One Night Is Never Enough

Secrets #2

by Anne Mallory

From the first glimpse he knew he must have her—even if only for a single night.

Powerful, ruthless, seductive—the lord of London's underworld—Roman Merrick gets anything he wants...and he burns for Charlotte Chatsworth, a polished jewel in the glittering ton. So he engages her debt-ridden gambler father in a game of chance, wagering ten thousand pounds against one night with the man's exquisite daughter. And Roman Merrick never loses.

But one night is never enough.

Charlotte is devastated to learn that her reprobate father has lost her in a card game to the most dangerous man she's ever met. With the threat of ruin behind every corner, Charlotte embarks upon a perilous path with the man she cannot forget. But in truth, it's Roman who has everything to lose—for a game undertaken for pleasure alone soon has him gambling his heart. And love and passion unleashed could bring his great, dark empire tumbling down.

Genres: Historical Romance, Romance, Historical, Regency, Historical Fiction, Regency Romance, Fiction

372 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published February 22, 2011

About the author

Some people have always known they wanted to write. Others fall into it and discover its inherent joy. I’m somewhere in between. As an avid reader, writing a novel had always tickled the back of my mind. There seem to be a lot of people who say, “Someday I’ll write a book.” For me, the feeling tickled, moved into an incessant knocking and finally became a dull roar. All I needed was to make that “someday” into “today.”

I’ve always considered myself a creator, so transitioning to writer was not as grueling as it might have been. From creating two minute stories for people on the street, to creating jewelry, crafts, stained glass, pottery, music, crazy art projects… the list of things I like to create (and buy all the necessary materials for) keeps getting longer amidst my family’s exasperated groans. I love to start something from scratch, and then mold and shape it into a finished project. Writing books provides a challenge I accept with relish (and a bit of hair pulling). Building a world, populating it with characters and giving them a script and satisfying ending - what more could a creative type ask for?

I’ve always loved romance novels, ever since I started sneaking them from my Mom in elementary school. I mean, what’s not to love? Rakish men and smart, feisty women, adventure and mystery, the love and loyalty between two people. Give me a roomful of romances, some Agatha Christie, some Edgar Allan Poe, the Harry Potter series and an armful of other fantasy novels, (and steady meals with chocolate) and I’m in heaven.

And heaven is what I consider a particular cottage on an inland lake in northern Michigan during the summertime. If you are headed “up north” this summer, maybe I’ll see you on the way…

Anne Bytes (or pseudo trivia)

Started writing on September 11th, 2001 as an escape from the day (needed an escape with a happy ending).
Thinks that 11pm is a perfectly normal time to begin reading a 400 page book.
Escaped from Alcatraz (story here).
Got a hole-in-one on a Par 3 and was just happy to have beaten her Dad on a hole for once. After a quick rotating hip dance, she was surprised to see her Dad still looking from the tee to the hole where the ball had bounced once and dropped in. His mouth was hanging open. Anne’s response? “What?” (In coding terms, Anne != golfer. That’s “Anne is obviously not a golfer” for you normal people).
Loves tubing (behind a boat) and roller coasters (Cedar Point, here we come!).
Loves paddleball, especially “extreme” paddleball. In the normal variety of paddleball, she helped score 432 hits with Cousins J and Mg one summer day.
Played at Carnegie Hall and was so excited she launched her violin bow across the stage when she got to the picking section of the piece. Thankfully said bow was recovered in time to start bowing once more.
Saw a Great White Shark in real life (at Monterey Bay Aquarium, thankfully).
Wrote her first (and only until Masquerading) book in sixth grade. It was a thriller/mystery centering around two sixth grade detectives. Her Mom assures her it is still well loved (read: stashed in the attic).
Began Masquerading the Marquess on Good Friday 2002, sold it on Good Friday 2003.
Considers herself a hobby collector. Friends and Family like to call her hobby “pack ratting.”
Can relate to the line in Office Space, “Um, I’m gonna need you to go ahead and come in tomorrow. So if you could be here around nine, that would be great. Oh, oh, yea… I forgot. I’m gonna also need you to come in Sunday too.”

Reviews

[Catherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

*sigh* Can I find a way to un-read this book? Because I would kill to be able to read it and discover the magic of it all over again. It was perfect. *sigh* Perfect.

Last September I was minding my own business when a GR friend urged me to read a book she had loved. I looked and realized that I had put that very same book on my wishlist a while ago but had never bought it. So I took the plunge and grabbed myself a copy. That book was Seven Secrets of Seduction (the first book in this series) and it opened a whole new world to me. I loved it so much that I immediately bought Mallory’s backlist. I have slowly been working my way through them—forcing myself not to rush and read them all in one big gulp.

I have enjoyed her backlist (some more than others), but nothing came quite close to my love of SSoS. I was almost starting to think that nothing would be able to top it in my eyes. How amazing to find out that not only did I love the first book in this series enough to make it one of my favorite books of 2010, but I loved the second book just as much!

So, let’s talk about this book… This book had absolutely killer sexual tension. I am a total sucker for it, and oh, Anne Mallory is awesome at writing it. The tension and the emotion breathed off the pages and sucked me in. I was absolutely dying for them to be able to find a way to touch each other at one point. “Soon” was such torture for me. I loved it!

I also loved the heroine, Charlotte. She was thrust in a situation at the beginning of the book that was just horrible, but she didn’t break. She had her moment of despair when she was alone and then she stood up and did what had to be done. I loved that she walked into that situation with no illusions and took victory away from everyone who had been attempting to manipulate her. She made the choice, not them. I cannot resist a strong heroine.

Roman was another fabulous character. He had a mix of St. Vincent and Derek Craven in him, but was totally unique. He was bold, sexy, and confident and was always plotting. Roman never did anything without thinking many steps ahead. The world was almost like a giant chess game to him.

And when they were together—ah, magic. They were both such strong characters, but we got to see their fears and weaknesses. That vulnerability and the way they couldn’t stay away from each other, even though it would have made the future easier, made their characters have a lot of depth.

This was a very character driven romance. It was all about Roman and Charlotte without too much focus put on outside influences--other than how they affected them and their relationship. It was great because we got to know them so well. Once the characters started falling for each other there was very little angsting over their feelings. They may not have admitted them to each other yet, but they were aware of their own feelings and didn’t waste time irritating me by denying them.

I got to a certain point in the book and realized that Roman was playing a very deep game. I wasn’t sure what exactly he was doing in the background, so that layer of mystery really added a nice feature to the book. I wasn’t sure what his ultimate goal was and the stray little comments he made here and there when talking to his friends had me very unsure of how things were going to end up by the end of the book. And when I found out at the end what his plot had been the whole time—well, I was surprised, but it really made sense when I thought about what he told her in the beginning.

While the emotions between Charlotte and Roman were beautiful, this book wasn’t just excellent because of that. There was some great humor and dialogue between side characters as well. At one point Roman invited Charlotte to a game with his brother. The resulting humor and teasing between certain characters was hilarious.

Speaking of Roman’s brother… Man, Andreas was a jerk. By the end of the book I understood where he was coming from and did like him, but it was touch and go there for a while. He is a very dark, angry man at times and I am intensely curious to see how his romance will develop later this year.

So, in closing…I loved this book. Loved, loved, loved it. If you read Seven Secrets of Seduction and hated it, well…this one probably won’t work for you that well either. But if you enjoyed it or are curious about this book and this author, then I urge you to go pick up this book. And then come back and talk to me about it. ;)

Favorite Quote:

There it was again, that hitch in her voice after he touched her.

