THE VANISHING VISCOUNTESS is Diane Gaston’s ninth book in the romance genre. The Rita Award winning author had always had a special affinity for tragic love stories and while in her youth her dolls acted out the stories, in her adult years she decided to put pen to paper. It was an exposure to Regency romance that would set her on course for a successful career in romance writing – but not until she managed to become a mental health therapist and also raise a family. Regency fans will know her most likely as Diane Perkins, a nom de plume she quickly discarded in favor of being more accessible to her readers.

THE VANISHING VISCOUNTESS showcases a chance meeting of Adam Vickery, Marquess of Tannerton and Marlena Parronley, the infamous Vanishing Viscountess who was accused by her scheming cousin of murdering her husband. As the meeting becomes a fight for survival in the ocean, the two will stick together but before long Marlena knows that staying with Adam will put him at risk of the gallows for being an accessory. Keeping him in the dark about her true identity she almost succeeds in letting go of him, until in one wrong turn everything changes and her secret is revealed.

THE VANISHING VISCOUNTESS is a well written story that has all the elements of an exciting and romantic adventure. Danger, double crosses, and readily bought and sold justice to the upper class is paired with the crime and conniving born in the lower classes by those who do not have the money to buy themselves the life they want. Diane Gaston is without a doubt one of the greats of the genre.