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Regency Rogues #4
The Saint Who Stole My Heart
Desire, danger, intrigue, and steamy seduction unite a sexy spymaster and an intrepid bluestocking as Stefanie Sloane’s luscious new series continues.
Possessed of a brilliant mind and a love for puzzles, Dashiell Matthews, Viscount Carrington, is a crucial member of the elite Young Corinthians spy league. Assuming the façade of an addle-brained Adonis, he hunts for a notorious London murderer known as the Bishop. When fate causes him to cross paths with Miss Elena Barnes, Dash discovers an enigma that will prove delightfully intoxicating to a voluptuous beauty as intelligent as she is fearless.
Only the lure of a collection of rare books bequeathed to her family by Dash’s late father could tempt Elena from her cozy rural life to the crush and vanity of London. But if Elena finds his lordship to be the most impossibly beautiful man she’s ever seen, he also seems to be the stupidest. Which made her body’s shameless response to his masterful seduction all the more unfathomable. Yet when she discovers Dash’s mission to track the dangerous Bishop, she willingly risks everything—her trust, her heart, her very life—to join him.
Possessed of a brilliant mind and a love for puzzles, Dashiell Matthews, Viscount Carrington, is a crucial member of the elite Young Corinthians spy league. Assuming the façade of an addle-brained Adonis, he hunts for a notorious London murderer known as the Bishop. When fate causes him to cross paths with Miss Elena Barnes, Dash discovers an enigma that will prove delightfully intoxicating to a voluptuous beauty as intelligent as she is fearless.
Only the lure of a collection of rare books bequeathed to her family by Dash’s late father could tempt Elena from her cozy rural life to the crush and vanity of London. But if Elena finds his lordship to be the most impossibly beautiful man she’s ever seen, he also seems to be the stupidest. Which made her body’s shameless response to his masterful seduction all the more unfathomable. Yet when she discovers Dash’s mission to track the dangerous Bishop, she willingly risks everything—her trust, her heart, her very life—to join him.
304 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published April 24, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews
March 11, 2020
This review was originally posted on Addicted To Romance
The Saint Who Stole My Heart is the fourth installment in the Regency Rogues series. I was able to grab this from my library and I had forgotten how much I LOVE this author. Boy her books are delicious. I have such a weakness for regency spy themes and this author is so good at this. Now I have only read a few books of the series, and its been a couple of years since I read the first few books and I was able to immerse myself fully into this book with no need to have read the previous book. So I would say that you can easily read this as a stand alone.
Dash, Viscount Carrington, works with the Young Corinthians Spy League, but our story begins with a painful beginning when we see Dash, and his two best friends and their sister as children see their mother murdered. Dash and the others decided to let it go, but now they realize they need to bring justice to her. But in the process of hunting down the killer, Dash comes across Elena, when his father dies and leaves his books to her father. As Elena and Dash are in close proximity to each other, with an adorable matchmaking aunt and some other shenanigans that brings these two together....
This was such a delightful book and I am not sure I could recommend this author enough and she is SO highly underrated in my opinion. The chemistry between these two is so palpable from the very beginning and it really portrays that emotion and senses so well to the reader. There is such a beautiful balance between the espionage plotline and the romance that builds between Dash and Elena. And of course, we have some fun matchmaking that gets conflicted with the story that adds a quirky and light-hearted feel to the story. Its interesting to see the dynamic between Dash and Elena and how they are willing to fight for each other in such unique of ways here.
Overall I found The Saint Who Stole to be a adorable and satisfying read that stunned me in ts sensational sensuality!
The Saint Who Stole My Heart is the fourth installment in the Regency Rogues series. I was able to grab this from my library and I had forgotten how much I LOVE this author. Boy her books are delicious. I have such a weakness for regency spy themes and this author is so good at this. Now I have only read a few books of the series, and its been a couple of years since I read the first few books and I was able to immerse myself fully into this book with no need to have read the previous book. So I would say that you can easily read this as a stand alone.
Dash, Viscount Carrington, works with the Young Corinthians Spy League, but our story begins with a painful beginning when we see Dash, and his two best friends and their sister as children see their mother murdered. Dash and the others decided to let it go, but now they realize they need to bring justice to her. But in the process of hunting down the killer, Dash comes across Elena, when his father dies and leaves his books to her father. As Elena and Dash are in close proximity to each other, with an adorable matchmaking aunt and some other shenanigans that brings these two together....
No matter the differences, the assumptionns we've made, or the difficulties we've encountered, if a match is meant to be, you pursue it at all costs. Otherwise, you're simply shceating yourself out of the life that you should have
This was such a delightful book and I am not sure I could recommend this author enough and she is SO highly underrated in my opinion. The chemistry between these two is so palpable from the very beginning and it really portrays that emotion and senses so well to the reader. There is such a beautiful balance between the espionage plotline and the romance that builds between Dash and Elena. And of course, we have some fun matchmaking that gets conflicted with the story that adds a quirky and light-hearted feel to the story. Its interesting to see the dynamic between Dash and Elena and how they are willing to fight for each other in such unique of ways here.
Love is not a selfish need. It gives you purpose, understanding, fortitude--well, everything required to address these considerations that you mentioned.
Overall I found The Saint Who Stole to be a adorable and satisfying read that stunned me in ts sensational sensuality!
July 11, 2021
This book was so much fun to read! I absolutely LOVED how the main character was a bibliophile and how heavily it played into the story. Often, there will be characters in novels that are labelled as 'bookish' but it will only be mentioned once as a descriptor.
Although her character developed and changed, I really liked how independent Elena was. Yes, she could be labelled as a spinster or a wallflower to some but she was fiercely independent and I respected that.
Additionally, I really enjoyed the character of Bessie. If you have watched the Bridgerton series on Netflix, her character reminded me of Lady Danbury which was humorous and fun (moreso compared to the adaptation than the original Bridgerton novels).
I'm surprised slightly by the ending because there still were some questions left unanswered. These unanswered questions contributed significantly to the story early on so it was surprising that the characters accepted the unknown but maybe more is discovered in future novels in the series.
Although her character developed and changed, I really liked how independent Elena was. Yes, she could be labelled as a spinster or a wallflower to some but she was fiercely independent and I respected that.
Additionally, I really enjoyed the character of Bessie. If you have watched the Bridgerton series on Netflix, her character reminded me of Lady Danbury which was humorous and fun (moreso compared to the adaptation than the original Bridgerton novels).
I'm surprised slightly by the ending because there still were some questions left unanswered. These unanswered questions contributed significantly to the story early on so it was surprising that the characters accepted the unknown but maybe more is discovered in future novels in the series.
March 16, 2012
When Dash Carrington was a boy, his friend Sophia's mother was brutally murdered. Dash, Sophia, and their two friends Nicholas and Langdon were the ones to discover Lady Afton's body.
The boys grow up and become part of a secret spy society, the Corinthians, which their fathers were part of. Dash is quick witted and brilliant with puzzles, but he pretends to be dumb in public so he can fly under the radar of the baddies they pursue. He gets away with this because he looks like Adonis, so no one expects him to be clever.
Sophia reappears in the men's lives briefly to ask for help finding her mother's killer. Despite the fact that up until this point I thought she was the heroine, she disappears from the story after this.
Enter Elena, a bluestocking whose father has inherited a massive collection of rare books from Dash's recently deceased father. She travels to London with her maid, who's also a good friend of hers, to collect the books, but she begins to be intrigued by Dash - and he by her.
At this point, I started to wonder what the story was about. I hadn't connected to any of the characters - probably mostly because I thought Sophia was the heroine, and she and Dash seemed lukewarm toward each other. As I got to know the actual heroine, Elena, I really started to like her, but then the characters kept acting in ways I truly didn't understand, which undermined my belief in the story.
For example, after they have sex for the first time, several scenes go by without either of them even thinking about it. Elena lost her virginity to Dash, but it seems to be days afterward before the experience passes through her thoughts. And then her only thought is that she shouldn't be with him because he's distracting her from seeking justice on behalf of her maid, who had been briefly kidnapped. Really? I just couldn't believe it.
Then there were strange scenes like this one - though, I'll admit my bias here. I really detest "I hate you / I love you / let me shake you because I can't control my emotions" scenes. This happens right after Dash tells Elena he needs her out of his life, and she asks if that's what he wants.
Just after that, Elena caresses her lips where Dash kissed her, then slaps him, then says she'll have sex with him.
It was just too close to a caricature of a romance novel for me to fully enjoy it. There's a subplot involving trying to find Lady Afton's murderer, but even that feels quite slow and like there wasn't enough meat in the story for an entire novel - however, it looks like it will be stretched into the next.
Overall, the novel was okay, but never rose above that for me.
The boys grow up and become part of a secret spy society, the Corinthians, which their fathers were part of. Dash is quick witted and brilliant with puzzles, but he pretends to be dumb in public so he can fly under the radar of the baddies they pursue. He gets away with this because he looks like Adonis, so no one expects him to be clever.
Sophia reappears in the men's lives briefly to ask for help finding her mother's killer. Despite the fact that up until this point I thought she was the heroine, she disappears from the story after this.
Enter Elena, a bluestocking whose father has inherited a massive collection of rare books from Dash's recently deceased father. She travels to London with her maid, who's also a good friend of hers, to collect the books, but she begins to be intrigued by Dash - and he by her.
At this point, I started to wonder what the story was about. I hadn't connected to any of the characters - probably mostly because I thought Sophia was the heroine, and she and Dash seemed lukewarm toward each other. As I got to know the actual heroine, Elena, I really started to like her, but then the characters kept acting in ways I truly didn't understand, which undermined my belief in the story.
For example, after they have sex for the first time, several scenes go by without either of them even thinking about it. Elena lost her virginity to Dash, but it seems to be days afterward before the experience passes through her thoughts. And then her only thought is that she shouldn't be with him because he's distracting her from seeking justice on behalf of her maid, who had been briefly kidnapped. Really? I just couldn't believe it.
Then there were strange scenes like this one - though, I'll admit my bias here. I really detest "I hate you / I love you / let me shake you because I can't control my emotions" scenes. This happens right after Dash tells Elena he needs her out of his life, and she asks if that's what he wants.
He looked hard into her eyes, willing his mouth to open and "yes" to tumble out. But he saw her soul in his reflection, and it undid him completely. He was utterly lost in her depths, and it felt so right.
"Don't be such a gudgeon," Dash demanded, taking hold of her upper arms and shaking her. "I want you. More than anything."
