Lydia Joyce The Veil of Night

The Veil of Night

Lydia Joyce

Signet, Apr 2005, $6.99, 320 pp.

In 1864 Duke Byron Stratford hides in the darkness of his estate Raeburn Court. The recluse seeks vengeance from Jack Gifford for stealing the woman he planned to marry and has succeeded by buying up the man's markers. Jack's sister Lady Victoria Wakefield, a renowned spinster, asks the duke not to embarrass her family or destroy Jack. Byron responds by inviting her to spend time at his estate. To his shock she agrees.

At Raeburn, Byron offers Victoria a deal in which he will call off the debt if she spends a week at his beck and call and have relations with him. She surprises him again by acquiescing to his demands. However, she is much more than a prim and proper spinster as Byron soon learns. They begin to fall in love, but he lives in the shadows of the night and she prefers horse back riding on a sunny day making a permanent relationship impossible.

THE VEIL OF NIGHT is an intriguing Victorian romance that in many ways reads like a well written gothic. The storyline grips the audience who want to know why Byron hides in the shadows (his coach sounds eerie). Victoria in certain ways is typical of the aristocratic female circa 1864, but much of her outlook was shaped by a common cold years ago. A better explanation is needed for how Byron was apparently part of the London glitter and then suddenly becomes a recluse hiding in the shadows (though the present is cleverly explained). Fans will appreciate this fine Victorian romance starring two interesting protagonists.

Harriet Klausner