Glamorous Illusions

April 2, 2012
Bergren, award-winning author of nearly 40 books with two million–plus sold, launches readers into a sumptuous world of wealth and world travel with the first in the Grand Tour Series featuring Cora Diehl Kensington. Cora learns she is the illegitimate daughter of Montana copper baron Wallace Kensington, which sets her on a journey of discovery and healing when she joins her half siblings and their wealthy friends on a Grand Tour of Europe. Will McCabe, their guide, worries over the precarious family dynamics and his own developing feelings for Cora, who must face her own demons when her siblings sabotage her every move. The family must come together, however, when danger threatens all of them. Readers will come to love Cora as she struggles over her feelings for Will and the dashing Frenchman Pierre de Richelieu, and they’ll delight in the scenes of England and France in pre-WWI Europe. This is a worthy beginning to the series.

August 1, 2012

Cora Kensington has completed her first year of training as a teacher and returned to Montana in the wake of her father's death, only to learn that her family is about to lose their farm. Then a visitor informs her that she is the illegitimate daughter of a copper tycoon who now wants to get to know his daughter. He sends her on a whirlwind tour of Europe, along with Sir Stuart McCabe and his nephew, William. VERDICT Well-developed characters and a hint of romance make this an enjoyable read, but the abrupt ending disappoints. Still, this is the first book in a trilogy, so readers may eagerly await the next installment. Grave Consequences and Glittering Promises will be released in 2013. Recommend it to fans of Michael R. Phillips.

Copyright 2012 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.