Just after that, Elena caresses her lips where Dash kissed her, then slaps him, then says she'll have sex with him.
It was just too close to a caricature of a romance novel for me to fully enjoy it. There's a subplot involving trying to find Lady Afton's murderer, but even that feels quite slow and like there wasn't enough meat in the story for an entire novel - however, it looks like it will be stretched into the next.
Overall, the novel was okay, but never rose above that for me.
April 24, 2012
This was my first book by this author, and it definitely won't be my last. Sloane's writing style is full of witty, Regency era banter that is so much fun to read. It's an intelligent humor that you only see in certain regency romances, I'd compare her style to such authors as Eloisa James and Julia Quinn.
The romance in the book was a bit of a double-edged sword for me. On one hand, when there were scenes between the couple where they admitted how they feel, they were so very romantic and in the old fashioned, all consuming way that I love. On the other hand, sometimes I felt like I couldn't really follow their love story. They seemed to jump into the physical too quickly, and also seemed to jump into admitting all these feelings for each other that I hadn't really seen develop.
The strong point of this book is definitely witty repartee between all the characters. Lady Mowbray is a fantastic chaperone, who really knows her job of throwing the two leads together at all costs. I really enjoyed Dash's facade of being a not-too-bright pretty boy when really he is hiding his superior, spy-worthy intelligence. I wanted to see more of this ruse played out because it was quite entertaining. Dash also had a lot of comedic moments with his roguish partner in crime, Nicholas. I'm looking forward to seeing more from these two and the rest of the friends in future books.
Fans of witty, intelligent regencies with heart will flock to this author's books.
book sent by publisher and publicist in exchange for honest review
reviewed for http://inthehammockblog.blogspot.com
The romance in the book was a bit of a double-edged sword for me. On one hand, when there were scenes between the couple where they admitted how they feel, they were so very romantic and in the old fashioned, all consuming way that I love. On the other hand, sometimes I felt like I couldn't really follow their love story. They seemed to jump into the physical too quickly, and also seemed to jump into admitting all these feelings for each other that I hadn't really seen develop.
The strong point of this book is definitely witty repartee between all the characters. Lady Mowbray is a fantastic chaperone, who really knows her job of throwing the two leads together at all costs. I really enjoyed Dash's facade of being a not-too-bright pretty boy when really he is hiding his superior, spy-worthy intelligence. I wanted to see more of this ruse played out because it was quite entertaining. Dash also had a lot of comedic moments with his roguish partner in crime, Nicholas. I'm looking forward to seeing more from these two and the rest of the friends in future books.
Fans of witty, intelligent regencies with heart will flock to this author's books.
book sent by publisher and publicist in exchange for honest review
reviewed for http://inthehammockblog.blogspot.com
April 26, 2012
Originally published at http://www.readingreality.net/2012/04...
The Saint Who Stole My Heart by Stefanie Sloane is book 4 in her Regency Rogues series. It's also very clearly the "setting up" story for the next two books, at least, in this series. There are definitely unresolved suspense elements hanging over the end of the story.
The prologue starts out with a bang. Let's say it cuts to the chase. Childhood friends Dash Matthews, Nicholas and Langdon Bourne, and Sophia Southwell make the journey from carefree youth to painful responsibility in one sharp moment when they come in from playing outside to find Sophia's mother, Lady Afton, murdered. None of their lives are ever the same.
As men, Langdon Bourne and Dash Matthews both join the Young Corinthians, a spy network based in England. They've both been warned off Lady Afton's case. All they know is that she was the victim of a man code-named "The Bishop" and that she was murdered because Lord Afton was also a member of the Corinthians. The Bishop targets his enemies' loved ones.
Dash Matthews is the Corinthians code-breaker. He is gifted with puzzles, locks and ciphers. Unfortunately for the spy, he has also got the looks of an Adonis. Spies should be able to blend into a crowd, and Dash, he just can't. Everyone notices him, especially the women.
Since he can't hide himself, he hides his intelligence. He pretends to be pretty, but well, empty-headed. Everyone except his closest friends thinks he's an idiot.
Then Elena Barnes steps into his life. And his library. His late father's library, to be precise.
When his father died, Dash inherited the title of Viscount Carrington, along with the estate. But his father's prized library of rare books was left to Henry Barnes, Baron Harcourt, a noted expert in such things. And Baron Harcourt sent his bluestocking and equally expert daughter, Elena, to catalog and pack up the books.
Elena found Dash to be incredibly handsome, and completely vapid. The problem she had was that her physical reaction to his handsomeness overwhelmed her mental reaction to his vapidness. Which just seemed wrong to her.
Dash, on the other hand, found Elena fascinating. Which was equally problematic for him. Because when he was fascinated, he had an unfortunate tendency to drop his idiot act.
And Elena was no idiot. She noticed.
This is a Regency, if you will recall. Elena, as an unmarried woman, could not be living in Dash' bachelor household unchaperoned. Lady Mowbray, Dash' aunt, was temporarily in residence to serve that role. Bessie Mowbray wanted nothing more than to see her nephew happily married, and spent time, effort and Dash' money to make it so.
Lady Mowbray knew perfectly well that Dash was no idiot. And she noticed everything.
The more Dash revealed of his true self, the closer he and Elena became. This wasn't a courtship, it was a falling into the inevitable.
But as soon as Elena seemed important to Dash, she became a target of the Bishop, and the suspenseful part of the story really began.
Escape Rating B-/C+: The second half of this story is a real page-turner. Once the hunt for Lady Afton's killer goes into full-swing, it's really hard to put down. On the other hand, setup for the next books was a little too obvious. It's not that there isn't a happy ending, but there is so much unresolved that I was frustrated by a lot of the way the story ended.
Also, based on the prologue, I was expecting it to be Sophie's story, and it's not. She's the main character in the prologue, and then disappears for the rest of the book.
The Saint Who Stole My Heart by Stefanie Sloane is book 4 in her Regency Rogues series. It's also very clearly the "setting up" story for the next two books, at least, in this series. There are definitely unresolved suspense elements hanging over the end of the story.
The prologue starts out with a bang. Let's say it cuts to the chase. Childhood friends Dash Matthews, Nicholas and Langdon Bourne, and Sophia Southwell make the journey from carefree youth to painful responsibility in one sharp moment when they come in from playing outside to find Sophia's mother, Lady Afton, murdered. None of their lives are ever the same.
As men, Langdon Bourne and Dash Matthews both join the Young Corinthians, a spy network based in England. They've both been warned off Lady Afton's case. All they know is that she was the victim of a man code-named "The Bishop" and that she was murdered because Lord Afton was also a member of the Corinthians. The Bishop targets his enemies' loved ones.
Dash Matthews is the Corinthians code-breaker. He is gifted with puzzles, locks and ciphers. Unfortunately for the spy, he has also got the looks of an Adonis. Spies should be able to blend into a crowd, and Dash, he just can't. Everyone notices him, especially the women.
Since he can't hide himself, he hides his intelligence. He pretends to be pretty, but well, empty-headed. Everyone except his closest friends thinks he's an idiot.
Then Elena Barnes steps into his life. And his library. His late father's library, to be precise.
When his father died, Dash inherited the title of Viscount Carrington, along with the estate. But his father's prized library of rare books was left to Henry Barnes, Baron Harcourt, a noted expert in such things. And Baron Harcourt sent his bluestocking and equally expert daughter, Elena, to catalog and pack up the books.
Elena found Dash to be incredibly handsome, and completely vapid. The problem she had was that her physical reaction to his handsomeness overwhelmed her mental reaction to his vapidness. Which just seemed wrong to her.
Dash, on the other hand, found Elena fascinating. Which was equally problematic for him. Because when he was fascinated, he had an unfortunate tendency to drop his idiot act.
And Elena was no idiot. She noticed.
This is a Regency, if you will recall. Elena, as an unmarried woman, could not be living in Dash' bachelor household unchaperoned. Lady Mowbray, Dash' aunt, was temporarily in residence to serve that role. Bessie Mowbray wanted nothing more than to see her nephew happily married, and spent time, effort and Dash' money to make it so.
Lady Mowbray knew perfectly well that Dash was no idiot. And she noticed everything.
The more Dash revealed of his true self, the closer he and Elena became. This wasn't a courtship, it was a falling into the inevitable.
But as soon as Elena seemed important to Dash, she became a target of the Bishop, and the suspenseful part of the story really began.
Escape Rating B-/C+: The second half of this story is a real page-turner. Once the hunt for Lady Afton's killer goes into full-swing, it's really hard to put down. On the other hand, setup for the next books was a little too obvious. It's not that there isn't a happy ending, but there is so much unresolved that I was frustrated by a lot of the way the story ended.
Also, based on the prologue, I was expecting it to be Sophie's story, and it's not. She's the main character in the prologue, and then disappears for the rest of the book.
May 3, 2012
Actually, I rated this one at 4.5. This review is taken from my review at RomanceJunkies.com.
Growing up, Dashiell ‘Dash’ Matthews, Viscount Carrington, was friends with brothers Nicholas and Langdon as well as Sophie. He lost his mother when he was quite young, so he does not remember her. However, Sophie’s mother, Lady Afton, feels like his own mother as she showers the four children with love. So when they arrive at Sophie’s home one afternoon after spending the day together, they find Sophie’s mom dead. Devastated, her death has haunted all of them, but they had promised not to mention it and to try to get past it. But fifteen years later, Dash is working with the Young Corinthians, a clandestine spy organization, alongside his friend Langdon. He realizes that if any of them are ever to get any peace of mind, he must find Lady Afton’s killer. But before he can get the investigation underway, he has a couple visitors to his home…his Aunt Bessie and Elena Barnes.
With the death of Dash’s father, Elena Barnes discovers that she has been left the viscount’s library of books. She is thrilled, even though it will mean a trip to London, where she will catalog the books before moving them to her home. Elena has only met Dash once before, during her disastrous Season in London. Because of her love of books, she has been dubbed a bluestocking and the title irritates her.
Dash knows that his aunt would love nothing better than playing matchmaker. He also is aware that Elena is a bluestocking. So to keep Elena from being attracted to him, he acts as though he is not very bright, despite his brilliant work with the Young Corinthians, which entails using his mind. Even though he puts on this act, he cannot deny his attraction to the voluptuous lady.
Elena is attracted to Dash, comparing him to Adonis…if only he weren’t so dim. But as they spend time together, she begins to suspect that her assumptions are all wrong. Soon they are working together to find the monster known as the Bishop. Will they be able to find him before he finds them? When Elena’s life is put in danger, Dash knows he will do anything to keep her alive.