The sound made him want to do things to her. Dirty, animalistic things. To bruise her lips with his, muss her perfectly coiffed hair while scraping her on the sheets, blotch her skin with feral color as she lost track of her own name--head tilted back, eyes glazed, unintelligible sounds emerging.

[Tammy Walton Grant · Rating 3 out of 5]

With apologies to Catherine, Juliana, Ally and Ana, and any other GR friends who love Anne Mallory

Have you ever read a book that you think you should just LOVE, except for the fact that you don't?

That's the way I feel about Anne Mallory. I should love her books. They are chock full of everything that I love. Witty dialogue, serious chemistry and sexual tension, intriguing storylines, original premises and to-die-for heroes. What's not to like about them?

Something, I guess, because I've read 2 of her books now and for some reason they just leave me cold. Well, not cold, but I don't feel anything when I'm done them. I lose the story in all of the words, if that makes any sense, and I feel like I'm wading through chest-deep water. Tough slogging!

The whole time I'm reading her books I feel completely detached from the characters and what is going on -- I can appreciate on one level the story, the romance, the characters -- but on another level I am sitting in the third balcony watching the show. I can see all the reasons I should like it, but can't feel anything for it.

I wish I liked AM more, I wish I did, I REALLY wish I did! Alas, I'm afraid that I'll be like the little kid outside the toy store window -- nose pressed against the glass, wishing I could be closer and part of the fun.

Rating I should give it based on the content: 4 stars
Rating I would give it based on how I really feel about it: 2 stars

So I'll split the difference and give it a 3.

[Sam I AMNreader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, this was hot in that darkly seductive heavily bantered way. I believe there's a book that was recommended to me in this series and it was the third, but I'm glad I'm a dedicated sequentalist. This hero was totally up my alley, and so was the "cold" heroine. I'm looking forward to the 3rd, I have definite thoughts about what's happening there and look forward to the story.

This is a 4, because I can definitely see reading it again. It's not a 5 because extended metaphors simply tried too hard for elegant writing (though plenty is!) and transitions can be weird. As a chaos muppet myself, I find this very surprising as a criticism to any book coming from me so if you tend to be some kind of Bert, this may bother you. Then again, maybe my problem was not following the line of transition well enough due to aforementioned chaos muppet tendencies. Anyway, this is a sticking point for me with Lucy Parker too and I seem to be one of the only ones. I rarely say #maybeitsme but I guess I'll say that here. But still. Extended metaphors are hard to dislike for this poet's heart and now I'm just rambling, but yes, extended metaphors drag down the elegance here unfortunately.

[Sarah MacLean · Rating 5 out of 5]

I always love Anne Mallory's books...but this one might just be her best yet. It's been a long time since I've read a book and forced myself to slow down to savor every word, every line. This one requires it. The book is thick and lush--an extravagant secret that you can't help but eavesdrop on. I loved every page.

[Lady Wesley · Rating 1 out of 5]

I need a new shelf.

A shelf called Why Did I Waste My Time?

A shelf for for books with the lowest ratio of complete to incomplete sentences.

Trant had waited for just the right hand to make the bet. Had waited for Chatsworth to get into his cups and to have some decent cards.
Had waited to place the bet when only two men would witness the wager. One, a man who was utterly devoted to his wife, and whose wife was a close friend of the lady of the bet. Who would hold the scandal secret. The other, a man who held the debts and markers of over half of London's citizens. Who would make sure the wager took place. Who wouldn't interfere--for it was his business not to interfere.

A shelf for books with the most instances of consecutive sentences beginning with the same phrase.(see above)

A shelf for books with supposedly smoldering sex scenes that are so obtuse, so fleeting, that it's over before the reader realizes what's happening.

A shelf for books that rely on italics rather than adept writing.

And she knew she was acting recklessly. But it didn't seem to matter. Even as she thought about it logically, she didn't care.

A shelf for books where the first 100 pages include a card game, a chess match, and a tea party. And nothing else.

A shelf for books by a writer whose efforts are adored by many other people.

But not by me.

[Missy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had such high hopes for this book from reading the blurb and the high reviews. The thing that kept me from enjoying this book is the author's writing style. She uses a lot of short sentences and sentence fragments. If she's not doing that, then she's inputting a lot of commas. Her writing is vague/ambiguous; the reader has to infer a lot, making it hard to understand what just occurred in a scene. In some scenes in the first half of the book, I felt that they dragged for too long. For instance, in the very first chapter, why did it take so long for the heroine to unstuck her pin from whatever it was stuck on?! Then there was the card game that lead to the wager and the night she spent in his gaming hell and the chess game. . The second half of the book was a little better, but the resolution to a problem (I forgot what the problem was lol) at the end of the book got resolved off-page so that was anti-climatic. I'm not sure if I would have wanted to read about it anyway. The author tried to make the hero come off as sexy and seductive, but to me, it just felt forced. I would have liked to see if an affair developed between the heroine's mother and One-Eye (since she's still married to the heroine's father, who has a mistress).

For a better and detailed review, read this review written by sraxe.

[Juliana Philippa · Rating 4 out of 5]

My thanks to Catherine, whose review spurred me into getting this book from the library after avoiding it when it first came out. I so loved Seven Secrets of Seduction , my first Anne Mallory book, that I didn't think anything could live up to it. While I still prefer SSoS, I really enjoyed One Night Is Never Enough and am very glad that I read it.

The book was a mix of SSoS's-type plot, Dreaming of You 's Derek Craven + Mine Till Midnight 's Cam Rohan, and Notorious Pleasures 's Hero (but better!) + _________ (there is another heroine Charlotte reminds me of, but for the life of me I cannot remember who she is right now or which book she is from - it's driving me nuts).

The Main Characters and Their Relationship
One thing I have greatly enjoyed about both of Mallory's books are her leading characters and the chemistry she creates between them. In both books, the heroes are intense, complex, sensual, and romantic. I loved the charming-yet-dangerous aspect of Roman; he appears suave, smooth, and mysterious, while also being being able to put people at ease, yet there is a dangerous and very intense component to him that one overlooks at one's peril. His loyalty and affection for his brother, Andreas, and the people who work for them really add to his character, so that he doesn't seem like just a rake chasing his pleasure. I absolutely adored how he treated Charlotte and the insight he had into who she really was and what she needed; he wanted her to be free and to be the one to see through her mask of cold indifference. While he is the pursuer, from the beginning we're shown again and again that he wants to be pursued as well, that he wants to be wanted and needed by her as well. ::sigh:: Lovely :-).

Charlotte is very different from Miranda, however both women are also complex and very, very well-written. Frankly, I did not think that I would like Charlotte - while I did appreciate the interaction between her and Miranda in the last book and admired her for it, she seemed a little too reserved/boring for me and I am not a huge fan of beautiful belle-of-the-ball complete-society-darling heroines. Charlotte is much, much more than that though and the way she is written makes her seem very human, normal, and vulnerable like the rest of us. She has to deal with a lot of the cruelty and nastiness that other women in society show her because they're envious; she hates that she has to always be cold and calm and controlled, worrying that she has forced herself to be that so much that maybe now that's who she is, a boring empty statue; and she is insecure with the fact that her only value is so often linked to her beauty, wondering if there is anything else of value to her.

I loved their relationship and think the contrast between the two of them is pronounced, yet one can also see how that would result in mutual attraction. I love the card-playing scene, which has both sweet and hysterically funny components to it. The scene towards the end between Charlotte and Roman when they are in bed after making love and Roman talks a little about his childhood and then they do a little dance around the subject of their relationship was just fantastic! I think their relationship comes off as the strongest there than at any other point in the book; you really feel the connection between them.

