More fun than the last few, brought me back to the first one :) ( )

3.5*

I missed having the sections involving Eloise but otherwise this entry in the Pink Carnation series was most diverting. And it was fun having Jane Austen peripherally involved :) ( )

Very cute. It didn't switch back and forth from past to present like the other books in her series but it made for an interesting change. I also love that we finally get to see Turnip as someone other than the dopey guy in the background. ( )

A cozy mystery with a number of different plot twists that keep the reader entertained while only giving a brief glance to the reality of the life of a poor girl in early 1800's England.

Again, I was entertained by the events of this book, by the imagination and the ways in which it fit into what is obviously a larger corpus of the Pink Carnation series.

But given a proper editor's pen, how many times does the word "deuced" need to be on a page when thought by a male character? And why does the word "canoodling" even show up on these pages? These overuses and anachronisms really jarred me out of a space of enjoyment and brought my review down to two stars.

Ms. Arabella certainly has few options in her life, as she has spent 12 years as a companion to her elderly aunt, and being a teacher in a girl's seminary is probably her best lot. She can at least bring two of her sisters in to receive an education, since their ailing father has so little to give them. Enter one of her students, Sally, who is brother to the ongoing character Turnip, a few Christmas puddings, an ice castle, and young ladies who need a bit of adventure in their lives, and you have another installment in the series of the Pink Carnation. It is relatively rollicking good fun, and a nice book to read quickly during the Christmas season; just could have used some more editing. ( )

This seventh book in the Pink Carnation series was a wild Christmas romp featuring puddings with hidden messages. Arabella Dempsey is in Bath looking for a position at a girl's school. After spending a number of years as companion to her aunt, her aunt has married a much younger man who had also raised Arabella's expectations but decided to go where the money was now. This leaves Arabella at loose ends since her expectations of an inheritance from her aunt will no longer happen.

Almost the first person Arabella meets in Bath is Reginald "Turnip" Fitzhugh who literally sweeps her off her feet. But, being a gentleman, he quickly helps her back up. Turnip's sister is a student at the school where Arabella is now a junior mistress. Also at the school is Lizzy Reid whose brother we met in THE BETRAYAL OF THE BLOOD LILY.

Unlikely as it seems, French spies are also in the picture searching for a list of Crown agents that the father of one of the other students lost at the school. Arabella and Turnip are quickly drawn in on a hunt for spies.

Lots of characters from earlier books in the series make appearances in this one and Turnip, who has been a comedic side character in earlier books, finally gets a chance to show his true heroic self. The dialog in this one was often quite witty. The whole story had a lot of humor but also a very sweet romance.

The only thing I missed from this episode of the Pink Carnation series was a plot featuring Colin and Eloise in the present. ( )