The Rake's Retreat (Signet Regency Romance) [Paperback]

Nancy Butler (Author)

Book Description

Series: Signet Regency Romance | Publication Date: April 1, 1999

A young lady finds herself caught in a mystery of murder, as she accompanies the frightened young girl, a witness to the crime, and her guardian, a nobleman renowned for his notorious behavior, to a nearby castle. After arriving at the noble gent's estate, the three think themselves safe from the killer, who may be on their trail. But as the scandalous incident brings the young woman and the nobleman together, she finds that it is her heart that's in danger.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Signet (April 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451197895
• ISBN-13: 978-0451197894
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,071,016 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nancy Butler makes Regency England come alive., May 29, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Rake's Retreat (Signet Regency Romance) (Paperback)

Lady Jemima Vale spends her life in the shadow of her poet brother, the current rage of the ton. When she follows him to the country so he can view a prizefight, she finds herself coming to the aid of a young actress who has witnessed a murder on the estate of the most notorious rake in all England, Beecham Bryce. The young girl needs protection because she has seen the killer. Lady Jemima cannot allow her to go off with a man with such an infamous reputation, so she agrees to act as chaperone. When she learns that the murdered man is identified as her brother, Jemima's world turns upside down. Beecham Bryce is very attracted to Lady J. In fact, this is the first woman to interest him in a very long time. When her brother turns up alive and drunk, he asks Bryce to play up to his sister, who is considered 'on the shelf'. Bryce doesn't think so. He continues to pursue the lady on his own. But there is danger afoot. Someone is dead, someone is stealing from Bryce's home and the war is heating up on the continent. Lady Jemima is falling under Bryce's seductive spell, totally against her nature. Only Nancy Butler can make everything turn out right. Her unique ability to blend adventure, drama, and danger with Regency morals, comedy and romance takes the reader back to a time when life was very different but love was very much the same as it is now. She immerses the reader in the glory and simplicity of a bygone era with a deft hand and magnificent imagery. The characters are drawn with humor and wry wit. She writes with true understanding of the relationships between men and women of any time. True to the genre, everything turns out all right in the end, but Nancy Butler has led her characters and readers on a thrilling, delightful romantic adventure that is not to be missed.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Definitely in the Heyer tradition!, March 18, 2003

By 

Susan Smith (A small rural village in the English Midlands) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Rake's Retreat (Signet Regency Romance) (Paperback)

I've now read a number of Nancy Butler's novels and, thus far, this one is the very best. A story of a mature woman and a rake with a sad and bad past is always a pleasurable plot for me. But this one was certainly one of the finest I've read and put me in mind of Heyer's Venetia and her beloved Damerel.

Jemima Vale - mature, intelligent and strong is missing something in her life - love, true companionship and (unbeknownst to her) sexual fulfilment. She meets, through the subplot of intrique and espionage, Mr Beecham Bryce - rake, reprobate, fallen angel with a hardened heart. Of course, in this sort of scenario, the H/H are never quite what they seem. Jemima is wise and caring but eager to love a man who, superficially at any rate, appears to be totally inappropriate. Bryce is a man who has willfully brought on his own downfall yet retains strong family ties and yearns to find love and completion with Jemima, a woman who proves to be his true "other half".

This is a tightly plotted story with wholly believable characters (and some brilliant secondary characters) and the story is enlivened by some of the wittiest dialague I have read in a regency novel for a very long time. Just one tiny example:

Jemima looked up at the sky, assessing the position of the sun. "I see that it is past noon. And that your innuendoes have returned, right on schedule."

Bryce's mouth drew up into a crooked grin. "I don't flatter before lunchtime; innuendo I can furnish round the clock."

Butler handles her mature heroine and flawed hero with great skill and gusto in this novel. Both are characters who come bursting to life for the reader. It's definitely a keeper and it's made me realise it is time to re-read Heyer's "Venetia" again. Very highly recommended for its plot, characters, dialogue and high levels of emotion and sexual tension.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful!, August 17, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Rake's Retreat (Signet Regency Romance) (Paperback)

Lovelace Wellesley was an actress who went for a walk and witnessed a murder. She escaped the murderer and ran into Beecham Bryce, the biggest libertine in the country. Thinking the murderer would be looking for Lovelace, he decides to have her stay with him on his estate. Lady Jemima Vale accompanies them as a chaperon. So Jemima sends word to the hotel for her brother, Troy, a famous poet, to meet her at the estate.

From then on, this Regency Romance is full of romance, suspence, action, and surprises. I can tell no more about it without giving away something vital to the mystery. I CAN say that in my opinion, Nancy Butler is the best regency writer I have stumbled across in the bookstore. Highly recommended!