Which brings me to another thing I loved about both Miranda and Charlotte - Mallory writes heroines who are not, as we see so often, passive in those final pre-climax (referring to the plot here, get your mind out of the gutter!) moments and are willing to put themselves out there, be vulnerable, and actually say what they think and feel. That's actually true throughout both books, but a lot of time in romances you have the heroine who backs down, or makes an assumption that then makes her step back from the hero, and it's the hero who is, almost without fail, the pursuer in the final segments. Mallory writes strong heroines who don't create any Big Misunderstandings or Things Left Unsaid, and for that alone I absolutely loved both books.

Criticism
This book is the follow-up to SSoS and as I wrote, that was the only other Mallory book I had previously read, so comparisons were bound to occur ... and in that, this book definitely fell short compared to its predecessor. While Roman's feelings do feel authentically intense during the book, I didn't really get/buy what made him interested in Charlotte in the first place - why her, what drew him to her? In SSoS Maxim's intense feelings for Miranda leap off the page and from start to finish they feel so real and authentic.

Also, there was a lot of allusion to the business competitors the brothers were battling, but we're never really told much about it and the mystery/action-type occurrence towards the end seemed very out of the blue and then resolved so quickly. Roman's fears come and go pretty quickly, so that that specific issue seemed like it didn't belong or needed to be fleshed out more. Also, is/are the threat(s) directed at the business, Roman, Andreas, or all three have individual threats facing them? It's definitely not made clear. I'm assuming this part of the plot will be more heavily featured in Andreas' story, but it left something to be desired in this one. This left the character development and romance really being the main features, which I by no means minded, but then why pepper the story every now and then with this other never-fully-explored and superfluous subplot?

Finally, after the first time Roman and Charlotte sleep together, the story immediately goes to three weeks later and I would have liked a little more time spent during that period.

Plot Note
I'm not a huge fan of contrived events that initially throw the hero and heroine together, like the game of cards mentioned in the summary. I also hate instant attraction/lust stories, which I thought would be the case here since they are (one assumes) going to sleep together at the beginning of the book, when Roman wins a night with her. In case you're a similar reader, I want to note that I was not bothered by any such issues in this book

Secrets Series
Book 1 - Seven Secrets of Seduction , Miranda and Maxim (4.5 stars)
Book 2 - One Night Is Never Enough, Charlotte and Roman (4 stars)
Book 3 - In Total Surrender , Andreas and ? (out Sep 27, 2011)

I am very much looking forward to Andreas's story - depending on what heroine Mallory chooses to pair him up with. The summary is not yet available and on her website it says it will be up end of the summer, so I'm excited to see what she has in mind for him. I think it would be such an amazing book if he's paired with someone like Evie in Devil in Winter who is a little more cheerful from the beginning - a wallflower who is shy, but sweet, loving, quietly strong, and can (surprisingly) stand her own ground with him. He's so dark, angry, and tormented and he needs a heroine who can counterbalance that. We shall see . . . ;-)

[Addie · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

(Tropes: Forbidden Love, Rags to Riches, Opposites Attract, Class Difference, Unstarched (heroine)



Loved this! Super charming, tender and funny.

- “What I want is you, unrestrained, and out of control.” Want. Desire. Longing.
“You already have that,” she said, knowing the heavy beat more than gave her away already. “I find no semblance of control when you are near.”

- He gradually drew her closer until she was pressed against him, his arms wrapped around her. She sighed softly into his shoulder.
With someone else he would say, “Better?” in a roguish way. But the word stuck to the back of his tongue, and he just kept his arms around her instead. The faint golden shadows embracing them.

- “I should have stolen you later this evening when there would be no need to return you.”
“You want to keep me all night?”
“And maybe even into the next.”

- She gave a short laugh. “I saw you at the Hunsdens’ shop, remember?”
“How could I forget; it was the highlight of my day.”
She closed her eyes. Seeing him was always the highlight of her days.

- “A gentleman would hardly take advantage of a lady in distress.”
“Good.” She kissed him again, curling her fingers in his hair as she did so. “I am with the right man then.”
“Oh?” He smiled against her lips, leaning into her.

- “You don’t think you deserve love?” she asked softly, rubbing her cheek so that she was speaking into his ear.

- “I would never be finished with you, Charlotte.”

[Jo · Rating 5 out of 5]

“I’m going to possess you, Charlotte.”
His free hand caressed the flesh of her throat, then threaded into the hair at her nape, pulling the strands there, tipping her head back. Not harshly, but not gently either. “I’m going to take you and claim you and make you beg.”

Charlotte Chatsworth is the perfect lady of the ton. Known for her beauty and her icy persona, she is envied by many. She is her father’s most powerful investment, one he will use until he has secured the most promising marriage proposal. And Charlotte knows it’s her fate to do as her father wishes, is she wants to protect those she loves, secure a life that would make life easier for them. Until her father loses her in a card game for one night to the mysterious and dangerous lord of the underworld, Roman Merrick.

Roman has lived a tough life, learning early on to fight and get what he wants. And who he wants is Charlotte Chatsworth, who intrigues him like no other. But what starts as a simple gamble, soon threatens both their hearts, and the intense passion has the means to destroy that which they hold most dear.

She wanted him. Needed the feelings he produced. Craved them like a starving woman searching for food.

We met Charlotte in the previous book as the intended bride to Lord Downing. Charlotte was a great heroine, and I loved her ability to be logical about her circumstances, never losing her composure, always trying to be strong. And I really admired her love of her sister, and her willingness to sacrifice herself in order to keep her safe. She has been hiding her true self for so long, and the only person who she really showed her true self was Roman. I love how she let go with him.

Besides, touching her loosened something within him, a coil that he hadn’t even been aware of before she’d entered his existence.

I adored the sexy Roman, and his intense attraction to Charlotte was amazing! He risked all just to have her, a man who was used to making careful moves, thinking about all consequences, and suddenly he was consumed by only her. I loved that.

“No, a selfish man destroys what is offered to him and demands more. He demands everything. ”
He touched her chin, pulling his finger beneath it, bringing her lower lip to brush against his. “I am a selfish man, and all of you, Charlotte . . . that is my demand.”

The romance captivated me right from the start. I loved the dangerous and slightly forbidden attraction between these two, and how intent Roman was on convincing Charlotte to give into it.

I loved the suspense in this book that came from the dangerous Roman and his broody brother Andreas, and it intrigued me right from the very start.

This was an excellent HR, and I really love this author’s writing. Highly recommended to all HR fans.

[sraxe · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book intrigued me when I first picked it up. I thought it was going to be a reworking of Lisa Kleypas's Then Came You. That, too, had a night with the heroine riding on a card game bet. I was pleasantly surprised, however, when it wasn't the hero who placed the bet.

As I read, there were things that I absolutely hated (that I'll talk about below -- have fun reading that dissertation), and then there were others that I liked. I liked the attitude that the author had towards women and their sexual freedom. I liked that the author wasn't judgmental of married women who have affairs because their husbands have of their own mistresses and are constantly cheating. I also liked that the author writes of the hypocrisy of men when it comes to mistresses and wives (especially in comparison to their own less-than-chaste ways).

