Scandal Becomes Her [Mass Market Paperback]

Shirlee Busbee (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2009

Love is sweetest when it's unexpected. Nell Anslowe and Julian, Earl of Wyndham, are an unlikely couple in every respect. Injured in a riding accident ten years ago, Nell was left with a fiance who abandoned their engagement and the firm belief that she will never marry. The abrupt end of Julian's unhappy marriage formed his resolve to remain a bachelor until the end of his days. But as Julian chases down his reckless stepsister, he seeks shelter from a summer storm in a cottage - and finds it occupied by Nell, who has escaped from a fortune-seeking libertine bent on carrying her off to Gretna Green. Discovered together by Nell's family, the couple's hasty wedding is the only way to save Nell from scandal. But the polite union each of them expects soon ignites into something much more powerful...

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

At 29, Miss Nell Anslowe is viewed as "on the shelf" by Regency society. Ten years earlier, an accident damaged her leg and left her suffering from strange and disturbing dreams. She has been content spending time with her doting family, so she takes little heed of Lord Tynedale, knowing his interest in her stems only from her status as an heiress. What she does not count on is Lord Tynedale's desperation to keep from bankruptcy. He kidnaps her, and only quick thinking and a storm save her. Julian Weston, Earl of Wyndham, is on a fool's errand when his horse bolts, and he takes refuge in the same abandoned building in which Nell is hiding. They are discovered and forced to wed. The challenge of their unexpected marriage is overshadowed by Nell's dreams and the discovery that the sick and brutal visions may actually be happening in real life. Busbee seamlessly meshes Regency romance with haunting suspense, keeping fans riveted to the end. Engelmann, Patty --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Zebra Books; Reprint edition (June 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0821780255
• ISBN-13: 978-0821780251
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #571,938 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars AWESOME - Highly Recommended, September 11, 2007

By 

M. Rondeau (West Springfield, MA United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Scandal Becomes Her (Paperback)

Ten years earlier, Eleanor "Nell" Anslowe, a beautiful wealthy heiress was once betrothed to a Duke's heir. That was before the `accident' which left her lame and haunted by nightmares of hideous brutality - always the same perpetrator who remained in shadows, but different victims. Firmly off the shelf at twenty-nine she agreed to accompany her father to London for the season where she is looked at as the answer to the nefarious Lord Tynedale's way out of debt. Rebuffing his advances, Tynedale later kidnapped her with the intention of rape and forcing her to wed, but due to a storm along the way, Nell escaped and found shelter in a nearby hut.

Fate stepped in when on that same stormy night, Julian, the Earl of Wyndham was racing to prevent his step-sister from eloping to Gretna Greene. Thrown by his horse he also found shelter in the same hut as Nell and when Nell's father and brother discovered them Julian - who had vowed never to re-marry - did the honorable thing and offered marriage. Their marriage would blossom into a sensual and powerful love that would last forever....or until they could discover the identity of Nell's `shadow man' before he destroyed them both.

*** I was completely swept away from the very first pages of this tremendous Regency Romance mystery and read it in one sitting. The author combined all the elements I look for in a romance with two ideal lead characters truly meant for one another; after the requisite initial problems of conflict over their hasty marriage. Julian is kind, honorable, considerate, and in lust with Nell until he finally realizes he's fallen in love with his wife. While Nell's initial qualms over being married without love to a complete stranger are worked out in a reasonable amount of time, she has also fallen in love with her husband, but feels that his heart is bound to his deceased wife.

At first I was wondering why the author opened up the book with Nell's nightmares and then as the romance progressed the author simultaneously directed the intrigue towards the horror that Nell's nightmares were based in fact! As Nell's nightmares which Julian was trying to soothe away became more and more real, an event happened to make her realize that her initial nightmare of a man being killed was not a nightmare at all but a real event. At this point, Nell realized she was actually looking through the eyes of the madman. The author then built up the suspense with the introduction of legitimate and illegitimate cousins, uncles, and by-blows from Julian's rakish grandfather and uncle, giving the reader a wide range of possibilities as to what face belonged to the "shadow-man" from Nell's dreams, especially when the features of all the relations were so similar to one another. Thrilling with an edge-of -the seat climax, the author kept up the suspense right up to the spine chilling ending.

This was my very first book by the esteemed historical romance author Shirlee Busbee but it surely will not be the last. In short it was a fast and beautifully paced romance with a huge dollop of suspense and mystery that will keep the reader enthralled from beginning to end! What a treat!

Marilyn Rondeau, RIO - Reviewers International Organization for www.paranormalromance.org

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars It Was Okay, February 17, 2009

By 

C. Henderson "cmh" (St.. Louis, MO United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Scandal Becomes Her (Paperback)

When Nell is forced to marry Julian to avoid a scandal she's not sure how her life will turn out. Although she's very attracted to him and he with her neither was confident about falling in love. But horrible, vivid nightmares and grisly murders pull the couple together as they begin to delve into Nell's past. Startling conclusions come to light eventually, but the story tends to drag along, then fizzle out. After the limp suspense and guessing throughout the book, when the murderer is revealed it comes across as weak and lacking in ingenuity. I was rather disappointed that there wasn't enough thought, intrigue and suspense used to reveal the culprit's identity. Busbee is usually an excellent writer, but this book was not her best.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I liked it., July 22, 2009

By 

MissKati22 (Chicago, IL USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Scandal Becomes Her (Mass Market Paperback)

I've been on a recent less is more kick... as in, less sex hopefully means more actual intimacy and a stronger relationship between characters. This is one of those books! If you're looking for a trashy smut novel, this one isn't it. I definitely felt like I was reading a mystery novel with a love story in it versus a romance novel. I've read quite a few romances with a sci-fi/fantasy edge... the psychic abilities, telepathy, etc. I feel like the author handled this well- incredible but believeable. Given the amount of time that passes in this book, I do feel like it was a nice love story. The villains were really villains and the heroes were really heroes... none of this tortured rake who has no reedeeming qualities stuff.