As Compromising Miss Tisdale is Jessica Jefferson’s only entry on Amazon, I am guessing she is a new author just getting started. Congratulations to her on an excellent first novel. Her website lists three upcoming publications which will feature the eponymous Miss Tisdale’s sisters. They are introduced in this first effort and sound like they will be fun.
The novel starts well with Ambrosia Tisdale beginning her fourth season in/on the market for a husband. There is nothing wrong with her other than a desire to marry someone who will please her family and, this is the hitch, for love. It’s a tall order. Duncan, Lord Bristol, is one of those younger sons who have found himself possessed of a title when his brother unexpectedly shuffled off this mortal coil. Duncan has just returned from a family imposed exile when the story opens. Ambrosia is instantly drawn to him even though she thinks he is all wrong for her. Duncan is attracted to Ambrosia, but also needs her excellent reputation and sizable dowry to help restore his family’s reputation and coffers. Duncan decides it would be most efficient to simply compromise Ambrosia. It’s dueling tropes with the reformation of a rake versus a marriage of convenience. They have great chemistry and make sense as a couple.
Compromising Miss Tisdale is a promising debut and overall the writing is very good and creates the appropriate historical illusion; unfortunately, it gets interrupted by distracting word choices, grammatical issues, and editing errors. I would like to offer Ms. Jefferson some advice: You need to either fire your current editor and/or hire one. If you are self-publishing, I imagine there comes a point when you can’t look at your manuscript for one more second. Find someone knowledgeable and honest who can review your work for you. Your novels will be the better for it.
I have some notes:
Mrs. Julien Presents 