For those of you who have fond memories of Kasey Michaels’s traditional Regencies (and, LLB, this is for you), you have a real treat in store. In The Butler Did It, Ms. Michaels combines her delightfully over-the-top style and her finely honed sense of the absurd to deliver a fun and frolicsome Regency romp.

Admittedly, some of these characters are familiar. The wily granny who despises Regency era nambie-pambies; the nincompoop mother; the wise-beyond-her-years beautiful young heroine who serves as the sole breath of sanity in her screwball family; and, of course, the rich, handsome, stalwart hero who soon finds himself succumbing to the erstwhile charms of the heroine (and her family). Frankly, the fact that I’ve met these characters a time or two before matters naught when there is so very much fun to be had in Ms. Michaels’s skillful hands.

Morgan Drummond, Marquis of Westham, has a temper – a very, very bad, temper. Goaded into a duel with his best friend five years earlier, Morgan has spent five long years in self-imposed exile at his country estate castigating himself and keeping a firm lid on his explosive tendencies. Not surprisingly, however, Morgan eventually realizes that he can no longer put off the task facing every gentleman possessing a title and estate: He needs an heir.

So, with his annoying valet in tow (Morgan hired the incredibly irritating man to continually test his temper), the Marquis arrives at his sumptuous London home without notifying his servants of his pending arrival. Being the reasonable and understanding fellow that he is, Morgan expects to find the furniture in Holland covers – what he doesn’t expect to find is the Clifford family comfortably ensconced in his family home.

It seems that idle hands – specifically, those of Thornley, Morgan’s London butler – really are the devil’s workshop because, totally unbeknownst to his employer, Thornley has been running the unoccupied mansion as a sort of high class B & B. Anyone – and that means virtually anyone – willing to pay the price gets to stay for the season as a “guest” of the absent Marquis.

Unlike the rest of her lunatic family, Emma Clifford is a pragmatist. And, practical young woman that she is, she knows that using her beauty to ensnare a wealthy husband is the best – really the only – hope for her family’s future. So, when the toffey-nosed Marquis uncovers the ruse and demands the immediate eviction of his “guests,” Emma doesn’t hesitate to take him on. But, even though sparks fly between the two, it’s granny who succeeds in securing permission for the family to stay. It seems that things really were a lot livelier back in granny’s Georgian days and she’s perfectly willing to use her oh-so-sharp memories of that time to blackmail the Marquis and a veritable host of aging London swells.

“Madcap” and “romp” are two words that most neatly summarize what you’ll find here. Ms. Michaels’s dialogue is nothing short of hysterical and her characters – especially Emma and Morgan – are wonderful. It’s a great deal of fun to follow the verbal duels of the two wary adversaries, while also checking in on the deeds of granny and her icky partner in crime – literally, I might add. And, even though the author does take the love scenes a bit beyond that usually found in traditional Regencies, The Butler Did It It feels very much like a trad – and most especially like the books written by this author a few years ago. (Books I love, I might add.)

It’s also a testament to the author’s skills that despite the frenetic pace and the absurd goings-on, Morgan and Emma are anything but cartoon-ish. Both are real people – funny real people, to be sure – and following their path to love is a delight.

To be honest, Kasey Michaels is an author I very much enjoy no matter what she chooses to write. But, despite my affection for her wonderful contemporaries and her sly Maggie books, I’ll admit to a special fondness for her Regency-era stories. The author’s 19th century London is always a wonderful place to visit and The Butler Did It is certainly no exception. (And, LLB, this is one you won’t want to miss.)