The author's writing was a bit of an issue. She seems fond of writing ambiguously and it got really annoying. When Roman is playing cards against Charlotte's father, I'm assuming the author wanted us to be on the edge of our seats and wondering if he does or doesn't know. However, rather than being it being suspenseful, I was annoyed. I agree with this review and that the reader has to inference a lot. There's a lot of reading-between-the-lines and it became really confusing. There were many times I was left with questions that were never answered (like: who is the man Roman go to see to ask about Charlotte's family?). When that card (it was a card, right?) is delivered after Roman cheats, I was confused as to what the card meant and who it was from. This scene combined both the ambiguous writing and the unanswered question that left me thoroughly annoyed.

Just...stop trying to be so ~mysterious~ and trying to add unnecessary poetic twists to your prose. Write it simply -- there's no need to twist the language all about.

The other aspect of the author's writing that annoyed me was her usage of very short sentences, often sentence fragments. Just use commas or semi-colons or other punctuation!

She approached the room at a much slower pace. Curious and apprehensive. Wondering where this night would lead.

Charlotte hoped Roman hadn’t overheard the girl’s question. Knowing he assuredly had, with her luck. That now he might be thinking that she was speaking of him.

Coasting through life without much notice or care. Malaise clinging to her like a second skin.

She could walk through the ballrooms and feel the lively air and dance the night away without a care. What the young were supposed to feel. What many of the young women enjoyed.

Oh, and there was this little gem:

The silence was obvious.

And that was after I'd just read over five paragraphs talking about the silence. Oh, and the previous paragraph started with "silence reigned." Hmm...

The author also does some lazy-writing things like writing the heroine being apprehensive of the obvious antagonist of the tale, while continually feeling attracted and safe to the hero, even though she doesn't know him.

Having Charlotte feel safe with Roman was just one part of why I disliked her. The author wrote her as worrying about her family and her sister, while in the next breath falling into bed with Roman. She has no willpower of her own. At first she's under the control of her father and then she's ceding to Roman's whims. She's described as intelligent and sharp, but all she does is follow what she's being told to do. She's a doormat. We're told she's prideful, but all we see of her is either being sexually attracted to Roman or being a doormat.

I've read books with less-than-smart and doormat-y heroines before and I've also read books of which the authors aren't the best writers. In many of those cases, I've rated those books higher. So. What was my biggest problem?

Roman Merrick.

"I'm going to possess you, Charlotte."

Roman Merrick is a predator.

Roman sets his eyes on Charlotte and goes after her with a singular focus. What bothered me was that her initial easing to him, as a result of his predatory manipulations, played a major role in how she viewed him during the rest of the book ("as if he had cast a spell"). It's his initial manipulation that is a subcurrent to the rest of their relationship. Therein lies my issue. He is a predator and his actions were manipulation-laced. How can their relationship hold any validity when it's built entirely upon a predator seeking his prey? He plays this game all the way until the very end. This isn't a good basis for any sort of long-term, trusting relationship. It's unhealthy.

When she shows up to fulfill the bet, Roman acts as though he's giving her a choice of spending the night, but he's really not. As she stands and contemplates, he coaxes and prods with well-placed weakness barbs. He acts as though he's giving her a choice, all the while pushing her into his desired choice. She feels like she's making the choice on her own, but she never was. The truth is, she never had a choice at all.

Of course, with or without Downing’s threats, if she had said that she was not going to hold to her father’s part of the bet, Roman would have let her go. Would have found her again, in a garden or at some ball, and possessed her then.

When Charlotte and Roman are playing chess, I wish I hadn't had to read from Roman's POV. All I thought during the entire game was how creepy and what a predator Roman was. After manipulating her into a new bet, and basically wrestling a second meeting out of her, he starts leaving her notes saying Soon.

The author writes him following her all over the place, lying in wait and leaving her "soon" notes as amusement. At the beginning of Chapter 10, Roman is sitting in his office contemplating where he should leave his next note because oh, haha...isn't it hilarious that I'm following her and leaving her "soon" notes??? It's all played off as a lark...when, really, this behaviour is not funny at all. His behaviour gets fogged over as being innocuous and just a bit of fun.

These notes from Roman cause Charlotte to become more cautious of her surroundings. He even stands and watches as Charlotte looks into every dark corner (looking for him). I...that shit is scary. If someone pushes you to the point where you change your behaviour so much, change it so you constantly watch your back?




Roman pats himself on the back for changing her behaviour. The entire thing is glossed over as a It's For Her Own Good change, that it's good to add caution to one's behaviours and surroundings. He credits himself to making her more cautious, acting as though her always being on the watch, looking in dark alleys and in crowds for him is good because it's made her more aware.



Roman's behaviour is presented as seductive and sexy...which it really isn't. Charlotte plays a key role in excusing Roman. Charlotte knows that he has a "patiently crafted plan." Despite this, despite being the victim, the author makes Charlotte, and her "traitorous body," like his behaviour, as is reflected in her actions and responses to him. The author makes his behaviour palatable to the reader by having Charlotte be turned on by it, be attracted to him. She feels euphoric in his presence, giddy. She feels a mix of anticipation and anxiety. However, he's a predator, plain and simple, and there's nothing sexy at all about that.

If it wasn't enough for her to feel attracted to his predator behaviour, the author also credits him with various things. Above, she credited him with making Charlotte more cautious. Even before that, however, going back to Roman and Charlotte's first night, Charlotte credits a loss of fear to him, as if that's a positive. The reason why that's a problem is because that's what predators do. They put you in an untenable position (her spending the night post-bet and him prodding her into staying), then ease you to make you feel as though you're making choices of your own volition, even though all they've done is manipulated you into a false sense of security. They'll get what they were originally aiming for, but without the force, and also making you feel as though you've made the conscious decision of giving it to them, rather than the reality -- that you've been manipulated into doing so.

Above, he thought about following her to an event and pulling her aside...and then he actually does do this. He follows and watches her at the charity events, balls, other outings. She senses his "hot gazes" and feels his touches as he brushes by her. Instead of rightfully pointing out that this behaviour is creepy and predatory, it's played off as seductive. The author literally writes him as a predator, lying in wait in various places, stalking her...but presents it with a sexy veneer.

The author purposely goes out of her way to excuse Roman and his behaviour. She describes Roman as a predator (in both his actions and in words), and also has Charlotte being referred to as his "mark." She uses predatory terminology to describe Roman and his actions, and it starts to desensitize the reader to his behaviour. She has Charlotte's POV describing Roman's gait as "stalking" and his movements as that of "a fierce, sleek predator." She warps it by trying to make it appealing and sexy.

The author adds a charm to Roman with how he speaks, how he carries himself and in his appearance, which seeks to distance the reader from the image of a creepy stalker. His looks play a defining role in excusing Roman for what he really is. We all know there are stereotypes of all sorts in everything, and there are those in creeps and stalkers, as well. People's responses to some good or innocent-looking person doing terrible things is "he doesn't look like a (insert crime here)."

The author does this with Roman. She constantly describes Roman's handsome face (Emily, Charlotte's younger sister, names him "Incredibly Handsome") and his golden, angel-like looks. She does this to purposefully move away from viewing this obvious creepy, stalking predator as what he truly is -- a creepy, stalking predator. Were he described and written to be anything but a "decadent, fallen angel," I doubt Charlotte, and the reader, would've had any trouble discerning him for what he really is.

Roman recognizes his behaviour for what it is, but it's excused. He admits to himself that he "coaxed and took" what he wanted from Charlotte. "He planned to suck her dry." The author has Roman feel a twinge of guilt and start to have second thoughts during their first time together. It doesn't matter, though, because, in the end, he doesn't stop and he goes through with it. The author pays lip-service to Roman having an iota of a conscience, but that doesn't change his actions. In the end, he still gets what he wants.