THE SAINT WHO STOLE MY HEART, the fourth book in gifted author Stefanie Sloane’s REGENCY ROGUES series, is an intriguing, mystery filled historical romance that you will not want to put down. A well written, beautifully plotted story, filled with engaging characters, humor, clever repartee, intrigue, spies, kidnapping, danger and romance, it is brought to life right before your eyes. I thoroughly enjoyed this story; including the subplot about Elena and the home she is trying to set up in Dorset to protect abused women. The sections about the abuse of Elena’s maid, as well as the abuse of another woman, were heartrending. The only problem with Ms. Sloane’s stories is that now I must wait for the next story…one which I am really looking forwards to as it stars Nicholas and Sophie. Entitled THE SCOUNDREL TAKES A BRIDE, this fifth REGENCY ROGUES romance is due out at the end of October. Despite being part of a series, these stories can be read as standalones. However, for additional enjoyment, I recommend reading all of the books in this delectable series; THE DEVIL IN DISGUISE, THE ANGEL IN MY ARMS, THE SINNER WHO SEDUCED ME and finally, THE SAINT WHO STOLE MY HEART. Do not miss any of the books in this delicious series!
Dottie, RomanceJunkies.com
Growing up, Dashiell ‘Dash’ Matthews, Viscount Carrington, was friends with brothers Nicholas and Langdon as well as Sophie. He lost his mother when he was quite young, so he does not remember her. However, Sophie’s mother, Lady Afton, feels like his own mother as she showers the four children with love. So when they arrive at Sophie’s home one afternoon after spending the day together, they find Sophie’s mom dead. Devastated, her death has haunted all of them, but they had promised not to mention it and to try to get past it. But fifteen years later, Dash is working with the Young Corinthians, a clandestine spy organization, alongside his friend Langdon. He realizes that if any of them are ever to get any peace of mind, he must find Lady Afton’s killer. But before he can get the investigation underway, he has a couple visitors to his home…his Aunt Bessie and Elena Barnes.
With the death of Dash’s father, Elena Barnes discovers that she has been left the viscount’s library of books. She is thrilled, even though it will mean a trip to London, where she will catalog the books before moving them to her home. Elena has only met Dash once before, during her disastrous Season in London. Because of her love of books, she has been dubbed a bluestocking and the title irritates her.
Dash knows that his aunt would love nothing better than playing matchmaker. He also is aware that Elena is a bluestocking. So to keep Elena from being attracted to him, he acts as though he is not very bright, despite his brilliant work with the Young Corinthians, which entails using his mind. Even though he puts on this act, he cannot deny his attraction to the voluptuous lady.
Elena is attracted to Dash, comparing him to Adonis…if only he weren’t so dim. But as they spend time together, she begins to suspect that her assumptions are all wrong. Soon they are working together to find the monster known as the Bishop. Will they be able to find him before he finds them? When Elena’s life is put in danger, Dash knows he will do anything to keep her alive.
THE SAINT WHO STOLE MY HEART, the fourth book in gifted author Stefanie Sloane’s REGENCY ROGUES series, is an intriguing, mystery filled historical romance that you will not want to put down. A well written, beautifully plotted story, filled with engaging characters, humor, clever repartee, intrigue, spies, kidnapping, danger and romance, it is brought to life right before your eyes. I thoroughly enjoyed this story; including the subplot about Elena and the home she is trying to set up in Dorset to protect abused women. The sections about the abuse of Elena’s maid, as well as the abuse of another woman, were heartrending. The only problem with Ms. Sloane’s stories is that now I must wait for the next story…one which I am really looking forwards to as it stars Nicholas and Sophie. Entitled THE SCOUNDREL TAKES A BRIDE, this fifth REGENCY ROGUES romance is due out at the end of October. Despite being part of a series, these stories can be read as standalones. However, for additional enjoyment, I recommend reading all of the books in this delectable series; THE DEVIL IN DISGUISE, THE ANGEL IN MY ARMS, THE SINNER WHO SEDUCED ME and finally, THE SAINT WHO STOLE MY HEART. Do not miss any of the books in this delicious series!
Dottie, RomanceJunkies.com
May 3, 2012
DNF-- I gave up on this one at Chapter 11 (appropriate, no?). To be fair, I started this book thinking it belonged to a different series entirely, because I confused the description of the hero with that of a character from the other series. That said...
I feel that, particularly in romantic series (where the focus of each book is on a couple), books should be able to mostly stand on their own from the rest of the series. Supporting characters who obviously have more backstory elsewhere, fine. Overarching plot that neither begins nor ends with this title, fine. But at least a FEW extra words of introduction or description to get new readers up to speed (and hopefully make them hungry for the books they missed) would be appreciated.
Not only did this book NOT do that at all (from the flashback introduction, I expected the heroine to be an entirely different character), but even the main couple's plot made wild and unexplained leaps. (Her maid's abduction and bizarre rescue? Where the heck did THAT come from?) And when one of those unexplained leaps is when, exactly, the main characters have grown so close as to passionately "become one" in a coach... yeah. (Honestly, I actually flipped back. I thought I'd somehow skipped 20 or 30 pages of romantic plot development.)
Add to that the hero's unconvincing and healfhearted "emptyheaded" act (despite the fact that this is a facade he's supposedly perfected over years) and the heroine's odd terror of Society (people called her a bluestocking SIX YEARS AGO. They did not beat her with sticks. Why is she so spooked that she can't even exchange civilities with a stranger in the street without freaking out?)
Yeah. Time to call it quits... and it's left me with absolutely no desire to read any of the rest of this series.
I feel that, particularly in romantic series (where the focus of each book is on a couple), books should be able to mostly stand on their own from the rest of the series. Supporting characters who obviously have more backstory elsewhere, fine. Overarching plot that neither begins nor ends with this title, fine. But at least a FEW extra words of introduction or description to get new readers up to speed (and hopefully make them hungry for the books they missed) would be appreciated.
Not only did this book NOT do that at all (from the flashback introduction, I expected the heroine to be an entirely different character), but even the main couple's plot made wild and unexplained leaps. (Her maid's abduction and bizarre rescue? Where the heck did THAT come from?) And when one of those unexplained leaps is when, exactly, the main characters have grown so close as to passionately "become one" in a coach... yeah. (Honestly, I actually flipped back. I thought I'd somehow skipped 20 or 30 pages of romantic plot development.)
Add to that the hero's unconvincing and healfhearted "emptyheaded" act (despite the fact that this is a facade he's supposedly perfected over years) and the heroine's odd terror of Society (people called her a bluestocking SIX YEARS AGO. They did not beat her with sticks. Why is she so spooked that she can't even exchange civilities with a stranger in the street without freaking out?)
Yeah. Time to call it quits... and it's left me with absolutely no desire to read any of the rest of this series.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 18, 2012
THE SAINT WHO STOLE MY HEART by Stefanie Sloane is an exciting Regency historical romance. Book #4 in the "Regency Rogues" series,but can be read as a stand alone. See,"The Devil in Disguise", "The Angel in My Arms",and "The Sinner Who Seduced Me". What an exciting series with sexy,strong,heroes and independent,witty heroines, you can not go wrong with "The Saint Who Stole My Heart". Filled with intrigue,danger,desire,passion,puzzles,a killer,spymasters,humor,mystery,suspense,and did I mention sweet seduction. Join
Dashiell Matthews, Viscount Carrington and Miss Elena Barnes as they try to unravel a puzzle and stop the dangerous "Bishop". Dashiell Matthews, Viscount Carrington, is a member of an elite Young Corinthians spy team,has a brilliant mind,and a love of puzzles. Miss Elena Barnes,a plain spinster with a brilliant mind of her own,who has a love of books. Appearances can be deceiving... A must for anyone who enjoys a bit of wit with their dose of historical romance,puzzles,missions,misunderstanding,and a lot of seduction will enjoy "The Saint Who Stole My Heart" for you will lose your heart also. An amazing and exciting story! I can hardly wait for my next dose of the "Regency Rogues". Received for an honest review from the publisher and Net Galley. Details can be found at the author's website,Ballantine Books,an imprint of Random House Publishing Group and My Book Addiction and More.
RATING: 4.5
HEAT RATING: MILD
REVIEWED BY: AprilR, My Book Addiction and More/My Book Addiction Reviews
Dashiell Matthews, Viscount Carrington and Miss Elena Barnes as they try to unravel a puzzle and stop the dangerous "Bishop". Dashiell Matthews, Viscount Carrington, is a member of an elite Young Corinthians spy team,has a brilliant mind,and a love of puzzles. Miss Elena Barnes,a plain spinster with a brilliant mind of her own,who has a love of books. Appearances can be deceiving... A must for anyone who enjoys a bit of wit with their dose of historical romance,puzzles,missions,misunderstanding,and a lot of seduction will enjoy "The Saint Who Stole My Heart" for you will lose your heart also. An amazing and exciting story! I can hardly wait for my next dose of the "Regency Rogues". Received for an honest review from the publisher and Net Galley. Details can be found at the author's website,Ballantine Books,an imprint of Random House Publishing Group and My Book Addiction and More.
RATING: 4.5
HEAT RATING: MILD
REVIEWED BY: AprilR, My Book Addiction and More/My Book Addiction Reviews
April 16, 2012
This was my first Stefanie Sloane book and my first Regency Rogues even though this was book number four in the series. Overall, I really did enjoy the book. I thought there was a great premise; a country bluestocking comes to London to pack up a famed book collection. A London dandy with more looks than brains captures her heart. But is he who he really says he is? Dash and Elena were great characters with wonderful development in their romance throughout the story. Unfortunately I’m leaning more to 3.5 stars on this title because it almost felt like some of the ideas or storylines were not fully developed. I almost felt like things could have been described or detailed more. This did not put off my overall enjoyment of the story and I will try something from Ms. Sloane again.
August 18, 2016
Enjoyable while I was reading but utterly forgettable when I was done. The Hero and heroine were very dry so the book was stolen completely by a secondary character. Felt like the author was using terms like "Bluestocking" & "Spy" and making the reader fill in the blanks about what those terms meant. Maybe that was her plan since part of the theme was not letting stereotypes make our judgments for us.
