"Wyrd and Wonderful Time Travel"
GRAND DESIGN by Karen Fox is the third of five
novels in
the Hope Chest series written by members of the Wyrd
Sisters critique group. The tales revolve around the
fire-damaged Chesterfield Hotel, which little over a
century ago
had offered every luxury to it's well to do clientele as
well as nearby healing hot springs. Five people will
unearth the contents of a hope chest left behind by a
certain mysterious Miss Sparrow. One item will have meaning
to each, whirling them back to yesteryear and if all goes
well, true love. Cynda Madison has been charged with restoring old paintings
for the Hope Springs Historical Society. She is a fine
artist in her own right but so far it hasn't paid the
bills. She is intrigued by the handsome visage she has
begun to uncover in her latest project. She soon discovers
that the man portrayed had been none other than young
prince Dimitri Karakov who had been tragically killed at
the Chesterfield in 1889, shortly after the portrait was
painted. Though the prince had been dead for over a
century, Cynda feels a strange connection to him. While
researching the cause of his death, she discovers the
painting's battered name plate at the bottom of an old hope
chest stored in the derelict hotel. Moments later she finds herself in a transformed
Chesterfield, an 1889 Chesterfield to be exact. She is
greeted by Miss Sparrow herself and is hired on as a
waitress. She finds herself assigned to the party which
includes the handsome and arrogant young prince who is
still very much alive and soon to be crowned king. Cynda
believes she must find a way to prevent Dimtri's death in
order to return to her own time. Dimitri and his younger brother, Alexi had both agreed to
accompany their ailing grandmother to the elegant resort so
that she could avail herself of the healing waters of the
hot springs. Both of the royal brothers had been subject to
myriad matchmaking attempts. While Alexi had been enjoying
the attention, Dimtri, who had been betrothed from
childhood, had found the whole ordeal tedious. His
brother's latest flirtation with the pretty new waitress
was completely unacceptable. A servant was not a suitable
companion for a man of royal blood. So why was he
experiencing these pangs of jealousy as he watched them
laugh together? Dimitri had scoffed at Cynda's assertions that his life is
in danger. She in turn had ignored his warnings to stay
away from Alexi. She was determined to discern his loyalty
to his brother. Dimitri had hoped that reporting her
advances to the hotel management would result in her
obedience to his will. Instead it costs Cynda her job. She
is now frantic because an unfortunate accident involving
his grandmother had forced Dimitri to stay longer than
originally planned. This would insure that he would still
be at the Chesterfield on the day he she knew he would be
murdered. Feeling somewhat guilty about her dismissal, Dimitri
relents and commissions Cynda to paint his official
portrait. Proximity works its magic. Before long the noble
Dimitri is willing to cast honor aside to be with the
feisty woman he has come to adore. Cynda does not want to
be responsible for his dishonor, but as the fatal day
approaches she finds that she will agree to anything to get
him away from the hotel and thwart fate. Will she succeed?
Will Cynda return to the future with a broken heart? Who
wants the prince dead? What is Miss Sparrow's Grand Design? This book, a Cinderella in reverse, has a little of
everything, time travel, mystery, and wonderful character
development. I thoroughly enjoyed Dimitri's metamorphoses
from an arrogant, royal snob, to a man who could use his
hands and heed his heart. Though characters from the other
stories appear from time to time the book stands alone
quite well, but I look forward to acquiring the other four
stories. Copyright © 2001
Reviewed by Leslie Tramposch
Posted July 19, 2001
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