He coaxes Charlotte constantly, mentally and sexually manipulating her into his desired result. There's no concern for her, only his own gains. He speaks prettily of wanting to set her free, but that's not why he's really doing it. He says things like "you're mine" and that he'd "never let [her] go." His words are deceiving because they're presented as beautiful, even though he has no real intention of those things. Sure, it might be a side-effect to his own gains, but that's not why he's doing it. He wants one thing, he's always wanted one thing, and that's what this entire relationship, all of these manipulative interactions and machinations, plays out to -- with that sole gain in mind. All that's different is that he'd be trading her one cage for another...with added benefits for him, of course.

He plans to get her married to Trant. At the point he's having these thoughts, he has no plans to commit to anything permanent with her. He takes what he wants from her--sex--and then plans to marry her off. Oh, don't be mistaken, though. He's not done because he plans to reacquaint himself at a later date to have an affair.

Roman's characterization makes me so angry. He really just wants to have his cake and eat it, too, and letting the chips fall where they may in the end. Originally, he thought about letting her go and pursuing her once she's married for an affair. But, oh, no...he couldn't possibly wait for that. He wanted her now. So, he coaxed and manipulated her to get what he wanted. Then, and only then, will he hand her off to someone else so she can marry. He even makes the decision for her -- that she'll marry Trant.

Roman smiled and flicked a paper containing Charlotte Chatsworth’s possible future onto the desk.

Charlotte has no idea. He makes this decision without talking to her, without ever consulting her. After Roman makes the decision that she'll marry Trant, we go to Charlotte's POV and she refers to Trant's pursuit of her as "unsuccessful." Another part of her POV has her thinking that, even though he's ambitious, "that didn't mean she wanted to be pledged to him either."

Even if she were interested in Trant, what right does Roman have to be deciding her future? To be making decisions on her behalf without ever once consulting her? Not even just any old decision, but life-altering ones.

How is that any different from her father? Like him, Roman's making decisions for her, deciding on her future and just taking what he wants in the interim. Roman just uses her -- like the ton, like her suitors, like her father and most everyone else. Roman and Trant, even Roman and Charlotte's father, is similar to pitting two terrible things against one another and seeing which one looks best by comparison. Relatively, Roman might be better...but absolutely? They're both terrible. It turns into a game of which of these devils is better? The one you know...or that which you don't?

Roman making the choice about who Charlotte should marry is over half-way through the book. Even when he meets Emily, Charlotte's sister, he immediately thinks about how he can exploit that weakness of Charlotte's. In the beginning, before he knew her, Charlotte reveals to him that she feared she was broken, and he just went into toying and destroying, using and abusing. Now, seventy-percent of the way in, amongst his first thoughts after meeting Emily...he's still running through the same thoughts.



Also during this scene:

He could have overpowered her before that. Could have made her come to him even there in the middle of the crowd with her panicking over the talk they were sure to cause. He had seen the way she hovered there on the brink, sensuality and reserve threatening to break.

And he hadn’t been able to bring himself to do it.

So...he could've destroyed her in public...but he hadn't been able to make himself do it? Oh, you want a cookie? Am I supposed to applaud his restraint and see him as the good guy for stopping himself from the public ruination of her?



The author is a terrible offender of He Knows Best. Charlotte, when she's caught, compares John Clark to Roman.

Her eyes narrowed. And she wondered why she felt all sorts of distasteful feelings at Clark’s threat yet had felt none of them when Roman had initiated his pursuit.

Because she had returned his desire, and Roman had known it.

The author writes this in order to absolve Roman for his predator behaviour towards Charlotte, spinning it as positive, because he knew she wanted it.




I didn't think the book could make things worse...and then it did. I thought it was bad enough before...and then it just one-upped itself. In the end, it's also revealed that Charlotte eventually realized Roman's game. Not only that, the author has Charlotte thanking him. This entire last part is to completely remove any villainy from Roman because...you know what? He Knew Best. Despite the fact that he's a predator and he took what he wanted from her, that he did it for his own gains...in the end, the decisions he made worked out for the best for her. Roman forcing Charlotte into Trant's arms, despite never discussing it with her, is what freed her.

Despite being predatory and singularly focused on her and extracting what he wanted, it worked out. Why even bother discussing what you want with you. Who does that, ya know? Why even bother doing that when He Knows Best.

Roman manipulates Charlotte through the entire novel. He uses sexual and mental manipulation, exploiting her weaknesses and aiming for insecurities of Charlotte's in order to get ahead. Even though he's a clear predator, the author writes him as being seductive. Not only is Roman, the predator, consistently presented in an appealing light, in the end, he is completely cleansed of his sins and acquitted of any and all wrong-doing.

[Lakshmi C · Rating 3 out of 5]

Blurbs are the devious monsters wrecking havoc in my little bookish world. They lure me with the promise of new worlds, great characters and a great reading experience. But all I get is coke without the fizz.

This book has an interesting blurb and conflicted characters. Roman was kind without scruples. He was strategic and charming. Charlotte was strong, determined and wary. Her father was utterly despicable.

The book held my attention, I wanted to know what happened next but some parts make no impact on you.
I don't know why but I was a disconnected reader once again.

I was curious but not emotionally engaged. Maybe I'm in a book slump or dead inside.

The series will definitely work for readers of historical romance - it had mysterious characters, great atmosphere and descriptions, high stakes.
Just for these reasons, I will give her books another try soon.

[Petra · Rating 4 out of 5]

The one way to describe this book is darkly convoluted which is its charm and style. It reminded me of Robin Schone books.

I enjoyed reading it. Charlotte and Roman’s story is one of attraction that is build up slowly and patiently until it completely over takes them and you feel with them the same urgency, danger and passion. So hot.

There is a lot of internal mental processes described which I usually really like but in this case it was getting too much. At times it was hard to follow the dialogue because each sentence would be interrupted by paragraphs of reflection. I often had to go back to see what they were even talking about.
But I loved their banter, it felt sophisticated and mysterious. And the times when they were plain with each other was the sweetest thing ever.

[Michele RW · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had high hopes for this book. It got a good review on all about romance website. I unfortunately didn't agree. The plot wasn't bad, just done many time before. What I didn't enjoy was the way it was written. There seemed to be a lot happening in the background and it ended up in the dialogue but I had no idea what was happening. I was hoping that all of it would eventually be sorted out and explained but it rarely was. The reader had to inference A LOT. I had a hard time keeping up with what was going on. I don't enjoy having to read between the lines throughout a WHOLE book. It took away the enjoyment.

[Katie(babs) · Rating 1 out of 5]

This just didn't work for me. The angst and drama seems forced and the actions of the hero and heroine has no direction and their chemistry is very lacking.

While I was reading I couldn't make sense of half the conversations and hidden meanings apparently I should understand as a reader.

[Aou · Rating 3 out of 5]

I actually skimmed-it mostly. Too long and slow for me.

[Jess the Romanceaholic · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a Quickie Review. For the full review, please visit The Romanceaholic.

Oh my! Let me start my review with a slight tangent: One of my all-time favorite regency romance heroes, is Lisa Klyepas’ Derek Craven from Dreaming of You. Born in the gutters, he’s pulled himself up by whatever means necessary — thievery, deceit, violence, you name it, and at the time the heroine meets him, is a successful, albeit somewhat shady, owner of a gaming hell.

Well, I’m sorry Derek, but you need to step aside for my new favorite hero, Roman.

