If you are familiar with Jane's Austen's novel, PERSUASION, this book is pretty much a romance-novel-version of that same basic plot. The hero comes back from sea, seven years after being rejected by the heroine (exactly as in PERSUASION) because she put her family's needs before their engagement. (The heroine's father also brought pressure to bear because he didn't want her marrying a poor sailor.) The hero is now a war hero and has inherited money. He's bitter and angry with the heroine, at first, and says she's sadly aged (which she overhears the hero say, exactly as the heroine in PERSUASION does). It's true, the heroine is worn down with caring for her selfish sister's children. But a kindly friend takes the heroine under her wing & helps her become less of a doormat. A subplot involving spies is neatly woven into the hero/heroine's re-igniting love affair and helps propel it toward a resolution. No sex scenes, just kisses. It's an OK read.

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