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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good romance, but lacks action and drama....31/2 stars, April 5, 2007
Francesca Dunroy is in a pickle. Due to her own foolishness, she has lost a priceless family jewel to a loathsome rake who she thought she was in love with. In desperation she decides to seduce him into giving it to her at a ball -BUT she seduces the WRONG MAN! Justin Maddox maybe the new Duke of Colster and new to London society (he was kidnapped in infancy and raised in the highlands before his twin brother found him and restored his title) but he knows a fiery lass when he sees one. Sparks fly between these two, even though neither is interested in marriage. They seem to be constantly bumping into each in the most unexpected places. While Francesca searches for her jewel, Justin is experiencing a major identity crisis. How is a former Scottish blacksmith supposed to act like an English duke? And what of the possible Scottish rebellion? Who's side is he on? Just who should Justin trust? The land where he was raised or his own twin brother?
I enjoyed this one sort of. Both the H/H have major trust issues with their families for different reasons. They turn towards each other as a means of a lifeline. A well developed romance. Very good love scenes with likable characters. The only thing lacking is drama/action. There is a little bit with the loathsome rake who possesses the jewel, but thats about it. Maxwell (author) spends a fair amount of time and uses plenty of secondary characters to introduce a possible Scottish rebellion plot which never materializes. There are plenty of people threatening and harassing Justin into giving them what they want, but no one actually ACTS on the threats! Sheesh! Whats the point of the villains telling the hero "you'll be sorry if you don't....." or "we'll kill you if...." and then NOTHING happens to back that up? The reader doesn't find out till the epilogue that the whole thing is just a setup for the sequel. Gimme a break!
So if you liked the prequel (In the Bed of a Duke -which I had mixed feelings about), you'll probably like this one. Not as good as some of her earlier historicals (Falling in Love Again, You and No Other etc) but perhaps worth a read just to continue the series. It looks like Maxwell in saving all the Scottish/English conflict for the next in the series -at least I hope so!
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15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Charming, April 19, 2007
Francesca Dunroy is considered both a catch and somewhat of a pariah of the London ton. She is desirable because she is quite beautiful and an heiress who will inherit a lot of money and land upon marrying. She is considered an outsider because due to her recently deceased mother's illness, she had missed coming out to society at an appropriate age, she is older than most unwed ladies of the ton. Also, her father married a younger woman very quickly after being widowed. London society is punishing her for her father's lack of mourning.
Then one night at a lavish affair hosted by her father, she meets the newly and reluctantly named Duke of Closter, Justin Maddox. Justin is of English nobility who was raised as a blacksmith in Scotland. He is a sexy man who is more that a little out of his element and uncomfortable with his new position. When Francesca inadvertently walks into his arms the sparks ignite and soon they find themselves more involved with each other than either of them seems to want.
This book is part of a series, you could probably read it as a stand alone, but I wouldn't recommend it. It has been so long since I read the last book in the series, that it really took some deep searching in my brain to remember some of the characters. I had a hard time remembering how Justin and Phillip got to be where they were in this book. I wish I would have read the last book over, as a refresher.
Francesca and Justin make a charming couple with a lot of passion and Ms. Maxwell writes an exciting tale. This was a delightful historical romance with wonderful characters. This book was really hard to put down, but things like sleep, food and family kept getting in my way. I stayed up into the wee hours of the morning last night reading; I kept saying one more chapter then I will go to bed. If my eyelids would have cooperated I would have finished this story last night, one more chapter was never enough.
At the end of the book you get a small insight into the next book in the series, I am really looking forward to it; I hope Ms. Maxwell won't keep us waiting long.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Bedding Boredom, October 14, 2007
The premise of this book is actually very good for a romance novel. Perfect, in my opinion. We have two social misfits. A heroine that has been ignored by society due to her father's marriage occurring before the mourning period for his wife has properly ended, (and to a woman younger than his daughter) who is forced to make her social debut at 24. And a Scottish blacksmith that finds out he is actually an English duke, torn between his duties to both countries, whild having to adapt to social obligations and the nuances of Regency England. Both characters have all the makings for a perfect romance, I would say. Misfits drawn together by their loneliness!
However, as another reviewer said: I just did not care for either of these characters. The greatest flaw of this novel is it's horrendous execution. Francesca Dunroy is a brat. I really ended up rooting for her "wicked stepmother," Regina (We know this type, vapid, one-dimensional, greedy... total opposite of our supposedly "brilliant" heroine.). To exemplify my feelings here is an example: at one point in the novel Regina is admiring herself in the mirror and fixing her hair, our heroine thinks about how childishly Regina behaves and then displays her own astounding "maturity" by elbowing her out of the way and snatching the brush.
Ugh. And I should be sympathetic to her? Maybe if Regina was truly doing something horrible or annoying I could cheer this on as "just desserts." But, hypocritical much? She was never any better than the stepmother.
Her stupidity does not end here. After cavorting around with a rake that attempts to rape her she loses a valuable necklace at his apartment... then attempts to get it back by seducing her attempted-rapist and meeting him alone in a secluded area. Hmmmmmmm. I still cannot grasp the logic behind this. She exhibits this TSTL (too stupid to live) behavior throughout the novel.
This is obviously a sequel and the majority of the hero's development took place in the earlier novel. Therefore, he was rather bland this time around. Not too annoying, but not all that amazing either.
The romance itself was so dry and unbelievable. One of those were they meet, have sex that very same night, have changed each other's worlds and magically become better people the next day. Snore. Zzzzzz. Look, I enjoy the whole instant-attraction, spontaneous-combustible sex thing... when it's done well! This novel is a sad attempt.
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