*swoon* Oh Roman is absolutely everything I adore in a regency romance – a self made man, ruthless, cunning, at times gleefully violent, but also incredibly loyal and protective. Lowborn and from the streets of London, he is never afraid to get his hands dirty, cheerfully admits to bribing the police force, and in fact, the first time we meet him, he’s beating the holy hell out of someone (who in the end, deserved it, but still). He rubs elbows with men from all walks of life, from whoremongerers to royal dukes, and has no qualms about using whatever means are at his disposal (regardless of legality) to manipulate those around him as needed.

Then we have Charlotte. I’m not typically a fan of the stuffy-young-miss-turned-wanton heroine in romances, but I have to make an exception for Charlotte. The way Ms. Mallory writes this character, with her slowly cracking facade, makes it so you can’t help but to sympathize with her. She has known her entire life that she is to have a loveless, strategic marriage, just like her parents, and that it is up to her to be absolutely perfect in everything. Outside of saving her family from her father’s uncontrolled gambling, such a marriage will ensure that her vibrant younger sister will be accepted into society, and as such will have the freedom to, well, choose.

I have to say, that while I’m not necessarily going to go back and read the first book in the series, Seven Secrets of Seduction, I am dying to read Andreas’ book, In Total Surrender, due out September 27, 2011.

Overall, I loved it. This is probably one of the best regency romances that I have read all year, and Roman is firmly (heh) tucked away as one of my all-time favorite regency heroes. A VERY solid 5/5 Stars.

[Chels · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anne Mallory is a rare talent, and I wish she was still writing historicals! This starts in a salacious way: Charlotte Chatsworth, society beauty, has her virtue essentially gambled away by her father. What makes it interesting is that her father has a lot riding on her virtue: she's the diamond of the first water, his ticket into deeper pockets. His pockets are to let, and it's going to catch up with him soon.

Enter Roman Merrick, the gambling hell owner and career criminal with the face of an angel. He cheats to win a night with Charlotte, not necessarily to sleep with her (although he does intend to do so), but to get closer to her. Something about her intrigues him, which is surprising to Charlotte, since she thinks she's icy, aloof, and boring.

Emma called this a Scheherazade-type story, and I absolutely see that! In this Roman is stalling for time, trying to extend his conversations with Charlotte by any means because he wants to own her completely. He says he intends to possess her, but the question is, will she possess him as well?

Mallory's books are a breath of fresh air. I'm echoing Emma again, but I love the way she has no interest in things that take up so much space in historicals (body size observations, waxing poetic about remaining pure) and instead puts her energy into charged conversations.

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Passage 1

”You opened the window," he couldn't help but point out.

He expected a defensive, sarcastic response such as, "You would have just broken it anyway."

But she said nothing before pulling back a space, eyes meeting his in the faint light. "Yes," she whispered.

"Why?" He internally kicked himself for asking. He didn't need to know an answer to that question, dammit. She was the one who wanted to know why, why, why. He simply coaxed and took what he wanted. And here she was on a candlelit tray. Who cared why?

Passage 2

"The force constantly pushing and pulling within her between external bravery and internal vulnerability. But there a little of that in everyone. Even in the man standing behind her."

cw: parental abuse, the hero is also part Romani, but very very vaguely, and it is honestly does not play into the plot at all. your tolerance may vary with that. The only character trait that is ascribed to it is an "intuition" and I think it is only mentioned once. So it is othering, but not negative and certainly never rises to the level of fetishization that goes on in something like Mine Till Midnight.

I've read four Anne Mallory books in four days and this is the best one so far and the first I would recommend unreservedly, even though I have immensely enjoyed all of them.

I knew immediately when I started with Mallory what made her special was her dialogue, but I couldn't quite capture what it was. I couldn't point to list of quotations that somehow made her rise above other romance novelists--though I love lots and lots of quotations from all of her books. I knew it was something structural that she was doing that I couldn't quite name or grasp at that was changing how I was experiencing the dialogue that changed my reaction, not a preternatural ability to turn a phrase.

This is her most conversation heavy book out of the four I have read, and that is saying something. The premise has *talking* built into it. Roman Merrick, sort of vague all powerful criminal man (he runs a gaming hell and gameplay is important to the plot/romance, but he has fingers in lots of pies and the mechanics of his business are less explicated than something like world of Sarah Maclean or something) has been intrigued by Charlotte Chatsworth for ages. But she's of the ton and he can't quite contrive a way to meet her properly.

Her father is a gambler and one of her suitors, who is not quite titled enough to satisfy her father's desire for perfect, blonde, icy Charlotte to marry a Duke/Marquess/Earl, are playing a card game at Merrick's hall when the suitor wagers 10000 pounds against one night with Charlotte. Her father leaps at the opportunity to have more blunt in his kit and figures that at the very worst case scenario, Charlotte marries a slightly less titled man, though he really believes he won't lose.

But Roman had not yet exited the game and maneuvers (read: cheats) to win the hand, so that he wins the night with Charlotte.

Charlotte has her own reasons for not throwing a fit when this is revealed--her father loathes her younger sister (whose sin is basically...being 15 and a little noisy? this part, tbh, was a little underdeveloped. Though maybe it shows her father's irrationality when he comes to his daughters). She worries that if she does not marry perfectly, her father will marry the sister off to the first detestable man available, if that man is willing to pay the father's debts.

Additionally, the suitor who initiated the bet is so interested in marrying Charlotte (he sees her as an entry into the ton for political power because she will be such a perfect hostess), insinuates that even if Charlotte loses her virtue during her one night with Roman, he will still marry her.

This is the part that felt the most like an homage to bodice rippers--Roman winning Charlotte in a card game without her consent, her resignation to the situation at hand, the manipulations of all the men. And Mallory does not balk at making Roman lascivious. He makes it clear to Charlotte that he did not win her only in order to save her from the suitor who initiated the bet, but because he wants her, unequivocally.

But they do not sleep together that first night. Instead they play chess, Roman's wager being that he will earn another night in the future if she loses. And she'll get to settle one of her father's outstanding debts if she wins. The real game of chess is Roman's picking of games. Throughout the book, he is wagering and setting terms and teaching Charlotte rules. The undercut of the bodice ripper threat is less in anything Roman says and more immediately in the game he lets Charlotte choose? Chess? Not something that has quick game play? And Charlotte actually notes that Roman slows the game play down. They finish one game this first night--Charlotte does lose, but first Roman fall asleep before he coup de grace move, which he completes in the morning.

So Charlotte has to give Roman another night. This conceit does not extend perpetually throughout the book, though they are consistently inventing or contriving new debts to each other. I initially described this as Scheherazade like, which I think it must be connected to in Mallory's mind in someway, but it is like...a mutual Scheherazade.

Because Roman actually ends up wiping away the debt of the night before Charlotte is able to deliver to him--she initially thinks that this is freeing from the debt, but Roman (and Mallory in her narrative structure) understands that the freeing and entanglement are not mutually exclusive. Charlotte does not become less obligated to Roman when she no longer owes the debt of a single night, she becomes more obligated because her wants and needs for him are available to develop organically and rapidly toward him and he her.

This more plot premise than I usually include in my reviews--but I think Mallory is really playing to her strengths here, where the concept of the couple's romance really involves them talking. And boy howdy, do they talk. I said in a mid-way point Tiktok that when we finally get to the first sex scene, I was stunned. I really thought we had already gotten one! But actually what had happened was conversation after conversation that was just electric between Roman and Charlotte.

(Also just a note about that first sex scene. I think it is the only sex scene that I have ever read that 1. does not flip perspectives 2. even if that isn't true, I feel like it is the only one that does it totally from the MMC's perspective, and even if THAT is somehow not true, 3. I feel like it is the only first time sex scene from the MMC's POV with no flip. I'm obsessed with this structural decision).

