Lady Jane’s Nemesis begins with a somewhat shocking scene – particularly for a Regency Romance. The heroine is out gathering flowers when she catches the hero, who is her fiancé, in a compromising position with another woman. The couple goes on to marry anyway, and the book explores issues like forgiveness and trust. The end result is both thought-provoking and intriguing, but the relationship between the hero and heroine sometimes recedes into the background.

Lady Jane Sinclair has had an “understanding” with Roger Summers for years; when they were children their fathers decided that they should marry. But now Jane is twenty-five, and although she has always secretly been in love with Roger she is tired of waiting for him to formally propose. When she catches Roger inflagrante delicto with a married woman, she decides to ask her father for a season in London so she can find a more admirable suitor.

That same day, Rogers father tells him that he has a huge gaming debt, so Roger must marry Jane immediately or risk losing the family estate. Roger had fancied himself in love with his mistress, and had gotten her with child, but family duty compels him to do as his father requests. Jane initially turns Roger down flat; she has no desire to be the laughing stock of the neighborhood while Roger pursues his paramours. Although she finds it very embarrassing to be blunt, she tells Roger precisely why she will not marry him. Surprisingly, Roger agrees to end his relationship with his lover and remain faithful to Jane in the future. Jane’s love for Roger helps overcome her doubts about him, so she agrees to the marriage.

Once Roger and Jane are wed, Jane quickly comes to enjoy the physical side of their marriage, and she enjoys Roger’s companionship as well. Roger also finds himself pleasantly surprised with married life, and he begins to fall in love with his wife. But their are complications involving his past relationship and the child he has fathered. Jane and Roger must overcome their difficulties together while they face the consequences of Roger’s indiscretion.

I had my doubts about whether I’d come to like Roger. The reader’s first glimpse of him shows him in the arms of another woman – whom he professes to love. His initial reluctance to marry the heroine is also less than impressive. However, once he promises Jane that he will remain faithful, he is determined to keep his promise, and it’s nice to see him fall in love with her. By the end of the book he really does seem an admirable man.

Some readers might find this worth reading for the conflict alone. So many conflicts are rooted in misunderstanding; it would have been more common for the heroine to only think that the hero had dallied with another woman. Oliver creates a hero who is actually guilty of the offense, albeit before he marries the heroine. The book focuses on Jane’s forgiveness of Roger, and Roger’s personal redemption. Roger and Jane also suffer the consequences of his mistake, which causes some messy problems that are not easily resolved. While I came to like both Roger and Jane, I felt that their relationship could have been more emphasized, especially at the end when it seems to take a backseat to other events. Jane was a very sympathetic character right from the start. She had a straightforward manner that was endearing, and her passion for the local flora added interest as well. Roger was a nice guy, but there was a secondary character who had a tendre for Jane, and I couldn’t help liking him just a little bit more. Some more groveling on Roger’s part might have helped here – after all, Jane was practically a saint.

If you have enjoyed Ms. Oliver’s books in the past, you might find this one worth a look, mostly for the interesting conflict. And if the aforementioned secondary character (his name is Stephen) gets a book of his own, I would definitely be interested in reading it. But this is not exactly the best Regency out there. For a better read by Oliver I would recommend Roses for Harriet.