A Little Light Mischief by Cat Sebastian is a short and heartwarming historical romance novella set in early 19th century London. It is the fourth book in Sebastian’s Turner series but I believe the only one thus far with an f/f pairing. Having not read any of the other books in the series, I can attest this one can certainly be read as a stand alone and thoroughly enjoyed.
Molly Wilkins is a lady’s maid. She may have a slightly more sordid past involving unsavory things such as thievery, deception and possibly some stabbing, but she has responsibilities now and a benefactress that treats and pays her fairly. Mrs. Wraxhall provides Molly the stability she needs and all she has to do in return is keep her lady well tended to, and keep her nose clean. The latter however, is easier said than done when Mrs. Wraxhall’s attractive new companion can’t seem to keep her eyes off her.
The last thing Alice thought she was destined to become was a lady’s companion. The daughter of an abusive Vicar who drank more than he preached, Alice was cast out by her family after her reputation was slandered by a sleazy braggart. Penniless and alone, Alice’s future was bleak. Fortunately, Mrs. Wraxhall took her in as a companion and she can now spend her time embroidering, being a wallflower in each and every social situation she is forced to endure, and trying very hard (and rather unsuccessfully) not to stare at her lady’s maid Molly’s bosom.
Eventually, the unlikely pair form a bond and begin to fall for one another. When an unpleasant reminder of Alice’s past resurfaces, the two formulate a mischievous plan for a bit of revenge and possibly the chance for Alice to recover some of the life she lost. Emboldened by Molly’s support and encouragement, Alice sets out to resolve her past and secure her future. But will that future include Molly?
Pros And My Favourite Parts
I tend to lean more towards speculative fiction books, which can be quite long and less romance focused, so I really enjoyed the break this novella provided. It was a fast read yet still managed to pack in a lot of character development, an interesting plot and be entirely touching and gratifying.
With just a teensy bit of angst and a whole lot of heart, I would have to say my favourite thing about this book is its HEA that wraps you into its warm embrace and tells you everything is going to be alright. Alice and Molly are surprisingly well fleshed out characters for such a short book. They have both lived hard lives up until the point they are taken in by Mrs. Wraxhall and meet each other. They deserve happiness and they deserve each other and, well, it is just lovely to read about them meeting and falling in love. Oh, and what they decide to do with their future together, it is just perfect and sweet and beautiful.
Also, I just want to say, there is this scene later in the book where one of the characters sees something that demonstrates how the other woman feels about her… I don’t want to spoil it, but I wasn’t expecting it and I confess, it may have made my eyes well up a bit.
Oh, and one more thing. I’m sure I’m not the first, nor will I be the last, to swoon over that gorgeous cover.
Cons And Heads Up
No cons for me, but I sure would have liked to see some more focus on Molly and some of her hijinks before she started working for Mrs. Wraxhall. I have read that she is actually a character from another book in Sebastian’s series so hopefully I can get my fix from that. For that matter, I would also like to read more about Mrs. Wraxhall’s past and present and how she came to be a sort of benefactress for women society casts out.
The Conclusion
If you are short on time but looking for a delightful Regency romance that focuses on characters who aren’t royalty or society’s elite, well, look no further friends. Sebastian manages to squeeze into very few pages, fabulous characters with great banter, chemistry, and solid growth, a heartwarming, yet also vengeful and twisty plot, some heat and a bit of humour for good measure. This book is the perfect little pick me up and I will definitely keep it on my shelf for when I need a lift.
Excerpt from A Little Light Mischief by Cat Sebastian
Alice had her eye on that lady’s maid.
Most lady’s maids Alice had met were either French or at least pretended to be French; failing that, they were English-women of the austere, rail-thin variety. Molly Wilkins was neither, and Alice didn’t know how she was supposed to concentrate on her sewing — or whatever it was she was meant to be doing — when there was an ample bosom or a pert backside within reach at all moments.
Not that there was much of anything to do. Alice had never been so idle in her life. Some lady’s companions were little more than unpaid drudges, and that was the fate she had gladly anticipated when Mrs. Wraxhall rescued her from the vicarage; it had been the only kind of life she had ever known. But no, Mrs. Wraxhall didn’t need an extra set of hands to help with the mending or settle matters of domestic diplomacy among the staff. She had servants for those tasks, as well as for tasks Alice hadn’t even known existed before arriving in London, such as packing gowns between layers of tissue paper, which Molly was doing presently.
If it weren’t for the not-so-small matter of Molly Wilkinson’s bosom and the absolute conviction that the lady’s maid was up to no good, Alice thought she could be quite content in Mrs. Wraxhall’s household. Well, as long she stayed in the sewing room.
She tore her gaze from the maid and bent over her embroidery. Her silks were in a frightful tangle, possibly because she had spent most of the morning distracted by Molly’s packing of Mrs. Wraxhall’s trunks and hadn’t properly attended to her own work. Not that embroidering handkerchiefs with flowers and fairies and all manner of silliness counted as work — it was just a way to fill the hours in between meals and sleep, a way to use hands that had spent decades at another’s service.
The crux of the matter was that every time Molly leaned over the trunk, her fichu came untucked, giving Alice an eyeful of creamy breasts. And when she tried to tuck her scarf back in, as she was this very minute, much to Alice’s consternation, she made a great show of patting herself down and rearranging the contents of her bodice. Alice tried to tell herself that it was the coarseness of the girl’s behavior that had drawn her attention, but found she couldn’t sustain the lie. That was another problem with idleness — there was nothing to distract her from the unwanted thoughts that flitted in and out of her mind.
“Oh drat,” Alice said in frustration, realizing she must have dropped her needle while gawping at this latest episode of tucking and self-groping.
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Bits and Bobs
ISBN number: 9780062951045
Publisher: Avon Impulse
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