Indulgence & Temperance

Sins of the Virtuous #2

by Faye Hall

Would you abandon the woman you love for your own indulgence?

Beth Meridian has returned home, hoping to leave her sordid past behind her and settle into a quiet life. When her childhood friend, Hannah Raeburn, offers her a place to stay, Beth knows it won't be long until she runs into Hannah's brother, Daniel. What she doesn't expect is for him to reignite feelings deep in her heart, reminding her of the kiss they shared before she left town.

Daniel Raeburn's past is scandalous, his sinful indulgences allowing him more wealth than he could ever need. Still, he wants more, and his gluttonous appetite for wealth and women leads him to buy into a partnership at the local hellfire club.

When Hannah goes missing, Beth and Daniel follow her trail through the Australian outback. Witnessing the womanizer Daniel is, Beth flees on a cattle train headed north. Desperate to explain his actions, Daniel follows her.

Arriving in the small town of Jarvisfield, Daniel is shocked to learn that Beth is now the owner of the largest cattle company in the area. He's even more shocked to discover that the preacher controlling the town, and stealing from the townspeople, is his once business partner William Maxon. He's convinced this man is also responsible for his sister's disappearance. When he learns William has Beth picked out as his next victim, Daniel knows he must do whatever it takes to make her listen to the truth. But she has no interest in hearing anything he has to say.

Faced with losing the two women he loves, Daniel is forced to choose between their freedom and the possessions and wealth he has hoarded over the years. But even if he gives it all up, he still might lose everything.

Content Warning: contains sex, strong language, and some violence

ebook

First published January 1, 2018

About the author

I write Steamy Historical Romantic Dramas set in Queensland, Australia. I used to be traditionally published with Venue Press, Red Sage, and Beachwalk Press, but have since gone indie.
I write
🔥Second chances
🔥Scarred heroes
🔥Scarred heroines
🔥Forbidden love
🔥Heroes (and some Heroines) in jeans without titles
🔥Small town/rural settings
🔥Open door sex scenes
All of my 20+ books are available as eBooks and paperbacks through my family's website @ https://4thavenuepress.com.au/ & https://www.amazon.com/author/fayehall

We're also in the process of changing all paperback covers to something slightly more demure than the ebook covers for those who'd rather not have the world see how smutty the books are they're reading 🤷‍♀️

Reviews

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Indulgence and Temperance is book two in the Sins of the Virtuous Book series by Faye Hall. "Indulgence and Temperance" is Australian historical romantic suspense story that starts in Rockhampton in 1870 when Daniel Raeburn was asked by his mother to buy into a new business. Beth Meridan after unsuccessful goes as a dancer came back to Rockhampton. When Daniel Raeburn sister Hannah's went missing, Beth who was his first love and Hannah's friend joined together to look for her. The readers of Indulgence and Temperance will continue to follow the twist and turns in the blossom romance between Daniel Raeburn and Beth and their investigation into Hannah's disappearance.

I loved reading the first book in this series Lust & Chastity, and I was looking forward to reading book two, and I was not disappointed. Indulgence and Temperance is another great success for Faye Hall, and I was unable to go to bed until I finished the last page of this book. I like Faye Hall's description of her settings which ensure that I was transported back in time to 1890's. Faye Hall's portrayal of her characters and the way they entwine with each other was well done. "Indulgence and Temperance" was well-written and research book by Faye Hall.

The readers of Indulgence and Temperance will learn about the HellFire Clubs and the shader side of these clubs. Also, readers of Indulgence and Temperance will start to understand the problems and consequence of rustlers on rural properties.

I recommend this book.

[Kristi Hudecek-Ashwill · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book more than I did the first book of the series, Lust and Chasity. The characters were far more likable and the mystery in the story was off the charts. The plot was compelling, a bit twisty, and clever.

Beth is a friend of Hannah and her brother, Daniel, but she wants to be a lot more than a friend to him. She threw herself at him in a wanton way, of course, and he discovered she was a virgin. Sorry but that part wasn't believable. Considering she was a dancer in a brothel and the way she was touching him and begging him for sex...nah. That didn't work for me. BUT, I did like her for the most part. She didn't giggle but twice and she hit Daniel just twice. Honestly, I hate it when the heroines hit the heroes. I don't see any need for that at any time. But she was thoughtful, considerate, tough, and unfortunately a bit wishy-washy when it came to Father William.

Daniel is a money-making machine. He doesn't have a reputable job, but he works hard at it, even if he's already wealthy. But he got into bed with the wrong dude and it almost cost him everything.

Someone has kidnapped Hannah and that put him and Beth on the trail to find her before it's too late. They weren't sure who took her and even though we readers know who did, the author did a good job of keeping that under wraps from Beth and Daniel.

This was a really good story. There isn't much romance to speak of, but it is a historical suspense/thriller and I wanted to see how they were going to catch the bad guy.

I would've liked a follow-up on Hannah and there were a couple of jumbled sentences that didn't make sense, earning this book four stars.

*Although this book is part of a series, it can be read easily as an independent novel.

**I received a free copy of this book and voluntarily left a review.