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Men from Special Branch #5
Shady Lady
Bestselling author Elizabeth Thornton weaves a tale of seduction, love, intrigue—and the most dangerous of romances.
As the Avon Journal ’s no-nonsense publisher, Jolie Chesney always sticks to the facts. And the fact is that she finds the celebrated war hero who comes to her office angrily demanding a retraction unsettlingly charismatic. Waldo Bowman’s wild sexual exploits have found their way into the paper’s gossip column, and Jo has no intention of compromising her standards, journalistic or otherwise. But when her star reporter suspiciously vanishes, Jo seeks help from this dangerously sensual man, whose connection to the Special Branch may save her friend’s life, even if it means putting her own life—and heart—on the line.
Waldo Bowman senses danger in his instant attraction to Jo. Beautiful and independent, she is unlike any woman he knows—and he’s determined not to lose her, whatever the risk. For soon, these reluctant lovers will embark on a mystery that will either change their lives—or end them.
As the Avon Journal ’s no-nonsense publisher, Jolie Chesney always sticks to the facts. And the fact is that she finds the celebrated war hero who comes to her office angrily demanding a retraction unsettlingly charismatic. Waldo Bowman’s wild sexual exploits have found their way into the paper’s gossip column, and Jo has no intention of compromising her standards, journalistic or otherwise. But when her star reporter suspiciously vanishes, Jo seeks help from this dangerously sensual man, whose connection to the Special Branch may save her friend’s life, even if it means putting her own life—and heart—on the line.
Waldo Bowman senses danger in his instant attraction to Jo. Beautiful and independent, she is unlike any woman he knows—and he’s determined not to lose her, whatever the risk. For soon, these reluctant lovers will embark on a mystery that will either change their lives—or end them.
374 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2004
12 people are currently reading
152 people want to read
About the author
Elizabeth Thornton
61 books154 followersMary Forrest George, née Baxter was born and educated in Aberdeen, Scotland, where she taught school for a number of years before establishing her own nursery school, St. Swithin Street Nursery School, an institution that is still going strong today.
She and her husband then emigrated to Canada with their three young sons. She taught kindergarten and Grade One for a number of years in Winnipeg, Manitoba, before becoming lay minister at a Presbyterian Church in Winnipeg.
As part of her continuing education, she enrolled in evening classes at the University of Winnipeg to study Classical Greek. Five years later, having completed an Honor's thesis on Women in Euripides, she received her B.A. (Classics Gold Medalist).
After reading her first romance, a Regency by Georgette Heyer, she was captivated by the genre. Hereafter, writing became her hobby. In 1987, her first book, a small Regency entitled, Bluestocking Bride, was published by Zebra books.
She is the author of twenty-four historical romances, and two novellas. She has been nominated for and received many awards including the Romantic Times Trophy Award for the best New Historical Regency Author and Best Historical Regency. Seven of her novels have been finalists in the Romance Writers of America Rita awards, Scarlet Angel, Strangers at Dawn, Princess Charming and The Perfect Princess, Shady Lady, The Marriage Trap, and The Bachelor Trap. Her books appear regularly on national best-selling lists and have been translated into many languages.
Elizabeth's hobbies include reading (particularly mystery and suspense novels, biography, and history), and traveling to do research for her novels. She is also an avid Harry Potter enthusiast.
She and her husband then emigrated to Canada with their three young sons. She taught kindergarten and Grade One for a number of years in Winnipeg, Manitoba, before becoming lay minister at a Presbyterian Church in Winnipeg.
As part of her continuing education, she enrolled in evening classes at the University of Winnipeg to study Classical Greek. Five years later, having completed an Honor's thesis on Women in Euripides, she received her B.A. (Classics Gold Medalist).
After reading her first romance, a Regency by Georgette Heyer, she was captivated by the genre. Hereafter, writing became her hobby. In 1987, her first book, a small Regency entitled, Bluestocking Bride, was published by Zebra books.
She is the author of twenty-four historical romances, and two novellas. She has been nominated for and received many awards including the Romantic Times Trophy Award for the best New Historical Regency Author and Best Historical Regency. Seven of her novels have been finalists in the Romance Writers of America Rita awards, Scarlet Angel, Strangers at Dawn, Princess Charming and The Perfect Princess, Shady Lady, The Marriage Trap, and The Bachelor Trap. Her books appear regularly on national best-selling lists and have been translated into many languages.
