The Devil's Love (Mass Market Paperback)

~ Julia London (Author) "Abbey Carrington stood at the bow of the luxury passenger ship with her hands stuffed into a muff..." (more)
Key Phrases: amethyst earrings, little hellion, mahogany hair, Blessing Park, Lady Darfield, Lord Darfield (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

A woman's desire...

With dreams of a great romantic love, Abigail Carrington sails to England to marry the man she has loved since childhood, Michael Ingram, Marquis of Darfield. She believes her betrothed is a generous and noble man who has been longing for her. But the handsome man waiting for her at the altar is a dark, brooding stranger who rushes her into marriage, then abandons her at his country estate. Only the passion of Michael's kiss gives her hope that theirs can be more than a marriage of convenience.

A man's need...

With scandal shadowing his past, Michael, the Devil of Darfield, had no need for a wife. Remembering only the little hellion who made life miserable for him aboard her father's ship, he resents the agreement he made to marry her so he could save his ancestral home. Though determined to ignore her, he cannot stop thinking about his lovely violet-eyed bride. Her beauty tempts him. Her charm bedevils him. He tries to drive her away until he almost loses her. Then he vows to regain her love--before it is too late....

From the Publisher

She was a lovely innocent, but she could not resist...The Devil's Love

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Dell (November 10, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0440226317
• ISBN-13: 978-0440226314
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #297,014 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

72 of 76 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars * Sigh...* This book is what romance is all about!, June 9, 2000

By	Guppie - See all my reviews

After reading all the books from authors like Judith McNaught and Julie Garwood in this genre, I thought I wouldn't find another author that could write like them. But oh, oh, oh, to my surprise Julia London is just as good!

This is the first book of Julia London that I've read and Devil's Love is totally scrumptious! The story of Michael and Abby is so delightful, so romantic, so heartbreaking and sooooo good. Abby is sunny, cheerful and adorable and Michael was quite the opposite in the beginning. But later Michael *sigh* turned out to be a wonderful, sexy and a totally fantastic hero!

The story line and build up was good and wonderfully written that YOU JUST WOULD NOT WANT TO PUT IT DOWN!

If you want to read romance you MUST read this 'coz this book will make you feel like you are the main characters! This book will take you back in time. This book will make you laugh out loud. This book will make you fall in love (again)!

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A delicious arranged marriage gone awry!, July 18, 2003

By	"readinganddreaming" (Green Country, Oklahoma) - See all my reviews

This is my second Julia London book. Both have been great stories and have each received a 5 star rating from me. London has a particularly charming ability when it comes to writing alpha males that are forced to reign in their strong personalities, grow up, and give of themselves. Her heroines are pleasant, innocent, and naive although a little too sweet for believability.

Michael Ingram, Marquis of Darfield, had sailed the seas at the age of nineteen, upon Captain Carrington's ship as a member of the crew. Also sailing on that ship was the captain's young daughter, Abigail (Abbey), known to all aboard as a wild, undisciplined yet charming child. Abbey had not seen Michael since that voyage twelve years ago. But she had held, in her heart and mind, dear memories of Michael and had eagerly awaited their future marriage.

Abbey's father, taking advantage of the young future marquis's financial problems, had loaned Michael, at that vulnerable age of nineteen, a large sum of money to repay his father's creditors. Michael's father was gambling away all the family's ancestral fortune and lands - thus Michael was desperate for the Captain's financial aid. Included in this financial contract was a betrothal agreement between Michael and the captain's daughter. This betrothal clause would be evoked only if Michael had failed to repay the Captain in full at some future specified date. Since the signing of that agreement, at least ten years ago, Michael had amassed a fortune himself and had repaid all of his father's debts. Michael, now Marquis of Darfield, had essentially forgotten the old agreement since all debt had been paid off. However, Captain Carrington had not been totally upfront with the young man all those years ago. The captain had hidden a large portion of Michael's father's debts from him and, prior to the his death, had evoked the betrothal portion of the agreement. No matter what Michael attempted to do, he discovered he was truly bound by the contract and - most unhappily - was forced to marry the captain?s daughter, Abbey.

Abbey, blissfully unaware of Michael's hostility and hatred of the marriage agreement, sailed from America to England believing herself totally in love with her future husband. Her father had told her, through the years, how much Michael wanted the forthcoming marriage and the love he held for her. Abbey discovered, much to her horror, that Michael was not the willing bridegroom. Not only was he unwilling - he treated her terribly - hoping that she would break the agreement. However, idyllic in her belief that Michael would someday love her, she refused to break the betrothal and they married.

All of the above happenings occur within the first 57 pages of the book. Immediately after the rushed wedding, Michael leaves Abbey at one of his country estates and travels to another for an indefinite period of time. He is determined to make Abbey suffer tremendously for the enforced marriage. During this period of the book, Michael is a really mean guy. He treats Abbey with contempt, suspicion, hatred, and is out for revenge. Abbey, conversely, is an extremely naive young woman and seeks happiness despite Michael's attempt to make her life a misery. Not only is she naive, she is also sweet - a little too sweet. One of my two complaints about The Devil's Love is her character is too sugary. She is seen as such an innocent and draws everyone to her with her never-ending optimism and enjoyment of life. It makes her character appear as unrealistic - she is too super-sweet with too many talents for one person.

The interaction between the leads is excellent although they are at odds a lot of the time. Just when we think Michael can get no meaner, Abbey begins to stand up for herself and he begins to reluctantly respect her and more reluctantly finds he is strongly drawn to her. Yes, love develops even in this big mess of an enforced marriage. However, I began to get uncomfortable about halfway through the book. I saw all of the signs of The Big Misunderstanding lining up and dreaded it. This was the second complaint that I mentioned earlier. The Big Misunderstanding was very, very big and it took a lot of the pages for it to be resolved. However, this book does deserve it's five star rating because London does a wonderful job of writing this portion of the book. I was caught by surprise, more than once, as the events unfolded. Although I was able to sense the upcoming misunderstanding, I was not able at all to guess how it would eventually be solved. The story is vastly entertaining. I eagerly consumed each page and every time I had to put it down - I enthusiastically resumed reading.

You will find this love story at times heartbreaking and at other times exciting and fresh. You will want Michael to get his comeuppance more than once as well. The chemistry between the leads certainly is vibrant and warms the pages. The actual sensual scenes, although fairly frequent, are somewhat tame and rate about a 3.0 to a 3.5 out of 5.0 (see More About Me for rating guidelines).

The Devil's Love is the first in a series followed by Wicked Angel. I read Wicked Angel first and although I probably would have preferred only slightly to read them in order, they are truly stand-alone books. I loved each book on it's own merits although I could have picked up on a few situations a little more quickly in Wicked Angel if I had read The Devil's Love first. However, in order or not, this is a great two book series that I wholeheartedly recommend.

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mmm...so good., November 3, 1999

By	"tessytura" (California) - See all my reviews

Sometimes you get into reading romance novels, and it gets tedious and monotonous. You get jaded and wonder where all the good authors have gone. You know...where's that FEELING you used to get? Well, thank goodness for Julia London. This is one of those books that makes you remember why you still read romance novels. I read Wicked Angel just to make sure that it wasn't a fluke. And that was great, too! Ms. London, I eagerly await your next book.