Full Review below:
Reading through the Regency Rogues series this month has been a roller coaster for me and not the most pleasant ride if I’m honest. I will give the author credit in that each story has a very good idea behind it, starting off with great potential for drama, intrigue, and a satisfying conclusion. But of the four books currently released in the series, only one really paid off from this great beginning to a great ending. Unfortunately The Saint Who Stole My Heart wasn’t that book.
I wanted to like the character of Dashiell Matthews. He’s a gifted and intelligent man who has devoted his life to the cause of England’s war efforts. He uses his mind to gather information for the Young Corinthians, cracking codes of the enemy, translating documents, and keeping secrets. He also happens to be an Adonis of a man, having one of those faces that women just swoon over. I really loved the idea that he used his appearance as a shield so that people never realized that he was spying on them. Everyone in society just assumed that as a handsome man there could never be a mind underneath it all. But the author only shows Dash using that shield once or twice, and mainly to the detriment of the heroine and his relationship with her. Otherwise we see him as the master spy that he really is, so I couldn’t buy that society could ever think he was stupid. I recently read another book that had a handsome man playing the fool, and that author did it so much better.
I also never felt a connection with Elena Barnes even though I happen to like bluestocking and intelligent heroines in books. She allowed one miserable Season in London to steer her entire life’s course into spinsterhood and found solace in organizing her father’s library. She returns to London on the quest for more books, but her attentions are immediately taken by her lust for Dashiell. Chapter after chapter has her lusting after him, but being confused by the mixed signals that she is reading from Dash when they interact. Is he really a dimwit or is there something more behind his eyes than he’s letting on? I wanted her to put all of the pieces together and have an incredible moment of awakening to who he really was, but the author chose to have all of it spelled out to Elena by another character. It was a poor story choice that took away from an opportunity for real character development.
One of the worst offenses within this story was how little chemistry there was between the two leads. Their relationship came together almost as if they were fated-mates, when just the smell, touch, or sight of the other person was enough to make them fall desperately in love with one another. I truly believe I can count on one hand the times the two of them talked to one another without deceptions before they were sleeping together. Then, for the remainder of the book they are pushing away from one another for completely contrived reasons, until that final climax when they realize they are better together than apart.
On the plus side, this book did have an intriguing set-up for the story arc that will tie the next few titles together. A secret organization operating within England knows all about the Young Corinthians. The group, with a mastermind known as The Bishop, has lashed out at the Corinthians in the most personal ways, including killing members of their families, if their plans were foiled. One such murder occurred fifteen years prior to this book, with the death of Lady Afton at the hands of a man known as The Rook. Lady Afton’s murder changed the lives of four young children, Dashiell Matthews being one of them, and the quest for justice rises again when all four of the kids reunite in London as flawed adults. Because the romantic side of this book was so bad, my attentions were really drawn to the investigation into finding The Rook and stopping him before he could strike any members of the newer Young Corinthians. The conclusion to this part of the story was satisfying where the love story was not.
This Saint Who Stole My Heart is almost a new beginning for the Regency Rogues series, with very little binding it to the stories that have come before. We meet new agents, a new sinister group is introduced, and a new complication for the Young Corinthians comes to light. I would recommend this book to new readers of the franchise; those wanting to get in on the ground floor without having to go back and read anything that had already been written. The few callbacks to the earlier books can be easily accepted as fact. There are only a handful of reoccurring characters, and their part in this book is completely separate from their actions before. As a current reader I’m almost willing to give this author one more shot, if only to learn more about Nicholas Bourne and the demons that may have followed him back to England from his self-exile in India. I’ll have to see how I feel in October when book five makes its debut.
Full Review below:
Reading through the Regency Rogues series this month has been a roller coaster for me and not the most pleasant ride if I’m honest. I will give the author credit in that each story has a very good idea behind it, starting off with great potential for drama, intrigue, and a satisfying conclusion. But of the four books currently released in the series, only one really paid off from this great beginning to a great ending. Unfortunately The Saint Who Stole My Heart wasn’t that book.
I wanted to like the character of Dashiell Matthews. He’s a gifted and intelligent man who has devoted his life to the cause of England’s war efforts. He uses his mind to gather information for the Young Corinthians, cracking codes of the enemy, translating documents, and keeping secrets. He also happens to be an Adonis of a man, having one of those faces that women just swoon over. I really loved the idea that he used his appearance as a shield so that people never realized that he was spying on them. Everyone in society just assumed that as a handsome man there could never be a mind underneath it all. But the author only shows Dash using that shield once or twice, and mainly to the detriment of the heroine and his relationship with her. Otherwise we see him as the master spy that he really is, so I couldn’t buy that society could ever think he was stupid. I recently read another book that had a handsome man playing the fool, and that author did it so much better.
I also never felt a connection with Elena Barnes even though I happen to like bluestocking and intelligent heroines in books. She allowed one miserable Season in London to steer her entire life’s course into spinsterhood and found solace in organizing her father’s library. She returns to London on the quest for more books, but her attentions are immediately taken by her lust for Dashiell. Chapter after chapter has her lusting after him, but being confused by the mixed signals that she is reading from Dash when they interact. Is he really a dimwit or is there something more behind his eyes than he’s letting on? I wanted her to put all of the pieces together and have an incredible moment of awakening to who he really was, but the author chose to have all of it spelled out to Elena by another character. It was a poor story choice that took away from an opportunity for real character development.
One of the worst offenses within this story was how little chemistry there was between the two leads. Their relationship came together almost as if they were fated-mates, when just the smell, touch, or sight of the other person was enough to make them fall desperately in love with one another. I truly believe I can count on one hand the times the two of them talked to one another without deceptions before they were sleeping together. Then, for the remainder of the book they are pushing away from one another for completely contrived reasons, until that final climax when they realize they are better together than apart.
On the plus side, this book did have an intriguing set-up for the story arc that will tie the next few titles together. A secret organization operating within England knows all about the Young Corinthians. The group, with a mastermind known as The Bishop, has lashed out at the Corinthians in the most personal ways, including killing members of their families, if their plans were foiled. One such murder occurred fifteen years prior to this book, with the death of Lady Afton at the hands of a man known as The Rook. Lady Afton’s murder changed the lives of four young children, Dashiell Matthews being one of them, and the quest for justice rises again when all four of the kids reunite in London as flawed adults. Because the romantic side of this book was so bad, my attentions were really drawn to the investigation into finding The Rook and stopping him before he could strike any members of the newer Young Corinthians. The conclusion to this part of the story was satisfying where the love story was not.
This Saint Who Stole My Heart is almost a new beginning for the Regency Rogues series, with very little binding it to the stories that have come before. We meet new agents, a new sinister group is introduced, and a new complication for the Young Corinthians comes to light. I would recommend this book to new readers of the franchise; those wanting to get in on the ground floor without having to go back and read anything that had already been written. The few callbacks to the earlier books can be easily accepted as fact. There are only a handful of reoccurring characters, and their part in this book is completely separate from their actions before. As a current reader I’m almost willing to give this author one more shot, if only to learn more about Nicholas Bourne and the demons that may have followed him back to England from his self-exile in India. I’ll have to see how I feel in October when book five makes its debut.
May 7, 2012
Reviewed for www.bookworm2bookworm.wordpress.com
The story opens up in 1768 with our hero Dash Matthews, his friends Nicholas and Langdon Bourne, and Sophia Southwell playing on the grounds of Afton Manor, Earl of Afton’s and Sophia’s fathers country estate. All are good friends, but now that they are growing up, the boys are having a bit of trouble explaining to Sophia that she’s not ‘fitting’ in with their boy’s games, and to get that across, they’re pulling her hair, making fun of her and she’s not having none of it….
“Sophia shaded her eyes against the sunlight and crowned him with her bouquet, bits of green leaves and white petals showering his shoulders. ‘First of all, you shan’t get near any part of me with those spit-stained hands of yours or I shall kill you. Secondly, it’s not just my braids, you ninny,’ she huffed, sweeping the three with an exasperated look. ‘It’s your treatment of me this summer-as if I’m somehow different…’
‘But you are, aren’t you?’ Dash asked, grinning. ‘Look now, you’re wearing a dress, while we three,’ he paused, punching first Nicholas in the arm, then Langdon, ‘are attired in breeches. And shirts. Nary a dress among us.’
Sophia brained all three with the flowers this time. ‘I’ve always worn dresses, you idiot-I am,
after all, a girl.’
‘Precisely,’ Dash agreed, brushing daisy petals from his hair. ‘ A girl, with …Well, that is to say…What I mean…’ He felt his cheeks grow hot. ‘Come on, Sophia. Don’t make me say it.’
‘With girl parts and such,’ Nicholas offered helpfully as he arched his eyebrows. ‘You’ve ten-year-old girl parts.’
Suddenly, Dash and Langdon couldn’t take their eyes off of a greenish-blue emperor dragonfly that’d presumably followed them up from the lake. To watch the boys expire from embarrassment. ‘Well, it’s true, isn’t it?’ Nicholas added, scrubbing at his sweaty neck. Langdon sighed and shoved his brother up the path. ‘We don’t want to talk about your girl parts, Sophia-well, that is, we would. If it wasn’t rude. But it is, isn’t it?’
‘Of course it is,’ Sophia agreed simply, apparently quite calm about such intimate references. ‘Yes, of course. Anyway, it’s just that we’re all getting older,’ he explained in his steady way, belaying his thirteen years. ‘You’re ten now. Nick and Dash nearly twelve. And I’ll be fourteen soon enough. We’re growing up.’”
That was such a prophetic statement from Langdon, as all four would face a life changing and altering event.
Our hero, Dash Matthews, now Viscount Carrington, is as handsome as a Greek god, very intelligent and yet because of his work as the Corinthians’ best code-breaker, he is forced to hide that intelligence, and to the ton, he appears as someone who is ‘slow’.
Dash’s father left his prized library of rare books to Baron Harcourt, and as Baron Harcourt was unable to take the long journey, he sends his daughter, Elena in his stead.
Our heroine is Elena Barnes and she loves her life in the country. She is definitely her father’s daughter; smart and witty as well as very well read. Upon learning from her father that they would be soon the caretakers of such a great treasure trove of books, she’s willing to leave her comfort zone and go even though the trip would be bringing some unpleasant memories from her come-out season. However, her plan to make this trip short, unravels as her chaperone has matchmaking on her mind.
This is another fast paced story from Ms. Sloan full of action, humor and romance. What made this story so much fun was its hero. He was one of the best Beta heroes I’ve read about in a while. Very charming, witty and passionate.
