Had We Never Loved

June 29, 1992
With only mixed results, Veryan meshes two narrative lines in this Georgian romance--her ongoing story of a shady conspiracy (begun in Time's Fool ) and a titled gentleman's love for an unsuitable woman. Just as Lord Horatio Glendenning's family becomes the target of the League of Jewelled Men, a secret society that aims to overthrow the monarchy and establish a republic, a beautiful and spirited gypsy named Amy Consett steals his purse at a fair. Class conflicts and much sparring constitute their courtship. But the Jewelled Men are scheming to use Glendenning's treasonous Jacobite activities and his stepbrother's propensity for gambling to frame his family and seize their estate. Thus Glendenning and Amy enjoy an adventurous several weeks, in which duels are declared and rescheduled; lovers rendezvous; jewelry is lost, found and lost again; and battles are fought with vicious marauders. While Veryan's account of a seemingly doomed love affair provides a satisfyingly romantic read, the complicated machinations of the League of Jewelled Men will leave the reader confused.

July 1, 1992
The second volume in this series takes place in mid-18th century England, where the Jewelled Men scheme to rid the nation of its Hanoverian king and establish a republic. To accomplish this, they seek unjustly to discredit the country's most prominent families, who eventually form their own union to defeat the conspirators. As in Time's Fool (St. Martin's, 1991), the storyline proves incidental to the pleasure given by Veryan's skillful plotting of her villains' nefarious schemes. Each volume stands alone, although the concluding installment will be eagerly awaited. Highly recommended for all fiction collections; Veryan is no longer a genre writer.-- Paula M. Zieselman, Fulbright & Jaworski, New York

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