Elizabeth's hobbies include reading (particularly mystery and suspense novels, biography, and history), and traveling to do research for her novels. She is also an avid Harry Potter enthusiast.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
February 4, 2016
Elizabeth Thornton has been a hit-and-miss author for me, with the misses probably exceeding the hits. But this book is definitely a hit.
Mrs. Jo Chesney is a widow who has taken over her late husband's weekly newspaper and turned it into a going concern. A popular column in the weekly is "Lady Tellall's" society gossip column. When the book opens, Chloe, who is "Lady Tellall", appears to be in a very dangerous situation, apparently due to something she wrote in the column. She manages to write a cryptic note to Jo before she disappears and a few weeks later is feared to be murdered. The story is about Jo's search for Chloe. Jo is aided in the search, almost against her wishes, by a society gentleman, Mr. Waldo Bowman, whom she met when he invaded her office because he, too, was upset about something that was written about him in Lady Tellall's column. Waldo, of course, becomes smitten with Jo and can't keep away from her, while she takes a good while coming around to admitting her feelings for him after the initial bad impression she had of him. There is also a child in the story, an orphan of uncertain parentage who has to be rescued from a brutal school headmaster. Waldo's care of the boy goes a long way toward redeeming him in Jo's eyes.
The mystery is good, the characters are sympathetic and well-drawn, the story has a strong historical feel, and even though Jo is characterized as being hot-tempered, she is definitely not TSTL (which I've found too often with the heroines of Elizabeth Thornton's books). Waldo is an alpha hero, but a very nice one. I can certainly recommend this one to lovers of Regency romance with a bit of mystery on the side.
Mrs. Jo Chesney is a widow who has taken over her late husband's weekly newspaper and turned it into a going concern. A popular column in the weekly is "Lady Tellall's" society gossip column. When the book opens, Chloe, who is "Lady Tellall", appears to be in a very dangerous situation, apparently due to something she wrote in the column. She manages to write a cryptic note to Jo before she disappears and a few weeks later is feared to be murdered. The story is about Jo's search for Chloe. Jo is aided in the search, almost against her wishes, by a society gentleman, Mr. Waldo Bowman, whom she met when he invaded her office because he, too, was upset about something that was written about him in Lady Tellall's column. Waldo, of course, becomes smitten with Jo and can't keep away from her, while she takes a good while coming around to admitting her feelings for him after the initial bad impression she had of him. There is also a child in the story, an orphan of uncertain parentage who has to be rescued from a brutal school headmaster. Waldo's care of the boy goes a long way toward redeeming him in Jo's eyes.
The mystery is good, the characters are sympathetic and well-drawn, the story has a strong historical feel, and even though Jo is characterized as being hot-tempered, she is definitely not TSTL (which I've found too often with the heroines of Elizabeth Thornton's books). Waldo is an alpha hero, but a very nice one. I can certainly recommend this one to lovers of Regency romance with a bit of mystery on the side.
July 20, 2008
This actually was a good book. Revisited by secondary characters from "Almost a Princess".
Jolie Chesney a publisher for a Journal and Waldo Bowman who is a special agent for the Special Branch are the main characters in this book. Jo is a widow who still adores her departed husband and carries on the Journal in his memory. Waldo's name has been mentioned in the Journal and he comes to her office angrily demanding a retraction for some unsettlingly charismatic remarks that have found their way into the Journal about him.
Waldo has an immediate attraction to Jolie. She is determined to find her friend who is actualy behind the writings in her paper who has disappeared. She just may need Waldo's help.
Jolie Chesney a publisher for a Journal and Waldo Bowman who is a special agent for the Special Branch are the main characters in this book. Jo is a widow who still adores her departed husband and carries on the Journal in his memory. Waldo's name has been mentioned in the Journal and he comes to her office angrily demanding a retraction for some unsettlingly charismatic remarks that have found their way into the Journal about him.
Waldo has an immediate attraction to Jolie. She is determined to find her friend who is actualy behind the writings in her paper who has disappeared. She just may need Waldo's help.
February 23, 2020
The heroine in this is tiresome, the hero is a cardboard cut out of a Peninsula soldier. The plot is absolutely unbelievable, but I did like the hero's family and their political differences.
July 6, 2009
An enjoyable read, but not one that lingers with me. I finished it three days ago and can't remember too much about it. That's sad.
