Matthew by Grace Burrowes

Matthew by Grace BurrowesNarrated by James Langton

I am a fan of Grace Burrowes’ historical romances and always enjoy a visit to “Burrowesworld” the corner of the South of England that she has peopled with her various, numerous and inter-related characters and series. I admit though, that she’s published so many books now, that I sometimes have to stop and take stock of which book and which series I’m listening to or reading and work out where it falls in the canon, as publication order is not always the same as chronological… so for instance in Matthew, one of her more recent publications, and the second book in her Jaded Gentlemen series, we meet Nicholas and Beckman Haddonfield before they appear in the Lonely Lords books and before Nick inherits his earldom; Alice Portmaine is still a governess/companion, and some of the other Lonely Lords – Gareth, Andrew, Douglas and David – are all happily settled with their wives and families. This wealth of previously introduced characters may be a bit daunting for someone new to the author’s work, but actually, it’s perfectly possible to listen to Matthew as a standalone, as characters like Nick, Beckmann and Alice are secondary and their roles here don’t really have anything to do with the parts they play in the books in which they are principal characters.

Matthew Belmont is a widower of thirty-five years of age with three sons on the verge of manhood. His wife has been dead for some years and his marriage was not a happy one – the late Mrs. Belmont was in love with someone else and regularly unfaithful – although he loves his boys very dearly. He’s the local squire and magistrate, and his reputation in the locality is exceptional. He’s admired and respected by the men as well as the women (many of whom would love to become the second Mrs. Belmont) and while not completely celibate (he has had the occasional, discreet affair at the odd house party) he has no pressing desire to remarry.

Until, that is, he meets Miss Theresa Jennings, the older sister of Thomas, Baron Sutcliffe (hero of the previous book in this series), a lovely woman of close to his own age who makes no bones about the fact that she has a young daughter, despite never having been married. Theresa has lived most of the last decade or so at the family seat, which she has managed very successfully for her brother, and has moved temporarily to Linden in Kent while he and his new wife are staying at Sutcliffe Keep as part of their wedding trip. At Linden, she encounters her neighbour – the attractive squire – who treats her with the sort of kindness and respect she has not encountered all that often before, owing to her status as an unmarried mother and her past as something of a wild child.

There’s an immediate attraction between the pair, although Matthew senses that Theresa is trying to keep him at arm’s length by making it clear that she believes herself to be completely unworthy of the notice of such an upstanding and widely respected figure as he. Matthew thinks that’s all nonsense, and as they come to know each other better, what emerges is the picture of a young woman of seventeen who was led astray by loneliness, negligence and a couple of rakehell cousins. Matthew doesn’t blame Theresa for her past, insisting that it’s IN the past and reminding her that she has led a blameless life for the past decade, but she has a hard time accepting this, her views coloured by both the disapprobation of society and most especially that of her brother, who has practically disowned her and has not communicated with her throughout the last decade, regardless of the fact that she has lived in virtual penury while acting as a very competent steward at Sutcliffe.

Matthew is fairly standard Grace Burrowes fare, but I don’t mean that as a criticism, because this sort of gently moving romance between two lonely, emotionally bruised people is something she writes extremely well. Matthew is everything one could want in a romantic hero, handsome, kind, perceptive and protective; Theresa’s daughter, Priscilla likens him at one point to a knight on a white charger, and it’s an apt analogy, because he really is Theresa’s champion. One of the highlights of the book is his taking Thomas to task about his treatment of his sister, and forcing him to see the truth of the situation; that she had been subject to bad company and influence but was focused on protecting her younger brother to the extent that she pushed him away deliberately. I admit that I thought Thomas was a complete dickhead the first time he appeared in this story, and wondered how on earth he could possibly have been romance hero material in his own book – which I haven’t yet listened to or read. Fortunately, however, when confronted with Matthew’s common sense approach and, I suspect, his new wife’s calming influence, Thomas comes to see the error of his ways, and I very much enjoyed listening to their eventual reconciliation.

While all this is going on, it also seems that someone is out to harm Matthew following a series of events which – at first – appear unconnected, but which later begin to assume a more sinister significance. The mystery is very much secondary and well-integrated and the identity of the villain isn’t immediately obvious, but I confess I’m getting a teeny bit tired of the tacked-on mystery in romances. Not just in Ms. Burrowes’ stories; many authors feel the need to inject a bit of drama by means of a mystery and it’s getting old.

What isn’t getting old, however, is the (by now) long-standing association of Grace Burrowes’ stories with James Langton’s narrations. His well-modulated, slightly husky baritone is always a pleasure to listen to, and it’s obvious that he understands the specific requirements of narrating in this particular genre, something not all narrators do. As is the case with most of Ms. Burrowes’ titles, there is a fairly large secondary cast, but Mr. Langton handles that with aplomb, expertly employing a variety of accent, timbre and tone to differentiate between the numerous male characters, who include Matthew’s somewhat smarmy brother-in-law, his older brother, the crotchety Axel (his book is next up), and his three sons, who are aged (I believe) between about fourteen and seventeen or eighteen. That last is especially impressive, as he has to pitch them as young men without making them sound like children, and he does it very well. Matthew himself sounds exactly as he should – confident, capable and completely sigh-worthy; the perfect romantic hero.

While Mr. Langton’s female voices aren’t the best I’ve heard, they’re more than half-way decent, and his portrayals of Theresa, Loris (Thomas’ wife) and Alice, Priscilla’s governess, are good, although he does sometimes push the pitch just a little too high at emotional high points. It doesn’t happen often, though, so it’s not something that spoiled my overall enjoyment. The one place he does fall down though, is in his interpretation of Matthew’s sister-in-law. I think he may have been going for something a bit “dowager-esque”, but he misses the mark, and she just sounds… odd.

Overall, however, it’s a very strong performance, and fans of both author and narrator will, I’m sure, enjoy this tender romance between two more mature characters who have both been buffeted about by life.

Caz


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