England, 1835, and Beyond the Pale

Nicholas Vail, much to the anger and frustration of his stepmother and three half brothers, is the new seventh earl of Mountjoy. The countess cleverly turned the sixth earl against his first-born son until he was banished at the tender age of five. The former earl left everything he possibly could to his second family, leaving Nicholas with only the title and the crumbling entailed estate of Wyverly Chase in Sussex. Society knows little of Nicholas Vail. He was raised by his grandfather, the fifth earl, until he was twelve and the old earl died. He then disappeared until now, when he's returned to England from Macau, where he spent the last five years. Nicholas is fodder for much gossip and speculation among the ton; most believe he hasn't a half-penny to his name, and surely he's become a heathen. Nicholas has a goal. For years, he's known he must find the woman who first figured in his dreams as a little girl.

Ryder Sherbrooke and his wife Sophia have long cared for orphaned and abandoned children. One of those most dear to them is their ward Rosalind, whom they are presenting to London Society. Ryder first found her on the docks, alone and beaten almost to death. She appeared to be about eight, could tell nothing of her past; in fact, she didn't speak at all for six months. She first broke her silence by singing a short song of four lines. When she finally spoke, it was in aristocratic English and Italian. She still can recall nothing from before Ryder found her, but goes by the romantic name she chose herself, Rosalind de La Fontaine.

Rosalind is attending a ball when Nicholas finds her. From this moment, Nicholas and Rosalind are caught up in a world of dreams, magic, and debts owed, all at the same time they must deal with Nicholas's family, both the quick and the dead. Wyverly Chase is haunted by a ditty-singing ghost. Most think it is Nicholas's grandfather; but could it be the ancestor from Nicholas's other dreams? The Elizabethan ship's captain who became the first earl and incurred the debt Nicholas must pay?

WIZARD'S DAUGHTER could be divided into two or three parts. It begins as an entertaining romance set in early Victorian London such as Ms. Coulter does so well, a worthy continuation of her Sherbrooke family series. The romance develops rapidly and with great passion and only a hint of the supernatural, but then it moves to Wyverly Chase and a into a transitional time that eventually leads to an elaborate fantasy world of magical beasts, evil witches and wizards. Not all the wizards are evil, however...

Not so minor characters of note in the London part of the book are Mr. and Mrs. Sherbrooke as noted above; their son Grayson, who is like a much loved brother to Rosalind; and Douglas and Alexandra Sherbrooke, the Earl and Countess of Northcliffe. Coulter fans will welcome meeting them again.

If it is the role of wizards to obfuscate, they play it to the hilt in WIZARD'S DAUGHTER. We are only gradually allowed to see Rosalind's role in the whole affair, just as she is allowed to decipher only parts of the writings in old journals. All comes clear in the end, however, and it's a fun ride getting there.

Ms. Coulter's name on a book cover guarantees a splendid time will be had. WIZARD'S DAUGHTER is no exception, though some may find the "real" world comes more alive than the fantastical one.

Jane Bowers