Mr. Hunt, I Presume by Valerie BowmanMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
"Mr. Hunt, I Presume" was a short, sweet addition to Valerie Bowman's Playful Brides series. I have read some, but not all, of the previous books in the series, and enjoyed each of them very much. While it includes a few characters from previous books, this story stands well on its own.
Even though this was a novella, both of the main characters were well-developed. General Collin Hunt is a respected Home Office official who has become a workaholic to try and forget the young lady he loved years ago, but gave up under pressure from her family. Miss Erienne Stone, the lady Collin once loved, became a governess instead of bowing to her family's pressure to marry a man she didn't love, but now feels guilty because that decision contributed to her family's current difficult financial situation and inability to pay for the surgery her injured soldier brother desperately needs. They find each other again when Erienne accepts a position as governess to Collin's brother and sister-in-law's young children. They fight their feelings for each other, of course, but come to realize that they are meant to be together (with a bit of help from Lucy, Collin's sister-in-law and matchmaker extraordinaire).
The one (small) thing that I didn't like about the novella is that while Erienne's mother's role in their parting as young lovers is addressed, her father's role is not. He wrote Collin a letter asking him to break things off with Erienne so that she could marry someone more "suitable." However, Collin never told Erienne about that letter, and it seems that Erienne continues to believe that Collin broke things off with her because he was choosing his career over their relationship. Erienne deserves to know the whole truth and that Collin didn't give her up because he was being selfish, but because he thought he was giving her the chance at a better life than he could have offered her at the time.
Other than that, I very much enjoyed this story and look forward to the next (final?) installment in the Playful Brides series.
*ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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