The Mad Herringtons By Jane Myers Perrine

I'm waffling between 2.5 and 3 stars for me, but at the end of the day, and after a bit of reflection, I think I'll stick with a 3. Here's what I liked:

--Warwick: he was one of the only characters who I didn't either roll my eyes at or despise. He was confident in himself, for the most part, and as much as a selfish rake we're told he was, we didn't see much of this behavior.
--Terpsi: poor girl. I did like her, and her Hero. Seeing how she tried to hold it together on the outside, but on the inside was unsure and uncertain about just about everything (except for her love for a certain guy...) was balanced well.
--Aphrodite's parents: I loved how they loved each other and were so devoted to their family.
--Aphrodite's epiphany about herself and what she needed AND deserved: and HER hero was there to support her the entire way.
--The resolution: everything came together nicely.
--The play: this part of it was cute and reminded me of Mansfield Park. I think I'll go watch the BBC version of that movie, as a matter of fact. I love it. :)
--The Mad Herringtons: I did love how, in the end, the message was about balance in our lives and loves and how this family found that balance. It was sweet.


What I didn't like:
--Mrs Horne and her toad of a son: I hated them, together and separately. And who HE ended up with? Well I didn't like her either and thought she came off as cartoonish and beyond insipid (all three of them did really). The two were meant for each other.
--Aski: I wanted to punch him in the neck half the time and where the hell was his friend, Geoffrey? He never said or did anything really. He just...seemed to disappear!
--Sometimes there was too much, stuff, throughout the book. I know that isn't articulate but what I mean is, there was so much going on in people's head AND outside of their heads AND often repetitive thoughts/actions about how the characters felt or did what they did, it became a bit...much. I would have preferred less of that and more of the main Hero and Heroine.

All in all a decent read and a good way to spend a few hours lazing around on a summer afternoon. There are no hot and heavy smexy times here, but that's okay because there is some good chemistry between the MCs and a few smoldering kisses. :D I know, it's a surprise, me liking a book without the sexy times, but hey, when it's written well without it, who am I to complain!

*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.*

208 Aphrodite Herrington aka Ditie is the only sensible child of the whole Mad Herrington Clan. Ditie is always running around fixing and being a keeper for all her erratic siblings. She loves her family and can't stand to see them hurt in any way. Lady Aphrodite is being courted by Frederick Horne. Frederick is a prudent and boring young man. Ditie sees her chance to have a happy and comfortable life with no chaotic situations. But in the back of her mind, Ditie has not forgotten a memorable kiss two years earlier from another young man, Viscount Thomas Warwick. Thomas broke her heart and Ditie swore she would not to be ruled by passion. I really like this sweet and warm romance. I could not stand Ditie's selfish sisters. They only thought of themselves, especially Athena. I just wanted to choke her. I did enjoy the playful blather between Thomas and his sister, Susannah. It was wonderful to see how Thomas comes to settle his feelings for Lady Aphrodite. Will there be a wonderful happy ever after for all? I think so. I received a complimentary copy from NetGalley for an honest review. 208 Aphrodite Herrington is the only sane member of her mad family - all 15 of them. Her parents are madly in love with 13 children determined to shock and scandalize Society with their passions. Her younger sister Athena kisses the most unsuitable men and will end up in trouble if she's not taken in hand. Older sister Terpsichore has set herself up in her own establishment, hosts literary saloons and wears the most revealing clothing possible. Clearly something needs to be done about the mad Herringtons and Aphrodite sees herself as the responsible one who will keep her family out of trouble. Yet, when the opportunity arises to make a comfortable match with Mr. Frederick Horne, she seriously considers it. She's invited, along with her parents, to a small house party at Mr. Horne's estate to meet his mother. The senior Herringtons are unable to attend so Aphroditie must take her sisters along. Adphrodite looks forward to getting to know Mrs. Horne and Frederick's extended family, but she doesn't count on one of the guests being Thomas, Viscount Warwick, the rake who kissed her and dismissed her two years ago. Warwick is the head of the family and he takes a close personal interest in Aphrodite. A little too close if you ask her for she's in danger of succumbing to her passions once again. She's can't give in because she has to control her older sister who is flirting outrageously with every man and snubbing her former beau Callum McReynolds. She must also deal with her younger brother Aski, who is down from Cambridge on a lark. When Terpi proposes they perform A Midsummer Night's Dream, little do they except that Shakespeare could have such a powerful affect on them and change their lives forever.

At first I didn't like this book very much. The characters are beyond the pale. There's no way they would be accepted into Polite Society, especially not Almack's. The characters have the most ridiculous unpronounceable names and it's difficult to keep track of who is who because they names are so similar. Every piece of clothing, decoration and furniture is described in minute detail. I love period detail but dropping it into the narrative is not the way to do it. The dialogue was stilted with every word of every conversation written down. The Come ins and Thank yous were repetitive and pointless.

