This is a reverse of the normal romance novel formula. Instead of boy meets girl, etc., it's girl meets boy, girl loses boy, girl gets boy back.
Lottie is capricious and unrestrained. She rides horses with wild abandon and has an unfortunate accident with a Viscount. That specific ride gets her fired from her nanny position, and now she is looking for new employment. When she is hired to be a companion to a crotchety older lady, her life takes an unexpected turn in ways that no one ever anticipated.
Guy Harrowby is the man who gets thrown from his horse because of Lottie's wild ride through the park. While he is incensed because she came out of nowhere, he can't fault her horsemanship. The next hurdle he has to master is his thirtieth birthday, which his mother wants to celebrate in a big way.
The lady Lottie is employed by is the sister of Guy's mother. They engage Lottie in their schemes to throw a week-long party for Guy. Every social climber shows up for the party and plagues Guy until he can hardly stand it anymore. When he finds out that Lottie was involved in planning the party, he frosts her out in spite of the growing feelings he has for her.
This is my first book to read by Virginia Heath and while it does have its rather steamy parts, there are some really funny parts to the book. The plot flows pretty seamlessly, and even though it is the second in a series, it reads well as a stand alone. I truly enjoyed reading Look Before You Leap--four strong stars.
St Martin's Press provided the copy I read for this review. All opinions expressed are solely my own.