The Saint Who Stole My Heart by Stefanie Sloane is book 4 in Regency Rogues series and from the first page of the prologue, I knew it would be a story to make me laugh and cry. Guess what? I was right and I’m looking forward to reading Nicholas’ story in The Scoundrel Takes a Bride out October 30, 2012, which promises to be yet another emotional journey for not just our protagonists, but for us too.
Melanie
* I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*
The story opens up in 1768 with our hero Dash Matthews, his friends Nicholas and Langdon Bourne, and Sophia Southwell playing on the grounds of Afton Manor, Earl of Afton’s and Sophia’s fathers country estate. All are good friends, but now that they are growing up, the boys are having a bit of trouble explaining to Sophia that she’s not ‘fitting’ in with their boy’s games, and to get that across, they’re pulling her hair, making fun of her and she’s not having none of it….
“Sophia shaded her eyes against the sunlight and crowned him with her bouquet, bits of green leaves and white petals showering his shoulders. ‘First of all, you shan’t get near any part of me with those spit-stained hands of yours or I shall kill you. Secondly, it’s not just my braids, you ninny,’ she huffed, sweeping the three with an exasperated look. ‘It’s your treatment of me this summer-as if I’m somehow different…’
‘But you are, aren’t you?’ Dash asked, grinning. ‘Look now, you’re wearing a dress, while we three,’ he paused, punching first Nicholas in the arm, then Langdon, ‘are attired in breeches. And shirts. Nary a dress among us.’
Sophia brained all three with the flowers this time. ‘I’ve always worn dresses, you idiot-I am,
after all, a girl.’
‘Precisely,’ Dash agreed, brushing daisy petals from his hair. ‘ A girl, with …Well, that is to say…What I mean…’ He felt his cheeks grow hot. ‘Come on, Sophia. Don’t make me say it.’
‘With girl parts and such,’ Nicholas offered helpfully as he arched his eyebrows. ‘You’ve ten-year-old girl parts.’
Suddenly, Dash and Langdon couldn’t take their eyes off of a greenish-blue emperor dragonfly that’d presumably followed them up from the lake. To watch the boys expire from embarrassment. ‘Well, it’s true, isn’t it?’ Nicholas added, scrubbing at his sweaty neck. Langdon sighed and shoved his brother up the path. ‘We don’t want to talk about your girl parts, Sophia-well, that is, we would. If it wasn’t rude. But it is, isn’t it?’
‘Of course it is,’ Sophia agreed simply, apparently quite calm about such intimate references. ‘Yes, of course. Anyway, it’s just that we’re all getting older,’ he explained in his steady way, belaying his thirteen years. ‘You’re ten now. Nick and Dash nearly twelve. And I’ll be fourteen soon enough. We’re growing up.’”
That was such a prophetic statement from Langdon, as all four would face a life changing and altering event.
Our hero, Dash Matthews, now Viscount Carrington, is as handsome as a Greek god, very intelligent and yet because of his work as the Corinthians’ best code-breaker, he is forced to hide that intelligence, and to the ton, he appears as someone who is ‘slow’.
Dash’s father left his prized library of rare books to Baron Harcourt, and as Baron Harcourt was unable to take the long journey, he sends his daughter, Elena in his stead.
Our heroine is Elena Barnes and she loves her life in the country. She is definitely her father’s daughter; smart and witty as well as very well read. Upon learning from her father that they would be soon the caretakers of such a great treasure trove of books, she’s willing to leave her comfort zone and go even though the trip would be bringing some unpleasant memories from her come-out season. However, her plan to make this trip short, unravels as her chaperone has matchmaking on her mind.
This is another fast paced story from Ms. Sloan full of action, humor and romance. What made this story so much fun was its hero. He was one of the best Beta heroes I’ve read about in a while. Very charming, witty and passionate.
The Saint Who Stole My Heart by Stefanie Sloane is book 4 in Regency Rogues series and from the first page of the prologue, I knew it would be a story to make me laugh and cry. Guess what? I was right and I’m looking forward to reading Nicholas’ story in The Scoundrel Takes a Bride out October 30, 2012, which promises to be yet another emotional journey for not just our protagonists, but for us too.
Melanie
* I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*
April 18, 2012
Review originally posted at Ramblings From This Chick
I adored this book from beginning to end. I can't believe I've waited until Stefanie's fourth book to pick her up. Believe me, I will definitely be reading the rest of Stefanie's books and quite soon. I loved her characters and the world she has created. I admit that I have a fondness for spy story-lines and Stefanie executed to perfection.
Dashiell Matthews, Viscount Carrington is an important member of the Young Corinthians, a spy league that he works for. He is brilliant at breaking codes and solving puzzles. Since Dash is an extremely attractive man, he uses his looks as a facade to hide his brilliance. Only the people closest to him know he is truly intelligent, thus allowing him to keep of his facade. For the last several years he has been on the hunt for The Bishop, a murder who was responsible for the death of his closest friends mother years before. Ever since Lady Afton's death, he and his friends have thought of nothing but the revenge that they would one day have against Bishop.
Elena Barnes lives a quiet life at home in the country with her father. She is very intelligent and very well read. She believes anything can be learned from a book and when a missive from London arrives informing her and her father that he has been left a rare collection of books from the late Viscount Carrington she immediately though reluctantly, sets off for London to retrieve them. Elena has been to London before and had a rather unsuccessful season and she is not looking forward to encountering the vipers of the ton again. She plans to quickly pack up the books and return home. What she doesn't expect to find is Dash Matthews.
When Elena first sees Dash, she can hardly believe her eyes. She has never seen a man so beautiful in her life. The image is quickly ruined when he opens his mouth and begins to act like the addled-brained Adonis that he is known for. But the more and more time that begin to spend together, Elena starts to see whats beneath the facade, a truly intelligent man.
I loved both Dash and Elena. I loved their characters and I especially loved they way they both interacted with one another. There were instant sparks between them and I love the way everything progressed with them. It felt just right and not rushed at all.
As soon as Dash appeared I was instantly transfixed. He is everything I love in a hero. Not only is he sexy but he is very witty and extremely intelligent. I love me a smart hero! I truly loved him and Nicholas together. I found myself giggling a quite a few of their scenes together. I did enjoy watching Dash struggle with his feelings with Elena. On the one hand he wanted to push her away because he wants nothing more than to keep her safe from Bishop, but on the other hand he can't let her go.
I also had a great fondness for Elena. Not only is she smart, but she is also brave and willing to help others. I also liked that she is willing to ask for help if she needed it. Sometimes when authors are writing bluestocking heroines, they tend to be very stubborn and won't rely on anyone else's help. That was definitely not the case with Elena. I also enjoyed her relationship with Bessie.
My only complaint with this book and honestly it's not really a complaint is that towards the second half of the book things seem to slow down relationship wise between Dash and Elena. But honestly, it didn't really bug me. I was so caught up with everything else that was going on I didn't even miss it.
I highly recommend this book. I can't wait to get my hands on the rest of this series, including Stefanie Sloane's next book The Scoundrel Takes a Bride. After reading this book I honestly can't wait to get my hands on that one. I just know it's going to be good.
**ARC copy provided by NetGalley**
I adored this book from beginning to end. I can't believe I've waited until Stefanie's fourth book to pick her up. Believe me, I will definitely be reading the rest of Stefanie's books and quite soon. I loved her characters and the world she has created. I admit that I have a fondness for spy story-lines and Stefanie executed to perfection.
Dashiell Matthews, Viscount Carrington is an important member of the Young Corinthians, a spy league that he works for. He is brilliant at breaking codes and solving puzzles. Since Dash is an extremely attractive man, he uses his looks as a facade to hide his brilliance. Only the people closest to him know he is truly intelligent, thus allowing him to keep of his facade. For the last several years he has been on the hunt for The Bishop, a murder who was responsible for the death of his closest friends mother years before. Ever since Lady Afton's death, he and his friends have thought of nothing but the revenge that they would one day have against Bishop.
Elena Barnes lives a quiet life at home in the country with her father. She is very intelligent and very well read. She believes anything can be learned from a book and when a missive from London arrives informing her and her father that he has been left a rare collection of books from the late Viscount Carrington she immediately though reluctantly, sets off for London to retrieve them. Elena has been to London before and had a rather unsuccessful season and she is not looking forward to encountering the vipers of the ton again. She plans to quickly pack up the books and return home. What she doesn't expect to find is Dash Matthews.
When Elena first sees Dash, she can hardly believe her eyes. She has never seen a man so beautiful in her life. The image is quickly ruined when he opens his mouth and begins to act like the addled-brained Adonis that he is known for. But the more and more time that begin to spend together, Elena starts to see whats beneath the facade, a truly intelligent man.
I loved both Dash and Elena. I loved their characters and I especially loved they way they both interacted with one another. There were instant sparks between them and I love the way everything progressed with them. It felt just right and not rushed at all.
As soon as Dash appeared I was instantly transfixed. He is everything I love in a hero. Not only is he sexy but he is very witty and extremely intelligent. I love me a smart hero! I truly loved him and Nicholas together. I found myself giggling a quite a few of their scenes together. I did enjoy watching Dash struggle with his feelings with Elena. On the one hand he wanted to push her away because he wants nothing more than to keep her safe from Bishop, but on the other hand he can't let her go.
I also had a great fondness for Elena. Not only is she smart, but she is also brave and willing to help others. I also liked that she is willing to ask for help if she needed it. Sometimes when authors are writing bluestocking heroines, they tend to be very stubborn and won't rely on anyone else's help. That was definitely not the case with Elena. I also enjoyed her relationship with Bessie.
My only complaint with this book and honestly it's not really a complaint is that towards the second half of the book things seem to slow down relationship wise between Dash and Elena. But honestly, it didn't really bug me. I was so caught up with everything else that was going on I didn't even miss it.
I highly recommend this book. I can't wait to get my hands on the rest of this series, including Stefanie Sloane's next book The Scoundrel Takes a Bride. After reading this book I honestly can't wait to get my hands on that one. I just know it's going to be good.
**ARC copy provided by NetGalley**
April 22, 2013
**original review by Jamie posted at Romancing Rakes For The Love of Romance**
As just a child, Dash discovered Lady Ashton’s body, a woman he considered to be like a mother to him. Now years later Dash Matthews, Viscount Carrington, is easily considered by ton to be the most beautiful man but he is a bit lacking in the brains department. Well, that’s what he wants everyone to think but in reality he is member of the Young Corinthians, a secret spy society and extremely smart. He hides his intelligence as a way to keep people away from his dangerous life especially as he takes on the task of finding Lady Ashton’s killer. That is until the bookish and voluptuous Elena Barnes shows up to collect his father’s books and he realizes what he’s missing.