Then, when the characters move to the house party, the story improves. The story becomes an amusing romp with a carousel of characters in the midst of romantic entanglements. It's obviously who will end up with who but getting there is actually fun. I liked the play within the story and how it served to bring the characters together the way they should be. You can always trust Shakespeare to know what's what. The ending is rather rushed and I would have liked a few more chapters to really bring the central romance to a close. The beginning could be tightened a lot to make room for the conclusion.

I disliked most of the characters though. I thought Terpi was irritating and I didn't understand her actions. I disliked Athena but she's not very bright so I can't hate her too much. Frederick is the worst. I hate Mama's boys. The ghastly mother-in-law from Hell was a genius creation of a crazy author. She is pure comic genius and is a character readers will love to hate.

I really liked Aphrodite and could relate to her, being the only sane member in an insane family. I could easily see myself saying and doing everything she does even through the end. I liked the message she ultimately comes away with in the end. As a fiery, passionate (half) Italian, I appreciate the balance between level-headedness and passion. It's basically the same message as in Sense and Sensibility. Her romance could be developed a little more. I easily see why she loves who she loves. He reveals himself to be someone trustworthy, steady and reliable plus loving and passionate. I just didn't see what he saw in Aphrodite and felt that their relationship could have been more than about passion.

This is a light, fluffy read for readers of all ages. Though the story is about finding a balance between passion and reason, the passion doesn't get beyond kissing and a bit of tingling. I'd give it 2.5 stars because it wasn't as well written as I would like and was too fluffy for me. 208 Note I received a NetGalley copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

There are many tropes in historical romantic fiction. One I generally find amusing is: Woman desires matrimony. So, of course, She chooses the most Unsuitable Suitor for herself while longing - consciously or not - for someone that everyone else in the story would open a vein for, if only he'd look their way. Intelligent, beautiful, of sound emotional and mental health, she can't see the forest for the grass framing the path to damnation. Keeping the reader from despising her for being too stupid to find love even when she trips over it is difficult. When you add a large family, society and Mommy-Dearest-In-Law, it's a Great Challenge. Enjoying the bewilderment of all as the conflict escalates to inanity is what makes a Romp worth reading.

Ms. Perrine was up to the Great Challenge. The Mad Harringtons was a completely charming romp. Her writing is precise and energetic, her dialog sparkles and she stays in her chosen time period. She does not fall into the dreaded: if only someone said something trap, at least not for the duration of the story. Such a coil was what brought them all to this pass, true, but she waves her mighty quill pen and Fixes Everything. I bet she didn't mind in the least. Her characters were as fun as the family motto and when Unsuitable Suitor stands up to Mommy Dearest you can't help but applaud. The play is a hoot, the parents delightful and Aphrodite's only real problem is her ridiculous belief that SHE must take care of everyone. Some people come that way, wired for caretaking. Learning that others will undoubtedly muddle their way through Just Fine is the hardest thing to accept for folks like Ditie [not that I have any experience with this, nope, not me]. Warwick with his new maturity and willingness to commit is more than able to assist her in this valuable life lesson.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Mad Harringtons. No goofy epilogue, no hint of a sequel, just a wonderful afternoon's romp with many groans and giggles. It is already on my keeper list.
Read my complete review at Page Traveler E-Book Reviews 208 I really love to read Jane Meyers Perrine sweet romances. They are joyful and lite. 208

Jane Myers Perrine ð 5 Read & Download

Aphrodite Herrington is the only sane one in her unusually large family—including her parents. The girls, Terpsichore and Athena, are saucy and flirtatious while the boy, Aklepios, runs away from Cambridge and loves to pull pranks.

They all converge at a house party meant to celebrate Aphrodite’s engagement. The guests include Terpsichore’s former beau, Callum McReynolds, who still loves her but is too proud to admit it, and Thomas Warwick, an acknowledged rake who starts to fall in love with Aphrodite just as her fiancé, Frederick, falls for Aphrodite’s sister Athena.

When Asklepios shows up masquerading as an Italian count, Aphrodite knows that for once her family beyond her control. Worst of all she finds herself falling in love with Thomas.

