Never Again (American Beauties Trilogy) [Mass Market Paperback]

Jo-Ann Power (Author)

Book Description

Series: American Beauties Trilogy | Publication Date: October 1, 1998

Award-winning author Jo-Ann Power brought the Gilded Age to splendid life in Never Before, the first novel in a wonderful trilogy featuring young American heiresses who grace Victorian Europe with their spirited, refreshing style. Now this gifted storyteller returns to the exquisite age of manners in a delightfullly lavish tale of these bold and enchanting young ladies...the American Beauties.

NEVER AGAIN

As a beautiful American debutante, Raine Montand has charmed all of London. But in secret, she plays another role -- that of Raynard the Fox, whose scorching political cartoons can make or break a career. Raine is devastated when one of her drawings is responsible for making Parliament member Gavin Sutherland a murder suspect. Vowing to make amends, she poses as a widow and seeks a job as Gavin's secretary, in an attempt to discover the truth that will save him.

Alone and embittered, deserted by family, friends, and fianceáe, Gavin is forced to resign from Parliament. His only supporter is the lovely but mysterious young lady in his employ, whose assistance could be invalauable in clearing his name. Gavin senses the risk of trusting one about whom he knows so little. But as their investigation continues, both Gavin and Raine realize the greatest risk of all is love -- and the grandest reward.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Raine Montand is not your typical American debutanteAshe is independent, opinionated, lives in England and creates political cartoons under a pseudonym. It is only when one of her caricatures makes parliament member Gavin Sutherland a prime suspect in an unsolved murder case that she realizes the devastating power of her work. Gavin soon loses his seat, as well as his friends, family and fianc?e, and turns to mystery writing to help pay the bills while plotting his return to politics. Realizing his innocence, Raine, while posing as a widow, becomes his secretary and helps him write a thinly veiled fictionalization of the murders of which he has been accused. London is scandalized as Gavin's chapters are published weekly, and the case is reopened. Unluckily, passion distracts our hero and heroine from finding the killer until it's almost too late. In this second installment of her American Beauties trilogy (after Never Before), Power cleverly weaves politics, murder and romance, creating intense, breath-catching suspense.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

Elaine Coffman National bestselling author Romance at it's best! Jo-Ann Power keeps the pages turning! -- Review

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Pocket (October 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671008994
• ISBN-13: 978-0671008994
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,056,655 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

An East Coast gal who has been transplanted to south Texas, I'm loving the wild west and the strong, sassy, hard-working folks who live here. Born and raised in Baltimore, I moved to Washington DC when I went to college and grad school, and met my future husband. Now, 37 years after our marriage, we are the proud parents of 3 grown adults, each of whom is terribly talented and accomplished. In the early 80's, I began to write fiction and here I am 18 novels later! As a PR person by inclination and profession, I got a gift for gab and am delighted to be able to chat on Amazon with readers!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars okay, May 16, 2000

By 

De-lite (Dayton, Ohio) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Never Again (American Beauties Trilogy) (Mass Market Paperback)

I did not think that this was a bad book, just slow. I really enjoyed NEVER BEFORE and I am looking forward to NEVER SAY NEVER, but this one just didn't keep my interest. To tell you the truth, I read about 2/3 of the book then didn't bother finishing it to find out who did it or how Gavin reacted when Raine revealed her true identity.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Ok for romance and mystery, but I was hoping for more. Too much self-pity by the heroine., October 20, 2010

By 

Jane (Chicago, IL, United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Never Again (Paperback)

STORY BRIEF:
Raine is a single American woman living in London in 1876. She is a political cartoonist for a London newspaper. Gavin and Sean are members of Parliament. Sean promised to vote for Gavin's bill but didn't. Gavin is angry and yells at Sean. Raine sees this and draws it for the newspaper. Later that day Sean and his lover Louise are murdered. The newspaper prints articles suggesting Gavin is the murderer. His family, his fiancée, and most of his friends turn against him, and he loses his seat in Parliament. He retreats to a house by the sea, living like a hermit. There he writes a successful mystery novel.

Ten months after the murder, Raine is filled with guilt. She feels her cartoon caused the downfall of a good man. She wants to help him. She rents a cottage near Gavin's house. She claims to be a widow grieving for her husband. Gavin put an ad in the paper to hire a secretary. Raine applies for and gets the job. Gavin decides to write a second novel based on his own scandal with hopes that the authorities will reopen the case and find the murderer. Raine provides encouragement, is a sounding board, and is a great help to him. They begin to fall in love. The problem is that Raine continues lying to Gavin. He doesn't know that she is the cartoonist who contributed to his downfall. He also doesn't know her widowhood is a lie.

REVIEWER'S OPINION:
I liked the concept, and I was anticipating a rewarding experience of his healing and their relationship growing. But I didn't get that because it was overshadowed by the "main conflict" of her believing she should never be happy and never forgiving herself. She will spend the rest of her life in misery because she won't let herself be with him. This self-pity continued far too long for me. My feelings during most of the book were negative because I knew they would be splitting up due to her lies. After they fell in love, she continued lying to him. He was wonderful, patient, and loving even though he knew she was keeping secrets. He asked her to trust him and tell him, but she wouldn't. So your enjoyment of the story will depend on whether or not you're ok with this type of conflict.

The story about the scandal and the murder was a good mystery and had an interesting ending. Gavin was a good man, high morals (unexpected for an elected member of Parliament), very smart, patient and loving to her. Raine was impressively intelligent about politics, loving, caring, and an excellent cook.

DATA:
Story length: 303 pages. Swearing language: mild, including religious swear words. Sexual language: mild. Number of sex scenes: 4. Total number of sex scene pages: 11. Setting: 1876 to 1879 London and Norfolk area, England. Copyright: 1998. Genre: historical romance.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best of the Series, August 9, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Never Again (American Beauties Trilogy) (Mass Market Paperback)

Never Again is one of the best historical romance novel I've ever read. The characters are so thoroughly taped that you can feel their happiness, pain, and remorse.

Feeling that she has inadvertantly destroyed MP Gavin Sutherland's life with her cartoon depiction of his arguement with another MP in Hyde Park when the other man and his lover are murdered, Raine Montand (Raynard the Fox) sets out for a remote seaside community to help Gavin restore his reputation. Disguised as a widow to a British soldier she applies for his secretary opening.

Disowned, alone, and bitter Gavin Sutherland reluctantly hires Raine Jennings without asking too many questions, yet his close physical proximity to Raine wets his appetite about her past. As she assist him in piecing together his mystery novel he can't help but fall in love with her b/c she offers him encouragement and hope.

Jo-Ann Power makes our heart ache with their emotional conflicts. Raine feels she is unworthy of Gavin b/c she has caused his downfall, therefore must leave when his reputation is restored no matter how much she loves him. Gavin on the other hand is chaffing at the heart b/c Raine will not allow him to say "I love you" so he expresses it with his actions instead. What it all comes down to is when Gavin will learn Raine's identity, will he forgive her, and can she forgive herself?

Jo-Ann Power has written a superb novel in Never Again. The story flows well, and the dialogue is wonderful and touching. From Raine's side-stepping of Gavin's questions to his fustration with her secrets, Ms. Power has written a treat.