Tag: Lorraine Heath

Scoundrel of My Heart by Lorraine Heath

On By TracyIn Top Pick - Highly Recommended, Tracy's Reviews, Victorian Era (1837-1901)3 Comments

Scoundrel of My Heart (Once Upon a Dukedom, #1)Scoundrel of My Heart by Lorraine Heath

Tracy’s rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Series: Once Upon a Dukedom, #1

Release Date: March 30, 2021

Due to stipulations in her grandmother’s will, Lady Kathryn Lambert, the only child of the Earl and Countess of Ridgeway, Kathryn will have to forfeit ownership of Windswept Cottage – her favorite place in the world – if she does not marry a titled gentleman before her 25th birthday. So no matter how interesting she finds her best friend’s brother – as the second son, Lord Griffith Stanwick is not a viable candidate. But the Duke of Kingsland certainly is and he has made it known that he is in the market for a duchess. The duke is a busy man and doesn’t have time to find bridal prospects, so he places an advert in the papers telling the eligible ladies of society to write to him outlining their qualifications and he will choose one to court with the intention of marriage the following season. Kathryn’s friend Lady Althea who is already engaged suggests that she write to the duke after Kathryn states that she would not consider marriage to a man without a title.

Griffith has long been smitten with Kathryn, but after overhearing she would only marry a man with a title – has given up hope of capturing her heart. When she asks for his help in learning what the Duke is looking for in a bride – Griffith goes a step further and writes to the duke on her behalf. The night of the ball where Kingsland is going to announce his choice – Kathryn and Griffith share a kiss – a kiss that makes Kathryn wonder if a cottage is worth giving up on love. But when she is chosen, good manners require her to accept the “honor”, she is shocked because she didn’t write to the duke, but learns that Griffith did! The next day she goes looking for answers and is instead shocked to learn the Griffith and Althea’s father has been arrested for treason and Griffith and his elder brother Marcus have been taken in for questioning too. Shortly thereafter, their father is convicted and hanged, they are stripped of their titles and possessions and Kathryn is forbidden to associate with Althea. Not long after, their mother dies and the siblings disappear.

A year later, things change – Althea, who was jilted by her betrothed, is now married to the Earl of Tewksbury, Kathryn is being courted by the Duke and Griffith has opened the Fair and Spare club he had hoped to form before his world fell apart. When Kathryn learns of the club – she sets out to get answers and discovers the passion between them is just as bright as it was a year ago and just as forbidden.

But as they spend time together, Kathryn begins to fall more in love with Griffith and questions whether the cottage is worth a lifetime without love and Griffith is determined to see her dream of owning the cottage realized – he doesn’t feel worthy of her and loves her enough to want her to get her heart’s desire – which he believes is the cottage. Can she make him see that he is what she truly wants or will he refuse to believe it and continue to push her toward Kingsland?

What a great book, it is a well-written, nicely flowing story with wonderful characters, steamyish love scenes, a bit of intrigue, Trewlove cameos, a hero who loves selflessly, and a heroine who will not settle for less than her heart’s desire. It may seem as if there is not a lot of external conflicts and nothing other than the hero keeping our lovers apart, but even still, their road to HEA will not be without bumps and obstacles. I loved this book and highly recommend it to historical romance lovers. This is the first book in a new series, but if you read the previous series – Sins for All Seasons – you will see many familiar faces and get answers to questions you might have had at the end of that series.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher. All opinions in this review are my own. *

Beauty Tempts The Beast by Lorraine Heath

On By BarbaraIn Barb's Reviews, Victorian Era (1837-1901)5 Comments

Beauty Tempts the Beast (Sins for All Seasons, #6)Barb’s rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: Sins for All Seasons #6
Publication Date: 9/29/20
Number of Pages: 384

It is poignant and bittersweet to bid farewell to the Trewlove clan in this, the final book in the series. This world needs more Ettie Trewloves in it. She took in six children in the stews of London – cast-off children, by-blows of the aristocrats – and she raised those children as her own. She loved them, taught them love and respect, and saw that they were educated, even though that meant teaching themselves. I’ve loved each of Ettie’s children – Mick, Gillie, Finn, Aiden, Fancy, and now Beast (Ben). I have been anxiously awaiting Beast’s story because he’s always like a shadow – secretive and in the background of each story – and he has intrigued me. All I can say is that I think it is the best story of the series. Not only is the story steamy and romantic with a hero who is one of the most generous and honorable men you’ll ever meet, but the Epilogue is absolutely to die for. It may be one of the best Epilogues I’ve ever read.

Benedict Trewlove began protecting people when he was just a young lad. He was big and gangly at the time, but he still had the nickname of Beast. That caring and protectiveness are how he came to be the owner of a brothel. He hates owning the brothel. He assures the ladies are protected. He takes no money from the ladies. He also does not partake of the ladies themselves. He has found other occupations for most of the ladies, but he still has a few for whom finding other employment has been more difficult. If he could just do something for them, he could close the place down. What he needs is someone to teach them proper ways of doing things so they can become seamstresses or whatever else they’d like to be.

Just the person he needed dropped right into his lap when he went to his sister’s pub for a drink. She was riveting and she definitely didn’t belong in this place. He was sure she had Mayfair written all over her – but she very firmly rebuffed his questions. That, of course, only piqued his interest more. When he told her that he had a proposition for her, she went ballistic and made assumptions that weren’t true, but he could see where she might leap to that conclusion since she didn’t know him.

Lady Althea Stanwick, daughter of a duke, once the darling of the ton, had her world turned upside down. Everything was stripped from her and her brothers when her father was caught and hanged for treason. They were turned out of their home with little more than the clothes on their backs. She was now just plain Miss Althea Stanwick and she and her younger brother, Griffin were living in a cold, unfurnished shack in Whitechapel. Nobody would hire her as a governess or companion, so she’d tried other jobs – like a seamstress, but she was soon dismissed because her stitching just wasn’t fine enough for quality clothing. Now, she’s working at the Mermaid and Unicorn serving drinks to customers. She tries to keep her head down in order to escape being noticed by the men, but that doesn’t always work. She’ll just have to do her best because she cannot afford to lose her position.

After overhearing a conversation between her brothers, Althea makes a life-changing decision. She will take the Beast up on his proposition and become his mistress. OH! MY! However, when she tells him she’ll be his mistress – he tells her that wasn’t his proposition. Sharp and quick thinker that she is, she makes an alternate proposal.

I absolutely loved how resolute Beast was – how protective. Althea was determined to get some ‘lessons’ for herself and Beast was determined not to give them. I loved watching them fight their attraction. When Beast loves, it is totally, deeply, and forever. He is a wonderfully sigh-worthy hero.

I hope you’ll read and enjoy this book as much as I did. Just be prepared – you’ll run the gamut of emotions right along with Beast and Althea. Joy, heartbreak, anger, shock, triumph, revenge – you’ll experience it all. Then, you’ll get to the Epilogue and OMGoodness. It is wonderful and perfectly wraps up the series.

BTW – although we’ve sadly said farewell to the Trewloves, there is a two-book series (duology?) coming and it will feature Althea’s two brothers who are trying to redeem the family name by identifying the co-conspirators in their father’s treachery. Maybe we’ll get some cameo appearances by a Trewlove or two in those.

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