They decide to entertain themselves and the guests by putting together a performance of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” And as if written by Shakespeare himself the love affairs begin to unravel. The Mad Herringtons

Aphrodite Herrington has always been the prim and sensible member of an otherwise outrageous family—her parents frequently display an unseemly amount of public affection, while her siblings must forever be rescued from their own compromising situations. And as much as she loves them, she’s grown weary of being their keeper and wishes only to find a steady man with whom she can have a calm and quiet marriage. Thankfully, the very staid and predictable Frederick Horne has made just such a proposal to her.
Thomas, Viscount Warwick, is everything Frederick is not. As one of society’s most scandalous rakes, Warwick has a reputation for openly moving from one flirt to another without a care for their well-being. With a bemused smirk he’s vowed never to fall in love himself, but happily joins his cousin Frederick at their family estate to celebrate the forthcoming announcement of Frederick’s betrothal to Aphrodite.
But Warwick and Aphrodite share a secret from their past, a chaste yet meaningful kiss that broke her heart and left him wanting more. As Aphrodite’s family descends on the estate in their usual chaotic fashion and all the partygoers strike up new and surprising liaisons, a suddenly love-struck Warwick and passionately awakened Aphrodite must decide whether to throw caution and common sense to the wind to embrace the promise of a true love they’ve found in each other.

The Mad Herringtons was a laugh out loud read with romance and foolery mixed in. This story had me in tears at several points, nothing like laughing so hard you start crying. I very much enjoyed reading about the Herrington sisters finding their loves and the womanly wiles some women employ to get the attention of the man they have their hearts set on.

I liked watching Warwick come to terms with his feelings even though his love is planning to wed another. I liked watching Ditie fight herself and the feelings Warwick inspires in her. While she is determined to be different from her family and be a proper young lady without passion in her life she cannot seem to resist the pull towards the man who broke her young heart.

While the story's main focus is on Ditie and Warwick we also get to see into two of her sister's love lives. It's a happy and heartwarming tale of being yourself and following your heart no matter what society might think. 208 Disclaimer: Received a copy for free from NetGalley

Aphrodite is the family’s black sheep: she is the only member that is level headed, responsible, and carries a whit about polite society. Parents that are constantly displaying affection publicly, a sister who is a mindless flirt, another constantly wearing revealing clothing, and to round it out a mischievous younger brother always playing pranks. She finds herself falling for a rakehell and realizes that maybe she’s not as prim and proper as she believes herself to be, and she might just be more like her family than she ever thought possible.

I honestly really struggled with this novel, while it was lighthearted and humorous, I found myself rolling my eyes more often than not. I expected the characters to act outside of societal norms for the era, there was nothing about the novel that felt like a regency. There was no intelligent, fast paced dialogue and the story oozed sex. Aphrodite’s fertility is a point that is constantly brought up by Frederick and his mother.

The plot was predictable and the characters antics were more grating than charming. I honestly wondered where the chaperones were because they were nonexistent. Terpsichore lives by herself flaunting her body and Athena is notorious for sneaking off to kiss men, and it’s all just accepted. The characters only “mature” after receiving a stern lecture from their parents late in the novel and it was just laughable. Suddenly they care about being proper and making sure their children don’t ruin their reputations? Give me a break.

It is obvious by the end that the author is making commentary on the importance of finding passion over worrying about what is proper. This book felt like a modern romance in a historical setting that just didn’t click with me. I’ll give it points for the writing being clean and for some legitimately funny moments, but I have to say that in the end I felt misled. 208
Jane Myers Perrine

A prim & proper lady verses one of London's scandalous rakes at a house party! Who doesn't love a house party?

Aphrodite Herrington is the prim & proper member, by choice, of the kooky Herrington family, who run free with their passions. She is always pulling one or more family members out of society's fires. Aphrodite just wants to find a man who doesn't make her feel any passion, like Viscount Warwick, & live a quiet life away from her PDA parents, who are having their 14 kid! Mr. Frederick Horne is exactly what she needs, a passion less almost fiancé.

Thomas, Viscount Warwick, is a flirt holic, a scandalous kisser & just wants to have fun. He never wants to fell in love & will only marry when he needs a heir. His father, the Earl of Wharton, is the head of the family & his cousin Frederick Horne is having a house party to have his almost fiancée approved by his mother. Since he wants to look at Lady Aphrodite, he begs his dad to go in his place.

This house party has so may kooky Herrington afoot that Aphrodite knows she will be stopping her older sister's, Terpsichore, dresses from slipping off, her younger sister, Athena, from kissing every footman in her sight & why is her younger brother, Askiepios, dressing as a Italian Count in drag? (Yes, the Herrington are name after Greek Gods) Plus her almost mom-in-law looks like a white toad who smell like she doesn't know what water is & Viscount Warwick is Frederick's cousin. As this house party begins to look like a disaster in the making, Aphrodite is so busy with her putting out her family Oops! that Frederick starts falling for her beautiful sister, watching Mrs. Horne dip her ruffles in her gravy as she makes rude comments about the breeding Herrington family, Aski losing his Italian accent & spending way to much time with Thomas & falling hard! Can Thomas actually see the real Aphrodite thru her family? How many problems will her family cause? Will Aphrodite learn that passion with the right man is beautiful? Why or why is Aphrodite getting worry wrinkles at 20?

