Oh thank you, Goodreads! I've found another favorite author! One of the recommendation lists lead me to Eloise James and to this book... I so loved that this wasn't the *usual* formulaic romance book. Don't get me wrong - lots of wonderful reads follow that formula. But I kept waiting for The Big Misunderstanding to happen... and was sure that it was coming with Tessa's determination to repair Lucius' parents. Oh, how wonderful to be wrong!!!It was delightful to have a strong story centered around 4 sisters... and yes, I see where Ms. James received inspiration from Little Women. Tessa is easily Meg. Annabel is Amy, without a doubt. Josie is Jo. And Imogen... she's not quite Beth, but then again, she might be a less shy, more romantic Beth. I so understand Tessa, being the eldest sister in my own family. The family relationships rang true to me - the sisters' characters didn't change, simply because romance was introduced.And the men weren't shabby, either. I'm hoping that we learn much more about the men we were introduced to in later books, especially the girls' guardian. Lucius was a delight. He could easily have become a caricature of the romance hero -- a dark, mysterious rake. But he seemed genuine to me, and changed in ways that, again, seemed in character for him.I can't wait to read more about these lovely sisters!BTW, if you're into lots of steam, this isn't your book. It's done quite tastefully with lots left to the imagination. And funny enough (both humorous and ironic to me) is that the 2 of the "steamy" scenes occur in a Roman ruin, in the bath or steam room!
