ONCE UPON A KISS (The Book Club Belles Society) by Jayne Fresina

Miss Justina Penny and her menagerie of odd females make up the Book Club Belles Society, who are reading Jane Austen and pining away for Mr. Darcy. Justina, also known as Jussy and her sister are not women of means, but their parents would like for nothing better than to see them married, but with Justina's tendency to always get into trouble, her parents only hope is her sister.

Darius Wainwright flees London at the mention of an impending visit by his meddling step-sister. He goes to his deceased uncle's estate to see to settling affairs there, but once he comes into contact with the simply irritating Justina, this man who had no intentions of settling down is suddenly seeing illusions of grandeur, especially after stealing a kiss from Jussy.

At first Justina sees Darius as an overbearing oaf, but little things he does begin to prove her initial estimation of the gentleman wrong. In addition, her parents only see Mr. Wainwright with their sweet, biddable and prettier daughter, not with Jussy. There are just so many obstacles for this pair to overcome that it's a wonder that this pair can get in as much kissing time as demonstrated.

Normally I dislike stories told in the first person. They truly bother me to no end and I inevitably end up giving up on them unless they are extraordinary. I almost did toss this one aside, but I stuck it out and was pleasantly surprised with the outcome. I did enjoy this story very much. ONCE UPON A KISS by Jayne Fresina was engaging and entertaining, witty and fresh. As unconventional as Justina is, Darius is that stodgy at first, and watching their evolution to an interesting couple is quite a ride. I would most definitely venture once again into the land of The Book Club Belles Society.

~KIMBERLY~