Oh, wait. I remember. The heroine owned a newspaper and the hero was a rake who took exception to being in the gossip pages. Now it's coming back to me. This was a good read except for a few things that bothered me.
1. The hero's name was Waldo.
2. The hero had to carry a cane as the result of an old war injury. Now, this is all fine and good, but what really irked me is that Waldo's limp and the cane had no impact on the story. He walked, ran, fought, he did everything without the limp/cane hindering him. The heroine, Jo, even commented that he 'moved so quickly, even with a cane'. Plus, when we were in Waldo's POV, his limp never, ever hurt or bothered him. It feels like the author threw in the cane just for a way to make Waldo interesting. It would have been MORE interesting if the cane and his old injury had been a challenge he had to overcome to get to Jo in time to save her. Author Linnea Sinclair did the injured hero thing in her book, HOPE'S FOLLY, and it worked beautifully and really added character depth.
3. I didn't like the title, SHADY LADY. I probably never would have picked this book up except that it was at the local library on the teeny tiny 'romance' shelf. 9/10ths of the shelf was filled with Boon and Mills books, which are the UK's equivalent to Harlequinn romances, so anything that wasn't B&M stood out.
Overall, I did enjoy the book, which was a relief as I'd started three other books which I didn't feel the spark to finish. I'm a little leery about trying other books by Elizabeth Thornton, though. After reading SHADY LADY, I read some Amazon reviews and it looks like many of her other books depend upon a lack of communication between hero and heroine to keep the story going. I can't stand this. If the conflict of a story can be solved just by H/h speaking to each other and not witholding information, then the conflict of the story isn't big enough for a novel, IMO.
Oh, wait. I remember. The heroine owned a newspaper and the hero was a rake who took exception to being in the gossip pages. Now it's coming back to me. This was a good read except for a few things that bothered me.
1. The hero's name was Waldo.
2. The hero had to carry a cane as the result of an old war injury. Now, this is all fine and good, but what really irked me is that Waldo's limp and the cane had no impact on the story. He walked, ran, fought, he did everything without the limp/cane hindering him. The heroine, Jo, even commented that he 'moved so quickly, even with a cane'. Plus, when we were in Waldo's POV, his limp never, ever hurt or bothered him. It feels like the author threw in the cane just for a way to make Waldo interesting. It would have been MORE interesting if the cane and his old injury had been a challenge he had to overcome to get to Jo in time to save her. Author Linnea Sinclair did the injured hero thing in her book, HOPE'S FOLLY, and it worked beautifully and really added character depth.
3. I didn't like the title, SHADY LADY. I probably never would have picked this book up except that it was at the local library on the teeny tiny 'romance' shelf. 9/10ths of the shelf was filled with Boon and Mills books, which are the UK's equivalent to Harlequinn romances, so anything that wasn't B&M stood out.
Overall, I did enjoy the book, which was a relief as I'd started three other books which I didn't feel the spark to finish. I'm a little leery about trying other books by Elizabeth Thornton, though. After reading SHADY LADY, I read some Amazon reviews and it looks like many of her other books depend upon a lack of communication between hero and heroine to keep the story going. I can't stand this. If the conflict of a story can be solved just by H/h speaking to each other and not witholding information, then the conflict of the story isn't big enough for a novel, IMO.
May 30, 2011
This author was great!!! Love when a Historical Romance has some mystery, murders, who done it, romance, sensual, has it all!!!!!!!!! A page turner
December 20, 2011
I only gave it a three star because I usually love this author and could not bring myself to only a two.
February 6, 2019
Shady Lady is the second book I've read by Elizabeth Thornton, and from my review of the first (Cherished), I think there could be one thing I might have to conclude on: Thornton's style of writing may just not be for me. I'm not, however, ready to give up on her yet. I own a lot -and I mean a lot- of her books, and there are sufficient elements and bits in both books I've read that I've liked, which makes me believe there might be loads of stories by her that I'll enjoy very very much, and I just haven't picked the right ones for me.
To simplify, I've made a list of the things I liked and disliked from Shady Lady.
What I liked:
+ The storyline. I thought the plot was interesting and refreshing. You have an obstinate widow who manages her own successful newspaper on a mission to find her lost friend, a determined rake that has made it his own task to protect her, and an unravelling mystery that binds these two together. I'll admit it was fairly predictable, but there were a few unexpected twists and turns.