Elena is all about collecting the books and heading back to Dorset. When she meets Dash she can’t help but be drawn to the blonde Adonis even in spite of his lack of intelligence. But as she gets to know him she starts to discover that Dash isn’t as dumb as he makes himself to be. When she stumbles upon a clue to the murder she can’t help but getting involved despite Dash’s attempts to protect her.
FAVORITE QUOTE:
OVERALL:
This was my first Stefanie Sloane book (yes, yes I know! I’ve been living under a rock) but will most definitely not be my last. Now, this is the fourth book in the Regency Rogues series but it is a great starting point if you haven’t read the others because it focuses on a new set of Young Corinthians.
Dash is definitely on the top of my favorite hero list. I love that he wasn’t a rake and that he’s smart. Intelligence is sexy and plus he is very loyal to his friends and to Elena. I love Elena too. Usually the heroines annoy me but I liked her from the start. She knew who she was and wasn’t afraid to show it.
While there is a big mystery of trying to find Lady Ashton’s murderer, The Saint Who Stole My Heart focus is more on the romance between Dash and Elena. Yes, you get a bit of the mystery but it was nice to see the how the romance between them developed. And of course, the murderer hasn’t been caught but they are one step closer.
If you’re looking for a sweet romance with a bit of mystery then pick up The Saint Who Stole My Heart. I will say I am VERY eager for the next book The Scoundrel Takes A Bride because I love Sophie and well, Nicholas intrigues me. I do love the bad boys.
***review book provided by Netgalley***
As just a child, Dash discovered Lady Ashton’s body, a woman he considered to be like a mother to him. Now years later Dash Matthews, Viscount Carrington, is easily considered by ton to be the most beautiful man but he is a bit lacking in the brains department. Well, that’s what he wants everyone to think but in reality he is member of the Young Corinthians, a secret spy society and extremely smart. He hides his intelligence as a way to keep people away from his dangerous life especially as he takes on the task of finding Lady Ashton’s killer. That is until the bookish and voluptuous Elena Barnes shows up to collect his father’s books and he realizes what he’s missing.
Elena is all about collecting the books and heading back to Dorset. When she meets Dash she can’t help but be drawn to the blonde Adonis even in spite of his lack of intelligence. But as she gets to know him she starts to discover that Dash isn’t as dumb as he makes himself to be. When she stumbles upon a clue to the murder she can’t help but getting involved despite Dash’s attempts to protect her.
FAVORITE QUOTE:
Elena touched her lips with one hand, gently caressing where Dash’s lips had been but a moment before.
And then she slapped him hard across the cheek. “I will choose when I give myself completely, do you understand?”
“Of course,” Dash whispered, guilt and regret beginning to flood his senses.
“And I choose now.” Elena grabbed his lapels and pulled him against her, crushing her lips to his.
OVERALL:
This was my first Stefanie Sloane book (yes, yes I know! I’ve been living under a rock) but will most definitely not be my last. Now, this is the fourth book in the Regency Rogues series but it is a great starting point if you haven’t read the others because it focuses on a new set of Young Corinthians.
Dash is definitely on the top of my favorite hero list. I love that he wasn’t a rake and that he’s smart. Intelligence is sexy and plus he is very loyal to his friends and to Elena. I love Elena too. Usually the heroines annoy me but I liked her from the start. She knew who she was and wasn’t afraid to show it.
While there is a big mystery of trying to find Lady Ashton’s murderer, The Saint Who Stole My Heart focus is more on the romance between Dash and Elena. Yes, you get a bit of the mystery but it was nice to see the how the romance between them developed. And of course, the murderer hasn’t been caught but they are one step closer.
If you’re looking for a sweet romance with a bit of mystery then pick up The Saint Who Stole My Heart. I will say I am VERY eager for the next book The Scoundrel Takes A Bride because I love Sophie and well, Nicholas intrigues me. I do love the bad boys.
***review book provided by Netgalley***
April 10, 2012
We begin our adventure with Dash, Langdon and Nicholas teasing Sophia as young children. They are swept up in a game of who can sneak into the house the fastest without alerting the butler to their presence. Everything changes when they find Sophia’s mother dead at the bottom of the stairs. As adults this group is still close knit, but all having their own adventures and lives. Sophia asks Dash and Nicholas to find out what really happened to her mother and bring whoever did it to justice.
Bookish Elena rarely ventures too far from her father. But when the opportunity comes up to sort through a newly acquired book collection she in good conscience couldn’t say no – and trusts to very few to do the job as well as she knows she can. The moment she meets gorgeous Dash, Viscount Carrington, she realizes she might have made a very large mistake. Could she live in the same home (even temporarily) with this man?
I LOVED this book, not only does it feature one of my favorite type of heroines – the bookish bluestocking and a sexy hero who doesn’t know what he needs in his life until he falls in his lap. While Elena relishes knowledge and isn’t afraid to show just how smart she is, Dash hides his. He keeps his love of books and puzzles to himself, and everyone else at arms length. It takes Dash a while to realize that Elena is not only perfect for him, but that she can see right through the facade he’s so carefully put up over the years.
Would I recommend this book? Hell yes! This is probably one of my favorites of this series so far. I just adore the characters. Will I read more by this author? Darn right, I already have her next book “The Scoundrel Takes A Bride” on my wishlist and can’t wait to get my hands on it later this fall!
Bookish Elena rarely ventures too far from her father. But when the opportunity comes up to sort through a newly acquired book collection she in good conscience couldn’t say no – and trusts to very few to do the job as well as she knows she can. The moment she meets gorgeous Dash, Viscount Carrington, she realizes she might have made a very large mistake. Could she live in the same home (even temporarily) with this man?
I LOVED this book, not only does it feature one of my favorite type of heroines – the bookish bluestocking and a sexy hero who doesn’t know what he needs in his life until he falls in his lap. While Elena relishes knowledge and isn’t afraid to show just how smart she is, Dash hides his. He keeps his love of books and puzzles to himself, and everyone else at arms length. It takes Dash a while to realize that Elena is not only perfect for him, but that she can see right through the facade he’s so carefully put up over the years.
Would I recommend this book? Hell yes! This is probably one of my favorites of this series so far. I just adore the characters. Will I read more by this author? Darn right, I already have her next book “The Scoundrel Takes A Bride” on my wishlist and can’t wait to get my hands on it later this fall!
April 24, 2012
For Dashiell Matthews, Viscout Carrington, deception is a way of life.The role Dash plays in the clandestine spy agency known as The Young Corinthians easily fools society, but not Miss Elena Barnes. The intelligent beauty's uncanny ability to see through his ruse of diminished intelligence jeopardizes not only his cat and mouse game with an elusive killer called The Bishop, but threatens to steal his heart, as well.
A life outside the sparking realm of London's ton suits Elena Barnes just fine until her father inherits a highly coveted collection of books. She enters the noxious social whirl intent upon acquiring the tomes and returning to the country posthaste, but the extremely handsome and intriguing Dash compromises her plans. When she discovers the truth behind his vapid facade, Elena gambles her life to help the man who valiantly stole her heart.
THE SAINT WHO STOLE MY HEART is the latest addition to Stefanie Sloane's Regency Rogues Series. The chemistry between Dash and Elena make for one-passion packed tale of danger, intrigue, and romance. A true must-read for all Regency romance fans!
A life outside the sparking realm of London's ton suits Elena Barnes just fine until her father inherits a highly coveted collection of books. She enters the noxious social whirl intent upon acquiring the tomes and returning to the country posthaste, but the extremely handsome and intriguing Dash compromises her plans. When she discovers the truth behind his vapid facade, Elena gambles her life to help the man who valiantly stole her heart.
THE SAINT WHO STOLE MY HEART is the latest addition to Stefanie Sloane's Regency Rogues Series. The chemistry between Dash and Elena make for one-passion packed tale of danger, intrigue, and romance. A true must-read for all Regency romance fans!
June 6, 2012
I like Stephanie Sloan stories. This book is a part of a series...I am addicted to series. The only problem with them is that I forget the story by the time the next installment is published. Yea! for Goodreads. I can refresh my memory by reading the reviews of the preceding books. It is better than the author bringing me up to date during the story. This is Dash's story...and Elena's. We still have not caught the villain, the Bishop. There is a hint in this installment of the existence of a King. The only downside of this story is the quick transition of Dash from the nitwit to the intelligent rogue that falls in love at first sight with Elena, the plain Jane blue stocking. The moment was so quick that it didn't seem realist. Otherwise, it was a good installment that kept me waiting for the next one...Nicholas! hmmmmmm?
June 12, 2015
Nice story. The heroine is a too-smart-for-her-own-good bluestocking who comes to London to pack up a library willed to her baron father. The hero is the son of the book-owner, and a viscount. But he's involved in government work and/ or investigating the murder of a childhood friend's mother-- I'm sure about the murder investigation, but not so much the government work-- anyway, one or both of those are why he pretends to be dimwitted for the heroine. Of course they are attracted to each other, but he's dim, apparently. I never was sure why she changed her mind about him in the middle-ish of the book. Didn't really make sense to me, but she does and they make whoopee in a carriage, and the mystery gives them some adventures, and they fall in love and the bad guy dies before telling them who he worked for so other stories can follow, the end. It's a nice read.
May 4, 2012
I found a new author :) Engaging leads, a mystery that wraps up nicely with more for the next book. Who can ask for more? I can. The book got off to a smashingly slow start and the prose was somewhat stilted in the first chapter but smoothed itself out afterwards, hence the four stars. Also, the romance was a little choppy towards the end, between the consummation and the declaration of love, as if the author had deleted the morning after scene. Other than that, quite lovely.
June 5, 2020
Here are the reasons I gave this book two stars.
Dash is supposed to be brilliant but is pretending to be stupid. I didn’t feel the author was successful in showing that.
Rowena, Elena’s maid/friend, calls Elena “Miss.” I could maybe understand this in public, but in private?
Dash and Elena have sex in their carriage the first time. Elena first pretends to be outraged and slaps Dash, then jumps him. Dash picks Elena’s first time to be in a carriage? And they manage to strip naked and redress in a moving carriage with the amount of clothing they wore back then? It stretched the limits of my imagination.
