lady Whistledown. For all 4 stories in the anthology, each chapter begins with an excerpt from Lady Whistledown's Society Papers. After having discovered the identity of Lady Whistledown, and the prospect of no longer reading her witty commentaries, this anthology was a welcome surprise.

The Further Observations of Lady Whistledown consists of 4 short stories. Suzanne Enoch's One True Love, Karen Hawkins's Two Hearts, Mia Ryan's A Dozen Kisses and Julia Quinn's Thirty-Six Valentines.

Kathy Andrico - ReaderToReader.com