+ The characters. As mentioned above, the two main characters had enough going on to keep you turning the pages. Waldo was honestly rather common, a lot like your usual Hero in a historical romance, but still very likeable. Jo was a bit more unusual and just as likeable. They were both well developed and shared good chemistry. The author did a good job with that. The secondary characters were also pretty good. During the first few chapters I thought I was going to hate having that Eric character around. I usually dislike children in romance novels as I feel they're generally depicted in an unrealistic way, but the truth is I quite liked Eric and what it brought to the story.
What I didn't like:
- The pace. I think this is the main reason why this book didn't get a higher rating from me. Although there were bits that I fully enjoyed, there were so many others that dragged and had me skimming through the pages. I hate it when there's too much explaining going on or when the author starts rambling about things that I consider inconsequential.
- The writing. It took me quite some time to get used to the author's writing. It was minor things like writing 'Jo said, 'Hello'' instead of ''Hello', said Jo', that annoyed me. There's nothing particularly wrong with her writing, its just not the style I'm most comfortable with. So instead of flowing it can sometimes feel heavy and slow for me. I also very frequently felt like she was forgetting the time period. The characters often used words or expressions that weren't befitting to the era.
In conclusion, if you don't mind a specific writing style or a tendency to ramble on a bit, I think the story has enough to keep you entertained.
I'll also like to point out that I thought Chloe’s character (Jo's friend) pretty interesting and I should like to read a book dedicated to her. I'm guessing Waldo's cousin, Thomas, might be the author's pick for her Hero? We'll have to find out.
To simplify, I've made a list of the things I liked and disliked from Shady Lady.
What I liked:
+ The storyline. I thought the plot was interesting and refreshing. You have an obstinate widow who manages her own successful newspaper on a mission to find her lost friend, a determined rake that has made it his own task to protect her, and an unravelling mystery that binds these two together. I'll admit it was fairly predictable, but there were a few unexpected twists and turns.
+ The characters. As mentioned above, the two main characters had enough going on to keep you turning the pages. Waldo was honestly rather common, a lot like your usual Hero in a historical romance, but still very likeable. Jo was a bit more unusual and just as likeable. They were both well developed and shared good chemistry. The author did a good job with that. The secondary characters were also pretty good. During the first few chapters I thought I was going to hate having that Eric character around. I usually dislike children in romance novels as I feel they're generally depicted in an unrealistic way, but the truth is I quite liked Eric and what it brought to the story.
What I didn't like:
- The pace. I think this is the main reason why this book didn't get a higher rating from me. Although there were bits that I fully enjoyed, there were so many others that dragged and had me skimming through the pages. I hate it when there's too much explaining going on or when the author starts rambling about things that I consider inconsequential.
- The writing. It took me quite some time to get used to the author's writing. It was minor things like writing 'Jo said, 'Hello'' instead of ''Hello', said Jo', that annoyed me. There's nothing particularly wrong with her writing, its just not the style I'm most comfortable with. So instead of flowing it can sometimes feel heavy and slow for me. I also very frequently felt like she was forgetting the time period. The characters often used words or expressions that weren't befitting to the era.
In conclusion, if you don't mind a specific writing style or a tendency to ramble on a bit, I think the story has enough to keep you entertained.
I'll also like to point out that I thought Chloe’s character (Jo's friend) pretty interesting and I should like to read a book dedicated to her. I'm guessing Waldo's cousin, Thomas, might be the author's pick for her Hero? We'll have to find out.
April 23, 2021
Bărbatul ştia cu precizie în ce moment o vorbă aruncată la întâmplare de unul dintre oaspeţi făcuse să se aprindă o luminiţă în memoria ei excelentă. Ceva i se putea citi în privire – nu bănuială, nici înţelegere. Un cuvânt mai potrivit ar fi fost speculaţie. O cunoştea pe Chloë. Îşi întipărise în minte informaţia, pentru mai târziu. Trebuia s-o ucidă înainte de a înţelege totul.
Nu-şi putea îngădui să-şi facă scrupule, şi nici să piardă vremea – mai ales acum. Trebuia s-o amuţească înainte de a-şi striga bănuielile în gura mare.
Era vremea să se ducă la culcare. Lacheii aşteptau cu lumânările pregătite ca să lumineze drumul până sus. Nimeni nu zăbovea. Petrecerea se sfârşise. Unii oaspeţi plecaseră deja. Câţiva, care rămăseseră, aveau bagajele făcute şi erau gata să pornească la drum a doua zi în zori.