Rowena is kidnapped. Elena decides that her relationship with Dash distracted her from keeping Rowena safe. Really? Since when is it the role of a lady to monitor their staff? Rowena is an adult. Elena warned her that a man who kept crossing their path was dangerous and not to be trusted. Knowing this, Rowena accepted a meeting with this man which landed her in a brothel. Elena saved her. So Elena’s ridiculous guilt is used to place a rift between her and Dash. It just doesn’t fly.
The murder of Dash’s childhood friend’s mother is not solved. I believe this is a trilogy. But there’s nothing on the book’s cover, back or front, to tell you this is a continued story.
Lastly, I hate when the cover misrepresents the characters. Does the publisher not care enough about the book to give the illustrator a description of the hero and heroine? Very lazy.
Dash is supposed to be brilliant but is pretending to be stupid. I didn’t feel the author was successful in showing that.
Rowena, Elena’s maid/friend, calls Elena “Miss.” I could maybe understand this in public, but in private?
Dash and Elena have sex in their carriage the first time. Elena first pretends to be outraged and slaps Dash, then jumps him. Dash picks Elena’s first time to be in a carriage? And they manage to strip naked and redress in a moving carriage with the amount of clothing they wore back then? It stretched the limits of my imagination.
Rowena is kidnapped. Elena decides that her relationship with Dash distracted her from keeping Rowena safe. Really? Since when is it the role of a lady to monitor their staff? Rowena is an adult. Elena warned her that a man who kept crossing their path was dangerous and not to be trusted. Knowing this, Rowena accepted a meeting with this man which landed her in a brothel. Elena saved her. So Elena’s ridiculous guilt is used to place a rift between her and Dash. It just doesn’t fly.
The murder of Dash’s childhood friend’s mother is not solved. I believe this is a trilogy. But there’s nothing on the book’s cover, back or front, to tell you this is a continued story.
Lastly, I hate when the cover misrepresents the characters. Does the publisher not care enough about the book to give the illustrator a description of the hero and heroine? Very lazy.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 2, 2023
Possessed of a brilliant mind and a love for puzzles, Dashiell Matthews, Viscount Carrington, is a crucial member of the elite Young Corinthians spy league. Assuming the façade of an addle-brained Adonis, he hunts for a notorious London murderer known as the Bishop. When fate causes him to cross paths with Miss Elena Barnes, Dash discovers an enigma that will prove delightfully intoxicating to unravel: a voluptuous beauty as intelligent as she is fearless.
Only the lure of a collection of rare books bequeathed to her family by Dash’s late father could tempt Elena from her cozy rural life to the crush and vanity of London. But if Elena finds his lordship to be the most impossibly beautiful man she’s ever seen, he also seems to be the stupidest. Which made her body’s shameless response to his masterful seduction all the more unfathomable. Yet when she discovers Dash’s mission to track the dangerous Bishop, she willingly risks everything—her trust, her heart, her very life—to join him.
An interesting mystery with a bit too much melodrama for me but it kept me reading wanting to know who done it and why as well as just the right amount of romance/sex to keep me going! There is plenty of action and mystery tokeep the interest and I love a story that has intelligent characters!
Only the lure of a collection of rare books bequeathed to her family by Dash’s late father could tempt Elena from her cozy rural life to the crush and vanity of London. But if Elena finds his lordship to be the most impossibly beautiful man she’s ever seen, he also seems to be the stupidest. Which made her body’s shameless response to his masterful seduction all the more unfathomable. Yet when she discovers Dash’s mission to track the dangerous Bishop, she willingly risks everything—her trust, her heart, her very life—to join him.
An interesting mystery with a bit too much melodrama for me but it kept me reading wanting to know who done it and why as well as just the right amount of romance/sex to keep me going! There is plenty of action and mystery tokeep the interest and I love a story that has intelligent characters!
January 2, 2019
One of those random "I have three minutes in the library so sure" grabs that doesn't know quite what it wants to be and has a few too many threads going on for me to bother trying to keep them straight. Is it a mystery, a romance, a feminist novel, or all three? It's each of those poorly. AND YET, the mystery is juuuust interesting enough that I might seek out the next book. MIGHT.
September 23, 2012
Fabulous characters and a sweet, charming romance make Stefanie Sloane's THE SAINT WHO STOLE MY HEART a great historical read. Add a touch of mystery and suspense and you have a strong addition to the Regency Rogues series.
Elena Barnes cannot resist the lure of an ancient book collection...even if she has to travel to the home of Dashiell Matthews, Viscount Carrington to retrieve it. Elena's first impression of Dash is laughable, at best. The poor man appears to be a half-witted Viscount, but he is undeniably handsome and Elena cannot deny her attraction to him. Yet the more time she spends with Dash, the more she realizes his demeanor is just a facade. He is really a brilliant member of the Young Corinthians spy league working to solve the murder of his friend's mother.
When a cruel injustice happens to one of Elena's closest friend, she does everything she can to ensure the man is punished. As Dash and Elena's path cross to crush this evil villain, they must work together to ensure their victory. With everything on the line, Elena and Dash must decide if they are willing to risk their lives, their future...and most importantly, their hearts. While neither one is well versed in matters of the heart, they may find risking their love is too high a price to pay.
One thing easy to fall in love with in this novel are the characters, Elena and Dash. Dash maintains a charming charade of being a little on the slow side and it was very adorable. What made this characteristic even more adorable is when Elena wormed her way towards the truth. She quickly discovers that he is far more intelligent than he leads people to believe. He also has a suave sensibility that came very naturally and was incredibly sexy. He could seduce anyone, but reading about him seducing Elena was so much more fun.
Then you have Elena, and I have to say that I simply loved her. She was the strong and fierce bluestocking heroine with a mind of her own. While Dash sought to hide his intelligence, Elena did the exact opposite. She had a strong personality, and an amazing compassionate nature that made her the perfect heroine for this story. Her connection to Dash is fantastic and really makes this story worthwhile.
While I loved the romance in THE SAINT WHO STOLE MY HEART, I found a few issues with the match between Elena and Dash. First of all, it develops rather quickly. The advancement of their feelings is done more internally when they were apart and not really through scenes when they are together. I felt like I did not get as many pages or scenes of them together as I would have liked. Parts of the novel were extremely sweet and by the end it felt like a great historical romance. I would have loved more details about their developing relationship. Still, what is presented in this novel is fantastic. These two are the perfect couple and it's hard not to adore the romantic moments they share together.
THE SAINT WHO STOLE MY HEART was a truly enjoyable read. I found Stefanie Sloane's novel very difficult to put down because I easily became attached to these characters and their journey. Not only do you have a sweet romance, but the novel has great amounts of suspense and drama as Elena and Dash work to solve the mystery concerning the villain known as The Bishop. Some questions are resolved in this novel, but many are left unanswered which in this case I can't complain about. Mainly because there was a particular secondary character that I became fascinated with and am now curious about his own happily ever after!
THE SAINT WHO STOLE MY HEART is book four in the Regency Rogues series, but you do not have to read them in order to enjoy this installment. It can easily be read as a stand alone. This was the first novel I have read by Ms Sloane and not once was I confused or lost because of complicated story lines from previous novels.
All in all, Ms Sloane has a unique voice that allows you into her addictive Regency world where you never want to leave. With character like Elena and Dash and drama that keeps you turning the pages, THE SAINT WHO STOLE MY HEART is sure to posses enough magic and appeal to steal your heart.
Lisa Jo @ The Romance Reviews
March 9, 2016
I have this absolute love of The Scarlet Pimpernel, particularly the 1982 movie starring Anthony Andrews, Ian McKellan and Jane Seymour. Because of this obsession, I can never resist books that are based or inspired by The Scarlet Pimpernel, which is why I picked up this book. Unfortunately the Scarlet-Pimpernel inspired books I’ve read rarely live up to my expectations. The Saint Who Stole My Heart by Stefanie Sloane just couldn’t live up to my expectations, and really left me quite disappointed.
The basic premise: Dash is gorgeous, so all of society thinks he’s an idiot and while Dash has never gone out of his way to correct these silly assumptions, he’s certainly never gone out of his way to play the fool either. He decides to investigate the murder of his friend’s mother (years after it happened) , which is very dangerous. At the same time. Elena has come to Dash’s home because his deceased father left all his books to Elena and her father. Because Dash worries about Elena’s safety, he decides to act the fool so she books it from his house quickly. Such a silly premise, really.
Here are my problems with this:
Why society things Dash is an idiot simply because he’s gorgeous is beyond me. I mean, this makes no sense, especially when the character is a man. Maybe I could have believed it if the character was a woman, because, let’s face it, it doesn’t take much for people to think less of women, especially in this time period. But for Dash, I just couldn’t buy it.
And then when Elena shows up. Elena is a smart, well-read young woman. She’s intelligent. She reads all the time. She shows up thinking that Dash in stupid, and although he attempts to act that way, he really does a terrible job. So I couldn’t understand why Elena kept thinking that Dash was a fool. I just didn’t understand that. There is even a time when Dash’s relative (who I really liked) told Elena that Dash was really intelligent, but she didn’t believe her. And all I could think was, “why not!? What has Dash done that would make you think he is such an idiot?” It was so frustrating.
Another issue was that I thought this book was down-right dull. I kept thinking that suspenseful things would happen, but really, it was such a slow story, and I never got really excited to read it.
The Saint Who Stole My Heart by Stefanie Sloane just didn’t work for me. The premise just wasn’t written well, in my opinion, and the story was really quite bland. And while I did actually like Dash, his aunt, and Elena, it wasn’t enough to make me invested in their lives. If you want a good Scarlet Pimpernel story, I recommend Across a Star-Swept Sea by Diana Peterfreund. It’s the best one out there, I think.This review was originally posted on Quinn's Book Nook
The basic premise: Dash is gorgeous, so all of society thinks he’s an idiot and while Dash has never gone out of his way to correct these silly assumptions, he’s certainly never gone out of his way to play the fool either. He decides to investigate the murder of his friend’s mother (years after it happened) , which is very dangerous. At the same time. Elena has come to Dash’s home because his deceased father left all his books to Elena and her father. Because Dash worries about Elena’s safety, he decides to act the fool so she books it from his house quickly. Such a silly premise, really.
Here are my problems with this:
Why society things Dash is an idiot simply because he’s gorgeous is beyond me. I mean, this makes no sense, especially when the character is a man. Maybe I could have believed it if the character was a woman, because, let’s face it, it doesn’t take much for people to think less of women, especially in this time period. But for Dash, I just couldn’t buy it.
