Month: June 2019

To Resist a Scandalous Rogue by Liana De la Rosa

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To Resist a Scandalous RogueTo Resist a Scandalous Rogue by Liana De la Rosa
Tracy’s rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: Once Upon A Scandal, #2

Release Date: June 24, 2019

Charlotte Townsend was left destitute after her husband Roderick died and she learned that his will did not make any provisions for her, penniless and alone in India, she sells her wedding ring and travels back to England. When a chance encounter with her cousin Eliza offers employment, Charlotte willingly accepts, until she finds out the job is not what she expected. She refuses and goes into the garden to think. While she is sitting there, a guest from the party joins her, they talk and share a drink, one thing leads to another and soon they are sharing much more…

Finlay, Viscount Firthwell and heir to Earl of Rockhaven is attending the party hoping to forget the devastating news he and his twin sister have recently learned about their father. Instead he finds he has no desire to lose himself in debauchery and heads out to the garden, where he meets Charlotte, she is nothing like any of the women he has known before and after a passionate night together, he wants more, but when he wakes and realizes she is gone, he decides to return to the country and get his estate in order, then figure out how to make a name for himself that isn’t dependent on his father’s title.

A year passes before they meet again, she is teaching at the foundling school and he has returned to London to gain support for his run for the House of Commons. He is delighted to see her again and even though he knows she is not for him, he can’t seem to stay away. Charlotte finally has some security in her life, but ghosts from her past still haunt her and could destroy Finlay’s hopes for a seat in the House of Commons. She tries to keep him at arm’s length, but finally gives in to the passion that never died.

When her past threatens not only her future, but those of the people she holds dear, Charlotte must decide if she can betray the man she loves to save him or will she sacrifice herself instead?

This was a very well written, emotionally charged story touching on several issues of the era, including politics, religion and women’s rights, but while those issues are prominent in the story, they never overwhelm the romance between Charlotte and Finlay. The book has wonderful secondary characters, a couple of twists and turns, steamy-ish love scenes, a little suspense and a beautiful epilogue. This is the second book in the series, but it could easily be read as a stand-alone title, but if you want to know more about Finlay’s secret, I would recommend reading that book first.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that was provided to me by NetGalley and the publisher.*

Say No to the Duke by Eloisa James

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Say No to the Duke (The Wildes of Lindow Castle, #4)Say No to the Duke by Eloisa James
Tracy’s rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: The Wildes of Lindow Castle, #4

Release Date: June 25, 2019

Lady Boadicea “Betsy” Wilde wanted a best friend more than anything, she wished for a chance to find another girl to talk to and finally her wish was granted when she was allowed to attend boarding school – she soon learns, be careful what you wish for… Her first day she is confronted with a nasty girl who tells her that her mother was a whore and that Betsy has surely inherited her mother’s wanton ways and that no decent man will want to marry her. Betsy swears that she will have more proposals than any other girl in the school…

3 years and 18 proposals later at her brother North’s wedding ball, Betsy is expecting a proposal from Thaddaeus Erskine Shaw, Viscount Greywick and heir to the Duke of Eversley. At her Aunt Knowes urging, she shows him the billiards room and graciously turns down his proposal, when he asks why, her brother’s best friend Lord Jeremy Rodan speaks up and tells her she really should marry him. Betsy is annoyed, Jeremy has been at the castle for months, she knows something happened to him, but not exactly what. She leaves the room with Thaddaeus, thinking maybe she should marry him. But deep down, Betsy worries that she will be like her mother, who ran off with her lover and left the Duke and her children. She has worked hard to portray herself as a perfect lady and isn’t sure she should marry at all.

Later she returns to the billiards room and finds the room empty, but Jeremy arrives not long after she does. They talk and she finally taunts him into playing a game with her, he will but only if they have a wager – if he wins, she will spend the night with him, if she wins, he will find her men’s clothes and take her on an adventure – maybe to a men’s club to play billiards. He agrees – She wins. He won’t take her to London, but if she can provide a chaperone, he will take her to an auction house dressed as a man. Deal!

Jeremy has spent the last two years under a blanket of guilt and shame, but now he feels alive for the first time in a really long time and Betsy is the reason, so he decides to spend more time with her. What could possibly go wrong?

This was a delightful story with a lot of witty banter, wonderful secondary characters, a hero and heroine with insecurities, healing, steamy love scenes, sneaky relatives, a few twists and turns to keep you guessing and finally a very sweet HEA, complete with an epilogue. Overall, this was a great story and I am happy to recommend it!

*I am voluntarily leaving a review of an uncorrected eARC that was provided to me by Edelweiss and the publisher.*