I pulled the two quotations that I did from the book because I think they finally capture what I am talking about when I mean Mallory is doing something different with her dialogue structures.

Something that I could see being a criticism of Mallory is that sometimes, her dialogue can actually be a little hard to track! She relies less on dialogue tags and I sometimes found myself rereading passages of dialogue to figure out who was talking. Additionally, a thing that will happen is that a character will say something and then there will be a few long paragraphs describes either the speaker's inner thoughts or the listener's inner thoughts. So many paragraphs that there were multiple times that I had to scroll back up to see what the first character had said.

This might sound either like a criticism or an annoyance, but I think it is actually reflective of my experience as a reader of romance novels and discomfort (and the accompanying excitement) with reading something structured differently.

I think a sandwich metaphor works here to explain what I see as Mallory's priorities.

Typically (not always of course, but typically) I would think of a FMC/MMC conversation like this.

POV character's inner thoughts-->POV character's dialogue-->non-POV character's dialogue (repeated however many times needed for the conversation)-->POV character's inner thoughts based on the new information provided in the conversation.

What happens in Mallory, again not always, it would become unreadable pretty quickly if she always did this, but I think she utilizes as often as she can, is this sandwich structure.

Character dialogue-->inner thoughts of responding character, sometimes taking up multiple paragraphs-->response to the dialogue

For Mallory--the dialogue is the bread of the sandwich! It isn't easy to pull character quotations ("I burn for you." "Brace yourself.") It is the frame, the bounds, the form of the relationship.

I think in Mallory, I've felt the greatest tension (captured in that second quotation I included above) between what a character can articulate and what a character is thinking. And for Mallory, it isn't something it going to be resolved hyper neatly. And so often, that's the character question, especially for heroes, in historical romances novels. How will he be able to articulate that he loves her, which we the readers KNOW, because we can hear his thoughts? When the external and the internal reconcile, that's resolution in so much of romance.

But in Mallory, it doesn't feel like then they need to match! And how can they, if they are in constant tension? The external bravery and the internal vulnerability. She doesn't need those two concepts to be aligned and overlapped, but in equilibrium and in balance.

That's what I mean when I say I am obsessed with her dialogue.

Last thought: favorite moment in the whole book, immediately rocketed to the top of my "little romantic moments that made me scream" (spoiler alert if you want to be surprised)

”In the course of events, her coiffure had lost its shape, and one of the short locks around her face kept slipping into her eyes. She finally gave in and brushed it away, trying to tuck it behind her ear. Without looking away from his cards, Roman reaching into his pocket and handed her a fresh clip. It was one of hers, likely forgotten at some point in the past. He always had one handy."

Are you kidding me??

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can see why some people might not like this book. There isn't much light and fluffy about it. The writing is complex and lush. Detailed and descriptive. But I found it to be oh so wonderful.

Roman is such a fascinating hero. He reminds me of Derek Craven. He takes what he wants and does not apologize for it. And he wants to possess Charlotte.

Charlotte is cold, broken and empty inside. Her dad could be the largest ass of a secondary character I have ever read. When she is lost in a poker game to Roman for one night she thinks it is the end of things as she knows them. But oh they are just beginning.

I loved this book. As usual, I stayed up too late because I just had to finish it. There are so many things I was left wondering though. Who is the person Emily was writing too? Who and what is Spade? Who will Andreas be matched up with? Who is his family? Who did Charlotte need protecting from? Did Roman set the who thing with Trant up so Charlotte would be forced to make a choice for him? If so, why didn't he say that in the end? Maybe some of these questions will be answered in Andreas book.

[T’Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

First, I love that Charlotte and Miranda became friends.

Second, I love Roman and Andreas and their family.

Third, Roman and Charlotte were sooooo good together!!! I definitely love them. It was lovely to read their feelings develop and see them both assume the other is going to end their relationship. Ha, what lovesick fools.

This was a great read.

[Nabilah]

DNF at 10%. Definitely my last Anne Mallory book. Her books are definitely not for me.

[Ashton Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tropes:
~bet/wager
~auctioned
~forbidden/taboo romance
~self-made, scoundrel hero
~scarred, rich hero

I LOVED this! I'm a sucker for a self-made hero who rules the London "Underworld" and Roman did just that. He runs a gaming hell and grew up as an orphan on the streets with a tragic backstory, which makes him now cutthroat, mysterious, and seductive af. The basic premise is that the heroine, Charlotte, has a father who is in over his head in gambling debt, and so one night he wagers a night with his daughter, and Roman (who already is captivated by her) makes sure that he has the winning hand.

The fact that they played chess during their night together, instead of him ruining her, was SO swoony to me. And after that night, he makes it his mission to be wherever Charlotte is. She's at a party? He'll be outside in the gardens, waiting in the shadows for her to step outside for a breather. Masquerade ball? He'll come under a fake name and totally masked so he can dance with her in public, despite the scandal it would cause if people around them knew his true identity. Charlotte is attending an event to raise money for charity? He'll show up and shock everyone else, then donate a shit ton of money just because it's a cause she's passionate about. Like...THIS MAN Y'ALL! And don't even get me started on him telling her to leave her window unlocked at night, so he can scale the wall into her bedroom and proceed to seduce her right under her family's noses. 💦

Books like this remind me why I love historical romance, and I'm now verrrrry interested in the next book about Roman's "brother" named Andreas. If Roman was intimidating yet charming, Andreas is just plain terrifying, and I'm so excited to see him find his heroine.


If this book was Taylor Swift lyrics:

"I'll leave my window open
'Cause I'm too tired at night for all these games
Just know I'm right here hoping
That you'll come in with the rain"

[Corinne [hiatus] · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dark, raw and emotional historical.
I was expecting a fluffy love story and it was anything but.
Charlotte is a 21 year old accomplished lady. She is in her 3rd season and bargained by her father in order to increase the family's social status and solve their financial problems. Charlotte is not the romantic young girl dreaming of Prince Charming. She is cold and detached, she feels trapped and abused by her father's gambling addiction and expectations.
Roman wins a night with her in a gaming bet with her father. Nothing happens that night but her interactions with Roman, that night and in the weeks that follow, light a passion spark within her that will ultimately give her back her power and free her from the shackles of expectations and social pressure.
This book was not an easy read. It was so raw at times and I felt so sad about the lack of control women had over their life. Aa a side note, please be aware there are no steamy scenes in this books, only implyed passion.

[Nikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think one of my favourite aspects of GR is not only meeting so many great people and sharing books, but also how interesting it is that people get something so different out of the books that they share. I really want to thank Catherine and Juliana especially for sharing such fantastic writers and books (whether consciously or unconsciously) with me. I do tend to add their favourites or higher rated books to my TBR pile and I haven't regretted it at all.

Now it's time to quit it with the warm fuzzies and get on with my review:

I'm torn! I liked it but some aspects drove me crazy. 3.5 stars.

For me, Anne Mallory has this way about her writing that has me spinning in circles. She does this thing where she's slowly setting things up and whirling you up in her beautiful, rich, descriptive writing. Slowly building the tension and never quite getting there.

In one of my status updates I think it was fairly evident that Mallory was spinning me out with how slooow everything was moving. PS I'm probably the most impatient person you'll ever meet. I do love a bit of build-up, but I hate it at the same time - especially when all I want is for something wild and exciting to happen.

Roman was exquisite and devilish and I loved him. The eternal optimist with a dark undercurrent... I was fascinated by how relaxed and charming he was on the surface but how he was restraining the darkness and danger beneath. Like you just didn't know if or when he would snap.

