Month: January 2020

The Forgotten Duke by Sophie Barnes

On By BarbaraIn Barb's Reviews, Regency Era (1811-1820)4 Comments

The Forgotten DukeBarbara’s Rating – 5 of 5 Stars
Series: Diamonds in the Rough #5
Publication Date: 1/28/20
Number of Pages: 311

We met Carlton Guthrie, The Scoundrel of St. Giles, in the earlier books of the series and developed a love/hate relationship with him. Was he saint or sinner? Now, we get to meet the real man and we can decide for ourselves. There was a lot going on in this book and while I was left with questions about some things, none of them really had to do with the HEA, the mystery, or its resolution. You don’t have to have read the earlier books in the series to enjoy this one, but it is a great series and I can’t imagine why you’d want to miss out on those books – besides – you’ll get a better feel for Guthrie because he’s threaded throughout the series.

Carlton has many secrets and I’ll not share all of them with you – but – I mean – you did read the title of the book. Carlton’s one deep abiding goal for the last twenty years has been to punish (meaning causing the death of) Charles Berkly, Earl of Hedgewick. The Earl is a wily fellow and has managed to guard himself well during that time – and Carlton has only had a couple of instances where he might exact his revenge. Sadly, none of those came to fruition. Then, the perfect revenge presents herself to him – almost on a silver platter. Who is he to say no to such a providential gift?

Lady Regina Berkly has always been a biddable, dutiful daughter. She diligently studied the pianoforte though she disliked it, she learned to embroider, to manage a household, to speak correctly, to dance without flaw, all of those things at which her parents said she should excel. She knew it was her duty to marry and to marry well for the betterment of her family. She was fine with all of that. At least she was fine with it until her father returned one day and announced she was going to marry the Marquess of Stokes the following morning at eight AM. She was aghast! She had never even met this person and she was expected to marry him. Her father would not be dissuaded, but did tell her that the groom and his family would be coming over that evening for them to meet. Surprise, shock, dismay – all of those and many more words could be used to describe her feelings upon meeting the potential groom. He didn’t want this any more than she did – and he was still a child. She liked him and he would be a good man someday, but not the man for her. When she told Stokes that she’d get them out of the arrangement, he was grateful to her.

Regina spent most of that night thinking and thinking, but she couldn’t think of any way out – except to just leave – and that is what she did. Just before dawn she snuck out the door and began running – and running – until she was totally lost and not in the best part of town. She ran right into a wall – well – a man who seemed like a wall. He steadied her and she told him who she was and that she was running away. Then, she went on her way – only to run into dire trouble. Again, the man showed up to rescue her. He offered her sanctuary until she could decide where she wanted to go and then he’d help her. Reluctantly, she accepted his offer to stay at The Black Swan in his accommodations – as long as he didn’t make any demands of her. Admirably, he didn’t – the tension was there on both sides – but he didn’t.

“Who would have thought that she, the dutiful daughter of an earl, would be entertaining a bawd in a crime lord’s parlor?”

Lots of things happen – from kidnappings to betrayals – and Guthrie and Regina manage to become closer and closer through it all. Each knows that they love the other, but neither feels free to actually use the words. Then, when Regina is discovered and Guthrie’s deceit is revealed, Regina is devastated. Regina refuses to believe that her father has done what Guthrie says – but – she truly believes that Guthrie is honorable – so there must be another explanation. Can their relationship survive Guthrie’s deceit? Is her father guilty? If he is, can she keep Guthrie from exacting his revenge? Read the book to find out – you’ll love it.