Ajuns în camera lui, se întinse pe pat, îmbrăcat, cu mâinile sub ceafă, ascultând sunetele din casa care se pregătea pentru noapte. Aşteptă un ceas, apoi se ridică şi părăsi încăperea.
După ce concedie camerista, Chloë se aşeză la secreter, îşi deschise caietul şi începu să scrie impresii despre dineul care tocmai se terminase. Descrise lista de bucate, vesela, musafirii – cum fuseseră îmbrăcaţi, cum arătaseră şi ce spuseseră. Erau oameni influenţi, cu legături în cercurile înalte ale societăţii. Se cam lăudaseră cu aceşti prieteni, şi ea notă conştiincios acest lucru.
O conversaţie îndeosebi îi stăruia în minte, ceva ce spusese lady Langston. Când îşi aminti totul, puse tocul jos. Gândurile începură să i se învălmăşească cu repeziciune. Nu-i venea să creadă că era cu putinţă. Poate că o înşela memoria. Nu putea să acuze pe nimeni fără să verifice câteva fapte, însă dacă avea dreptate, însemna că se afla în pericol de moarte.
Cu câteva clipe înainte, îi fusese destul de cald. Acum simţea frigul până-n măduva oaselor.
Nu-şi putea îngădui să-şi facă scrupule, şi nici să piardă vremea – mai ales acum. Trebuia s-o amuţească înainte de a-şi striga bănuielile în gura mare.
Era vremea să se ducă la culcare. Lacheii aşteptau cu lumânările pregătite ca să lumineze drumul până sus. Nimeni nu zăbovea. Petrecerea se sfârşise. Unii oaspeţi plecaseră deja. Câţiva, care rămăseseră, aveau bagajele făcute şi erau gata să pornească la drum a doua zi în zori.
Ajuns în camera lui, se întinse pe pat, îmbrăcat, cu mâinile sub ceafă, ascultând sunetele din casa care se pregătea pentru noapte. Aşteptă un ceas, apoi se ridică şi părăsi încăperea.
După ce concedie camerista, Chloë se aşeză la secreter, îşi deschise caietul şi începu să scrie impresii despre dineul care tocmai se terminase. Descrise lista de bucate, vesela, musafirii – cum fuseseră îmbrăcaţi, cum arătaseră şi ce spuseseră. Erau oameni influenţi, cu legături în cercurile înalte ale societăţii. Se cam lăudaseră cu aceşti prieteni, şi ea notă conştiincios acest lucru.
O conversaţie îndeosebi îi stăruia în minte, ceva ce spusese lady Langston. Când îşi aminti totul, puse tocul jos. Gândurile începură să i se învălmăşească cu repeziciune. Nu-i venea să creadă că era cu putinţă. Poate că o înşela memoria. Nu putea să acuze pe nimeni fără să verifice câteva fapte, însă dacă avea dreptate, însemna că se afla în pericol de moarte.
Cu câteva clipe înainte, îi fusese destul de cald. Acum simţea frigul până-n măduva oaselor.
October 29, 2017
Average
Reasonable romance with average adventure and mystery combine in the last novel of the series. Nothing spectacular but if you have got this far you might as well finish the series. Generally enjoyable. 3 stars
Reasonable romance with average adventure and mystery combine in the last novel of the series. Nothing spectacular but if you have got this far you might as well finish the series. Generally enjoyable. 3 stars
June 28, 2023
England, 1800s. Jo’s friend Chloe goes missing. She is assisted by Waldo, the local “rake”. Parts of the book I found intriguing, but there was a lot of extra details that I found did nothing to add to the story—they just made the book unnecessarily longer.
June 29, 2017
My overall reaction? Meh. Not one of Thornton's better stories.
Jo was interesting to a degree (rebelling against the behavior modeled by her famous but neglectful parents), and realistic to a degree (initially not liking the kid who pelted her with eggs). Quite realistic in her anger at being duped by her dead husband and having no way to express that anger at him, so she projects it onto Waldo. ((Why such an awful name for our hero? Poor guy. Oh, I know; it was a typical man's name then, but still!))
She seems fairly well adjusted despite her parents' neglect; she clearly cares about children, probably because she was neglected as a child. She has the requisite fiery temper. (Why all fiery-tempered heroines must have red hair, I don't know; it would be nice to see one with brunette hair for once.)