This is my first book by Ms. Perrine & she created a hilarious, unique, kooky & laugh a minute family in this Herrington clan. Their names are so sad, mean & entirely too long & their parents need to stop trying to populating England by themselves! Poor Aphrodite has too many siblings & she is the only responsible one that she needed 4 heads to keep up. She is so busy with their problems that she gets over looked & over shadowed. I love my sisters, but if Athena was my sister I would of slapped her upside the head more than once. Thomas hasn't a rake to me, just a man who loved to flirt continuously. When he kisses Aphrodite & then another lady the next night, he broke her heart so bad that she build the ice around her heart, so it's only fair that he defrost it. He melts her icy heart by seeing her family problems & HELPING her with them. Ms. Perrine has many ridiculous situations & sometimes did take it to far, in my humble opinion. Less is more sometimes, but I did enjoy this romance between a tried & over worried Aphrodite & Thomas with his gooey heart of love for her. I give this tale a score of 3 fingers up & 7 toes.

MetGalley ARC given for my honest review. 208 Review originally posted at Ramblings From This Chick
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From what I can tell, The Mad Herringtons is a standalone book from Jane Myers Perrine. I was bored a bit at the beginning of this book, and I didn't connect well with any characters. However, as the story progressed, it got better, until by the end I discovered I really enjoyed it. Also, by the end, I was happily surprised to realize it was a relatively clean historical romance! This is a rarity, and I am excited by it.

Aphrodite Herrington comes from a very large family. She feels like an outsider to her kin, and she is very reserved and responsible while her family is each ruled by their passions. A couple years prior she let her heart start to be ruled by passion, but it failed her. So she is looking for a respectable marriage. She is pleased when Mr. Horne offers her marriage, or well a almost proposal based on a meeting with his mother. She agrees to go to a house party in the country to make Mr. Horne's mother's acquaintance.

Upon hearing of the almost engagement of Aphrodite and his cousin, Mr. Horne, Viscount Thomas Warwick thinks to save her from his outrageous Aunt. Despite his proclamations that he is only there to support his cousin, he cannot stop thinking about Aphrodite and their courtship from before. He just cannot seem to keep himself out of meddling with the potential engagement.

What I really liked about this book was the transformation in all of the characters. There were some side plots for the supporting characters like the other party guests, I like it when people show convincing growth. It makes the romance(s) also more convincing. Again I was happy to find this book didn't need the sexual encounters of so many others within this genre. If I remember correctly there were a couple of desirous imaginings or thoughts, but nothing more than that. Refreshing and a diamond in the rough for readers who have to usually skip those blush inducing scenes.

I am glad that this book got better and better as it progressed. It was a good standalone, but of course I became interested in the Herrington family. It left me wanting more. If that's not a sign of a good book, I don't know what is!

**ARC provided by NetGalley** 208 Such fun!

An amusing romp. I sometimes wondered if had fallen into an Oscar Wilde or Noel Coward play. My heart quite goes out to Aphrodite as she tries to control her more passionate wild sisters and brothers. After all she is the 'sensible' one (and she is reading Sense and Sensibility). Almost engaged and off to a House Party to meet her fiancé's mother, some of her siblings accompany her.
Those names the Herrington children all have! Quite diverting! Greek gods and goddesses and muses. As is the reason why the Marchioness named her offspring thus.
Anyway as we follow some of the Herrington's antics we behold Terpsichore crossed in love, Athena a baggage if ever there was one (sort of Lydia Bennett but obsessed with kissing and practising on footmen and stablehands), and Aphrodite herself determined to be the 'proper' Herrington.
Aski (Asklepios), Aphrodite's brother joins the group masquerading rather terribly as an Italian Conte having come down from Cambridge, Frederick--her almost fiancé seemingly only interested in his mother's well being, Frederick's dreadful malevolent mother, and Thomas, Viscount of Warwick whose kiss Aphrodite has never forgotten, and who steps outside his role of bored ennui into, well, a caring and almost besotted man.
There are some wonderful scenes with Frederick's deplorable mother's focus on the getting of grandchildren and fecundity.
With all the mad 'Goings On', the House Party's performance of A Midsummer Night's Dream fades into sensible along side the antics of the mad and not so mad Herringtons and those assorted house guests.
As Warwick mused when a stray imp of mischief decided him into joining the House Party, 'The addition of those tempestuous personalities and efforts of the proper sister to control them contained the elements of a farce.' So true!
Really a delightful read. I smiled all the way through.

A NetGalley ARC 208