And then when Elena shows up. Elena is a smart, well-read young woman. She’s intelligent. She reads all the time. She shows up thinking that Dash in stupid, and although he attempts to act that way, he really does a terrible job. So I couldn’t understand why Elena kept thinking that Dash was a fool. I just didn’t understand that. There is even a time when Dash’s relative (who I really liked) told Elena that Dash was really intelligent, but she didn’t believe her. And all I could think was, “why not!? What has Dash done that would make you think he is such an idiot?” It was so frustrating.
Another issue was that I thought this book was down-right dull. I kept thinking that suspenseful things would happen, but really, it was such a slow story, and I never got really excited to read it.
The Saint Who Stole My Heart by Stefanie Sloane just didn’t work for me. The premise just wasn’t written well, in my opinion, and the story was really quite bland. And while I did actually like Dash, his aunt, and Elena, it wasn’t enough to make me invested in their lives. If you want a good Scarlet Pimpernel story, I recommend Across a Star-Swept Sea by Diana Peterfreund. It’s the best one out there, I think.This review was originally posted on Quinn's Book Nook
March 21, 2013
Reviewed by: Sarah L
Book provided by: Netgalley
Review originally posted at Romancing the Book
Review: The Saint Who Stole My Heart is book 4 in Stefanie Sloane’s Regency Rogues series. I was a bit hesitant to pick this up since I prefer to read a series in order and I have not read the first 3 books. No worries though. This book does very well as a standalone.
The main character Dash is an interesting gentleman. Even though he has a face and body that would make a woman swoon, he portrays himself as simple-minded and deliberately masks his supreme intelligence as part of his efforts to safe guard his secret of being a Young Corinthian spy. Elena on the other hand makes no secret of her intelligence and shows insecurity with not recognizing that she is in fact beautiful on both the inside and outside.
While I enjoyed getting to know both Dash and Elena, the romance portion of the story was very slow with most of their courtship apparently conducted “behind the scenes”. In fact, the entire book in general moved a bit on the slow side. I found myself easily distracted and had a hard time staying focused. Some of the scenes seemed to start and stop abruptly and immediately shifted focus to something or someone else which resulted in a lot of backtracking to reorient myself. For example, it is late at night and Elena cannot sleep so she goes wandering and ends up in the gallery where she stumbles onto Dash. Among other things, they are discussing why she cannot sleep and then the story immediately cuts to Elena, Dash and Lady Mowbray at the breakfast table.
Overall, the plot and characters held a lot of great promise, but with the abrupt scene changes and feeling like some of the scenes were lacking key information, it was just too much work to stay focused and involved.
Book provided by: Netgalley
Review originally posted at Romancing the Book
Review: The Saint Who Stole My Heart is book 4 in Stefanie Sloane’s Regency Rogues series. I was a bit hesitant to pick this up since I prefer to read a series in order and I have not read the first 3 books. No worries though. This book does very well as a standalone.
The main character Dash is an interesting gentleman. Even though he has a face and body that would make a woman swoon, he portrays himself as simple-minded and deliberately masks his supreme intelligence as part of his efforts to safe guard his secret of being a Young Corinthian spy. Elena on the other hand makes no secret of her intelligence and shows insecurity with not recognizing that she is in fact beautiful on both the inside and outside.
While I enjoyed getting to know both Dash and Elena, the romance portion of the story was very slow with most of their courtship apparently conducted “behind the scenes”. In fact, the entire book in general moved a bit on the slow side. I found myself easily distracted and had a hard time staying focused. Some of the scenes seemed to start and stop abruptly and immediately shifted focus to something or someone else which resulted in a lot of backtracking to reorient myself. For example, it is late at night and Elena cannot sleep so she goes wandering and ends up in the gallery where she stumbles onto Dash. Among other things, they are discussing why she cannot sleep and then the story immediately cuts to Elena, Dash and Lady Mowbray at the breakfast table.
Overall, the plot and characters held a lot of great promise, but with the abrupt scene changes and feeling like some of the scenes were lacking key information, it was just too much work to stay focused and involved.
Read
June 1, 2012Reading through the Regency Rogues series this month has been a roller coaster for me and not the most pleasant ride if I’m honest. I will give the author credit in that each story has a very good idea behind it, starting off with great potential for drama, intrigue, and a satisfying conclusion. But of the four books currently released in the series, only one really paid off from this great beginning to a great ending. Unfortunately The Saint Who Stole My Heart wasn’t that book.
I wanted to like the character of Dashiell Matthews. He’s a gifted and intelligent man who has devoted his life to the cause of England’s war efforts. He uses his mind to gather information for the Young Corinthians, cracking codes of the enemy, translating documents, and keeping secrets. He also happens to be an Adonis of a man, having one of those faces that women just swoon over. I really loved the idea that he used his appearance as a shield so that people never realized that he was spying on them. Everyone in society just assumed that as a handsome man there could never be a mind underneath it all. But the author only shows Dash using that shield once or twice, and mainly to the detriment of the heroine and his relationship with her. Otherwise we see him as the master spy that he really is, so I couldn’t buy that society could ever think he was stupid. I recently read another book that had a handsome man playing the fool, and that author did it so much better.
For the full review, please go to http://thewindowseat13.blogspot.com/2...
I wanted to like the character of Dashiell Matthews. He’s a gifted and intelligent man who has devoted his life to the cause of England’s war efforts. He uses his mind to gather information for the Young Corinthians, cracking codes of the enemy, translating documents, and keeping secrets. He also happens to be an Adonis of a man, having one of those faces that women just swoon over. I really loved the idea that he used his appearance as a shield so that people never realized that he was spying on them. Everyone in society just assumed that as a handsome man there could never be a mind underneath it all. But the author only shows Dash using that shield once or twice, and mainly to the detriment of the heroine and his relationship with her. Otherwise we see him as the master spy that he really is, so I couldn’t buy that society could ever think he was stupid. I recently read another book that had a handsome man playing the fool, and that author did it so much better.
For the full review, please go to http://thewindowseat13.blogspot.com/2...
April 11, 2012
3.5 Stars
With the opening scene being a murder scene you might expect The Saint Who Stole My Heart to be a mystery, thriller, who-done-it type of book. And there is some of that, but mostly you get a great love story between a book loving woman and a danger courting man. Could two people seemingly so different have anything in common or any attraction?
No question there is attraction between Dash and Elena. He is one of those impossibly perfect men, the face of a god. Thankfully he has more to him than his vapid personality suggests, there are some serious brains and balls of steel being carefully hidden. As for Elena, she is a voluptuous woman with a brain in her head in a time when neither were considered desirable in a woman. Good thing Dash isn’t conventional or follow trends of the ton.
Underneath the love story that slowly blossoms is a murder mystery. Throughout the book you get little clues here and there as Dash and his friend Nicholas follow leads. Solving the case is personal for both of them, and you get wrapped up in their need for revenge. Sloane gives enough completion for a nice ending, but also some big questions unanswered to leave you hanging. Sloane not only writes clever characters but she is one herself, you will want to read the next Regency Rogues book to find out if they get their answers and revenge.
Review to be posted at Reading Between the Wines.
With the opening scene being a murder scene you might expect The Saint Who Stole My Heart to be a mystery, thriller, who-done-it type of book. And there is some of that, but mostly you get a great love story between a book loving woman and a danger courting man. Could two people seemingly so different have anything in common or any attraction?
No question there is attraction between Dash and Elena. He is one of those impossibly perfect men, the face of a god. Thankfully he has more to him than his vapid personality suggests, there are some serious brains and balls of steel being carefully hidden. As for Elena, she is a voluptuous woman with a brain in her head in a time when neither were considered desirable in a woman. Good thing Dash isn’t conventional or follow trends of the ton.
Underneath the love story that slowly blossoms is a murder mystery. Throughout the book you get little clues here and there as Dash and his friend Nicholas follow leads. Solving the case is personal for both of them, and you get wrapped up in their need for revenge. Sloane gives enough completion for a nice ending, but also some big questions unanswered to leave you hanging. Sloane not only writes clever characters but she is one herself, you will want to read the next Regency Rogues book to find out if they get their answers and revenge.
Review to be posted at Reading Between the Wines.
January 20, 2015
This was another one I bought in a mad dash of new authors. I did not realize when I purchased that it was #4 in a series, or I would have stopped and bought number 1 instead. It doesn't really matter as I will not read anymore. The plot jerked along, alternating between 100mph and a crawl. I didn't believe the relationship between the two main characters, which is a death knell for me with squishy books. I can suspend reality, history and common sense if I buy the relationship - that was something I could not do here. When I read the introduction, I thought the female lead would be someone completely different. This book was heavily influenced by the mystery that must hold the series together. The mystery is always my least favorite part and it was everywhere in this book.
*Also, I HATE the cover and the title made absolutely no sense in relation to the story... two more things that will set me off when it comes to squishy books.
*Also, I HATE the cover and the title made absolutely no sense in relation to the story... two more things that will set me off when it comes to squishy books.
May 13, 2012
I liked the characters, the story was good, but I just didn't find the love story as compelling as the previous books in the series. This is a continuation of the series, but with a different set of related characters. Dash was an OK hero, intelligent and charming while Elena was also quite smart and rather fearless. Together they were intriguingly brilliant but it didn't make their love story any more interesting.
I did like the premise of the start of these new three related stories, with the opening scene of Lady Afton's murder and what it meant to the Young Corinthians as well as to the children. As Dash and Elena are drawn into this part of the mystery, the story picked up a lot and I was engaged.
I am definitely looking forward to the next two books and will be reading them as soon as they are available.
-copy received from author for review
I did like the premise of the start of these new three related stories, with the opening scene of Lady Afton's murder and what it meant to the Young Corinthians as well as to the children. As Dash and Elena are drawn into this part of the mystery, the story picked up a lot and I was engaged.
I am definitely looking forward to the next two books and will be reading them as soon as they are available.
-copy received from author for review
April 20, 2012
This book continues in the vein of the earlier trilogy of the Young Corinthians spy unit, but a very enjoyable read on its own. The hero and heroine are both my favorite types, very intelligent. There was a mystery to solve and a villain to catch. Characters are introduced in this book that are sure to be the h/h in the following books in the series, and I'm eagerly waiting for them.
January 22, 2015
While I liked the female lead more in this book then the others, the story in this book didn't feel full. It felt like there should have been more to it. I also found it hard to believe at the end when Dash was just like I am over it, the justice we got is good enough for me. But I overall enjoyed this and am still enjoying this series. The stories are always fun romantic romps.
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