This was a well-written book and a very enjoyable story with characters that I came to really like as I got to know them. I could feel Regina’s determination to take control of her own life and I could sympathize with Guthrie’s need for revenge. They were truly a very well-matched pair. It was a busy story that kept me engrossed from the first page to the last. It also nicely set up the next story featuring Ida Strong and Fielding (from  A Most Unlikely Duke). I assume Fielding will redeem himself in that book.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

One Night with a Scoundrel by Shelly Thacker

On By TracyIn Georgian Era (1714-1837), Tracy's Reviews1 Comment

One Night with a Scoundrel (Escape with a Scoundrel Series Book 3)One Night with a Scoundrel by Shelly Thacker

Tracy’s rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: Escape with a Scoundrel #3

Release Date: January 21, 2020

This installment of the Escape with a Scoundrel series was originally a 1993 release titled “Silver and Sapphires” and was part of the D’Avenant Brothers Series – So, if you read if the aforementioned title – prepare to be shocked and awed! This is a completely revised and revamped edition and while the story is basically the same, the characters have completely changed (for the better).

Ashiana de Canto e Calda is the adopted daughter of the Maharaja of the Ajmir Clan. Her English mother died when she was a baby and her Portuguese father was slain before her by English pirates seeking the Nine Sapphires of Kashmir. Ashiana has been raised as a Ajmir Princess and is betrothed to the Maharaja’s son Rao. She has a deep and abiding hatred for the English and longs to fit in with the Ajmir clan. So when her adopted father tells her the truth of the Sapphires and asks for her help retrieving the stolen gem she agrees without a moment of hesitation.

Lord Saxon D’Avenant’s late father was a scoundrel, the Duke of Silverton, stole a sacred sapphire from the clan of Ajmir and brought a curse down on the family. Saxon was the duke’s the second son and was charged with breaking the curse that killed his father and threatens the life of his youngest brother. He must reunite the stolen gem with the other eight stones and he has spent the last ten years of his life trying to do just that and it has cost him much. His latest attempt nearly killed him and gave his enemy, the Earl of Greyslake the opportunity to destroy him – by killing the woman Saxon married. When Saxon’s brother Julian finds him, Saxon is on the brink of losing himself. Julian refuses to let him give up and tells him of a way to finally break the curse. They will attend an event that the Maharaja will be at and hopefully learn where the sapphires are hidden. But it is not the Maharaja who attends the gathering – it is a harem girl. Saxon is horrified to find himself attracted to the girl, he tries to ignore the awareness between them and when his host gives him the girl as a gift, he wants to refuse, but Julian convinces him to accept and to see what he can learn from the girl.

Ashiana is also stunned by the attraction she feels towards the Englishman and when she meets with him later, she almost falls under his seductive spell and forgets her mission. She is tempted by him, but recalls her hatred and drugs him, steals the sapphire he wears in a pouch around his neck, but she can’t kill him or leave him to die. She ensures his safety and takes her leave – planning to meet with a clansman to take her away. But before she make her escape, she is caught by Julian, she lies and says Saxon told her to collect her belongings and he would take her with him when he leaves. Julian believes her and insists on taking her to Saxon’s ship – much to her dismay!

To say that Saxon was less than pleased to be reunited with Ashiana would be a huge understatement. But he knows she is the key to breaking the curse and vows to learn her secrets, find the sapphires and fulfill his duty to his family. And Ashiana is equally determined to outwit Saxon and stop him from finding the sapphires, no matter what the cost.

This was truly an epic tale, it is well written and it flows wonderfully but it did have a very strong late-80’s bodice ripper vibe (albeit a toned down version). I enjoyed this story, it is not your typical Georgian romance, this story is filled with action, adventure, deception, secrets, more lies, steamy love scenes, shipwrecks, abductions, sacrifice, betrayal, heartache, wonderful characters, priceless gems, a tiger and a very hard-won HEA. I must mention that despite the author’s effort to rewrite this story to appeal to a more modern audience and for the most part being successful – there is one sex scene in the book that might be offensive to sensitive readers – it is not rape or even “forced seduction” – but it might be upsetting nonetheless. I, personally, was not offended and although it did not endear me to Saxon, it did not ruin the story for me. This is the third book in the series, but the books are not connected and can be read as stand-alone titles. I liked this book and would be happy to recommend it with the notation that there is a scene that might upset more sensitive readers.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that was provided to me.*