For about the first 180 pages or so, Charlotte was doing my head in. I suppose given her circumstances that I can't blame her absolute and total repression, but it was frustrating and I really just wanted to give her a burst of girl power so she could break free and be done with it. However, once she allowed Roman the opportunity to "loosen her up" a little I actually quite liked her and enjoyed their jaunty exchanges (the sexy times helped too).

The Good Stuff:
- Once the story starts moving, it really starts moving. So much so that besides feeling like I had a severe case of whiplash; I also felt a little robbed that the first half of the book got all the delicious descriptiveness that Mallory does so well and that the second half isn't as lucky. But it's good - fast is good.
- The interactions between Roman and Charlotte once her Ice Queeniness defrosted a little were simply delicious. If there's one thing that Mallory is superb at, it's dialogue, characterization and feeling. I think that's why I was frustrated at the beginning because Charlotte wasn't allowing herself to feel anything.
- I need to say this again, the dialogue was superb. I have never made so many bookmarks in an ebook in my life. I will share some below.

The Bad Stuff:
- Besides my obvious ranting above in regards to slowness and the like, I did only find a couple of other faults with the book and one of them was that I just didn't understand why Andreas hated Charlotte so much. I understand it was because of the danger that the relationship caused for Roman, but why? What danger? Was it even addressed? Did I completely miss something there?
- Which brings me to my next observation - I find with Mallory's writing at times that there is so much internal musing between the lines of dialogue that I feel like I'm missing things, missing what's being said or the motivation behind it. I quite often have to go back and re-read paragraphs because I've lost my train of thought. It's a little tiring really.
- Why why why does she spend so much time on stuff that I don't want to know about but finish arcs and indeed even the entire story like she's trying to win a race? It can feel so abrupt and cold and I'm left there hanging thinking, "No! No! Come back!"

Now for some quotes!

"Why?" He internally kicked himself for asking. He didn't need an answer to that question, dammit. She was the one who wanted to know why, why, why. He simply coaxed and took what he wanted. And here she was on a candlelit tray. Who cared why?
"Because I don't want to feel broken. Because... because you make me feel alive. Because... I want you to burn me from the inside again like you so easily do."
Fine. He cared a lot about why, then.

She shut her eyes, damning his penchant for risk and her foolishness for always jumping after him with both feet. "Why don't we just wait for Clark and his cronies to enter and exit the room, then go back through?"
"Because they might wait outside the room, and you need to return to the ballroom quickly. Besides, where is your sense of adventure?"
"I left it in the hall when I stuck a knife into John Clark's crotch."
"I think I am jealous."
"I can remedy that," she said darkly.
"Promises, promises."

"Roman." And her voice was soft, questioning. "Do you think you might come to love me? If you weren't... giving... me back? Someday? Just a little?"
He was frozen. Absolutely frozen. He couldn't speak a word. She lifted her chin a notch and pressed a soft kiss to his lips at his nonresponse. And still he remained frozen. He saw her walk to the door and grab Bill's arm. Heard their footsteps filing down the hall. Leaving.
Leaving. Never hearing his whisper that he already did.

"Why?" she whispered.
Stabbing pools of piercing blue pinned her.
"I would destroy the city if something happened to you. I can't even bear the thought of it," he whispered.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anne Mallory’s latest has surprising depth, given its paperback length. I appreciated the continuing story of Miranda and the Viscount, and the role they play in Charlotte and Roman’s relationship. What I liked about Roman: his insecurity. He has achieved great wealth and status in his world, and it’s what he knows. His world is built on showing no emotion. He’s afraid of losing that security blanket and caring about someone. That kind of vulnerability was very well written. What I liked about Charlotte: her lack of illusions. Her father has treated her abominably, and her mother almost just as badly, but even seeing her world so clearly she is still capable of a great depth of emotion, seen with Emily, then Miranda, and finally Roman. While Roman might have won her in a game of cards, he treats her with respect and challenges her intellectually with a seductive chess game. And then walks away. There is no better way to peak her interest. The two together brought new perspective to their lives, to their goals, and forced both to question whether walking alone made sense when together they could have happiness and success and share it. Roman gives her leave to show passion, and this leads her to other realizations about how she treats her family, particularly her mother. Their love gifts her with insight into how easily true emotion is hidden, unless you look closely. I loved this story almost as much as Miranda’s (but I’m biased since I’m a librarian and she was a bookseller), and this is a worthy addition to any historical romance collection. I hope to see another in this series, and if it does hopefully it will come out soon.

[Blackjack · Rating 5 out of 5]

I truly loved this book and probably more so than any other new release this year (so far). I think it's Mallory's best book to date. It's dark and angsty and wildly romantic. Both characters are complex and interesting and destined for each other, which seems unlikely given their different stations and experiences in life. But if Charlotte is "broken", so is Roman, the unlikely hero. There are events that are fairly open-ended in the novel and emotional complexities that are opaque and require much from the reader. The ending is a HEA but leaves room for speculation as to how the two will work together to be together; nevertheless, there's no doubt about the deep love and commitment Charlotte and Roman have for each other. I started out thinking this would be a seduction novel built on lust, but it turns out that both characters use their mutual lust to reveal raw emotional need for each other. It is ultimately a poignant examination of the power of love and at the same time a rejection of the superciality of a society that cages people. I'll definitely read again soon. I so look forward to Andreas's story this fall in Mallory's In Total Surrender.

[Shawna · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars – Historical/Regency Romance

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another series I jumped in the middle of. Damn, I'm getting too good at this.

Place & Time Period : England, Regency
Set Up for the Plot: Drunken fool father offers 1 night with his oldest daughter in a card game. His winning hand, hum, against a 10,000 pound wager. (I'll wager 10,000 pounds you'll guess right how this bet played out.)
Characters: Roman Merrick (H), lord of the underworld, owner of the gaming establishment the wager takes place at.
Charlotte Chatsworth (h), the drunken fool's oldest daughter. Perfect daughter..Perfect in every way (in the eyes of the Ton). Extraordinarily beautiful, perfect manners - comportment - carriage - dress - timber of voice - etcetera, etcetera...she has been trained for this all her life as she enters her 3rd session on the marriage block. (Drunken fool has been holding out for the highest bidder). But, Sweet Charlotte is ready to blow her perfect ruse and with it, her "perfect" mind.

"A distended feeling, full of panic and weariness, pushed outward from her belly, pushing against her ribs, reaching for her throat, to choke her...emotions...chains that were settling more firmly over her...growing tighter around her wrists and neck....it had been growing inside her for so long that she didn't know if anything would be left of her true self.."

Great secondary characters.

Roman has a brother, and these two together are dangerous, deadly, bad ass gangster hunks.

I gave this a 5 star rating because Anne Mallory did not follow the beaten well used path in this much used plot. It is original, page turning, intelligent and witty, character driven, and smokes up the pages... "I'm going to press you against this wall and you won't be able to walk for a week"...

Anne Mallory expertly takes the reader straight into the heart and mind of "Perfect" Charlotte and likewise, does a wonderful job with Roman. I loved both of their characters.

I probably won't read a regency again without thinking of Sweet Perfect Charlotte and what was required and went in to making her so. A different time, different set of mores that where thoroughly covered in this story giving great insight.

Definitely going to pick up bad ass brother's story, which is next.

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love reading different genres, but I always come back to historical romances. Charlotte is a strong heroine who readers will love right away. Can't wait to see Emily get her story.

[Firstpella · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bought it years ago and forgot to read it. Tooooo wordy, but so much promise.