We're told that Waldo is a ladies' man though he seems kind of blah to me. Probably just as well; they can't all be tall, dark and handsome. He comes from a happy, well-to-do London family, no real problems other than his gammy leg to trip him up. (Ha--couldn't resist.;)
I soon grew tired of Jo fighting Waldo about everything, though, and esp. tired of her constantly comparing him to her dead husband (who turned out to have been not such a saint after all). I felt like shouting "Wake up, woman! Thank your lucky stars that an attractive, intelligent, compassionate man loves you!" Because for someone so smart, she really was a blockhead when it came to love. But then I forget that she is still pretty young, as are most Regency romance heroines.
I've obviously become more jaded as I've grown older--maybe it's time to stop reading this genre and find books with heroines my age. But who am I kidding? Are there any? About real women who aren't fabulously wealthy, who don't live in NYC or London or Paris?
But pardon the digression. Jo's friend who is missing for most of the book is the best type of friend, someone who grounds Jo and gives her the figurative whack upside the head I refer to earlier.
Details about the villain were a bit sketchy, but we can't have everything. His poor, depressed, sedated mother finally gets her own happy ending after his denouement. If anyone deserved a break, she did. (Thanks, Elizabeth!)
Jo was interesting to a degree (rebelling against the behavior modeled by her famous but neglectful parents), and realistic to a degree (initially not liking the kid who pelted her with eggs). Quite realistic in her anger at being duped by her dead husband and having no way to express that anger at him, so she projects it onto Waldo. ((Why such an awful name for our hero? Poor guy. Oh, I know; it was a typical man's name then, but still!))
She seems fairly well adjusted despite her parents' neglect; she clearly cares about children, probably because she was neglected as a child. She has the requisite fiery temper. (Why all fiery-tempered heroines must have red hair, I don't know; it would be nice to see one with brunette hair for once.)
We're told that Waldo is a ladies' man though he seems kind of blah to me. Probably just as well; they can't all be tall, dark and handsome. He comes from a happy, well-to-do London family, no real problems other than his gammy leg to trip him up. (Ha--couldn't resist.;)
I soon grew tired of Jo fighting Waldo about everything, though, and esp. tired of her constantly comparing him to her dead husband (who turned out to have been not such a saint after all). I felt like shouting "Wake up, woman! Thank your lucky stars that an attractive, intelligent, compassionate man loves you!" Because for someone so smart, she really was a blockhead when it came to love. But then I forget that she is still pretty young, as are most Regency romance heroines.
I've obviously become more jaded as I've grown older--maybe it's time to stop reading this genre and find books with heroines my age. But who am I kidding? Are there any? About real women who aren't fabulously wealthy, who don't live in NYC or London or Paris?
But pardon the digression. Jo's friend who is missing for most of the book is the best type of friend, someone who grounds Jo and gives her the figurative whack upside the head I refer to earlier.
Details about the villain were a bit sketchy, but we can't have everything. His poor, depressed, sedated mother finally gets her own happy ending after his denouement. If anyone deserved a break, she did. (Thanks, Elizabeth!)
October 25, 2011
I'm honestly not sure why I finished this book. Perhaps since the initial premise was so ridiculous---of course you'd send your friend something cryptic about the villain when he's coming to kill you instead of saying, plainly, "the villain did it!"---each succeeding plot twist and contortion of character seemed less absurd than it truly was.
By the time I got to the part where the hero was lambasting the heroine for putting her dead husband on a pedestal---because the hero, himself, has apparently put the heroine on a pedestal and can't forgive her any flaws or mistakes---I was already so far into the blasted thing that I decided I might as well finish it. I might, too, have been hoping the hero and heroine would have a nice knock-down-drag-out and sort everything out between them...but that didn't happen either. All told, a complete waste of several hours' reading time.
By the time I got to the part where the hero was lambasting the heroine for putting her dead husband on a pedestal---because the hero, himself, has apparently put the heroine on a pedestal and can't forgive her any flaws or mistakes---I was already so far into the blasted thing that I decided I might as well finish it. I might, too, have been hoping the hero and heroine would have a nice knock-down-drag-out and sort everything out between them...but that didn't happen either. All told, a complete waste of several hours' reading time.
October 21, 2021
Required an entire suspension of disbelief from page one, which I had difficulty sustaining. A decent book if you pretend it was written for a different time period.
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February 12, 2014fluff
September 25, 2009
Regency
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews