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Tempted at Every Turn

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Tempted at Every Turn is the third book in the Ladies Amatuer Slueth Society series by DeHart. James is a hero every woman is sure to adore and you couldn't wish for a more fun heroine than Willow. With yummy sexual tension, a fun mystery, and a delightful battle of the sexes, Tempted at Every Turn has it all!

Tempted at Every Turn by Robyn Dehart has a mix of mystery, romance with some strong flawed characters. Willow thinks she will never marry because she needs to home with her bipolar mother. She finds herself helping with murder investigation and finding out more about herself and all the society's darker side. James Sterling works for Scotland Yard but is one of Ton and finds himself working with Willow and falling in love kicking & screaming... Check out that whole series Courting Claudia (1) Deliciously Wicked (2).

If you enjoy this genre, I would also suggest Spirited Away by Cindy Miles, Lady Lies by Samantha Saxon and `When We Meet' by Victoria Alexander.

In 1893 London Ladies' Amateur Sleuth Society member Willow Mabson detests arrogant Scotland Yard detective Lord James Sterling especially when he finds her detecting amateurish. When her mother is implicated in the killing of a photographer, James bets Willow he will solve the case long before she sips her tea; she accepts his wager.

However, neither makes much progress and seems to get in each other's way. To help her mom, Willow and James form an alliance. However, as they work together, they fall in love, but James must first solve the case before he tackles the more difficult activity of getting Willow to be his life partner.

The third meeting of the London Ladies' Amateur Sleuth Society (see A STUDY IN SCANDAL and DELICIOUSLY WICKED) is an entertaining late Victorian whodunit. The relationship between the lead couple starts off as a nasty competition, but quickly evolves into a personal and professional partnership. The amusing rivalry is fun to follow as Willow and James start of with the bet that "I Can Do Anything Better Than You", but realizes they need each other to solve the case and resolve their heart's palpitations. This is a fun historical romantic mystery series.

Harriet Klausner

The premise of the book is: spinsterish wanna be Nancy Drew thinks she knows more than Scotland Yard detective, they challenge each other to see who can solve a London murder, wager is he gets a kiss and she gets a formal apology.

Willow really detests Inspector James Sterling based on her accounts from her cousin, only a clerk at Scotland Yard, who states that James breaks rules and interrogates suspects using unlawful tactics. Willow is a Victorian ACLU member. She even writes letters to the newspapers stating her dislike for the inspector whom she has never met.

When they do meet at a mutual friend's house, the sparks fly and soon they are in a wager to see who can solve a crime first, so Willow accompanies James on his investigation of a murdered photographer. James likes to bait Willow at first but he then settles down quickly and recognizes this woman as a lady who totally represses her passions. Even Willow knows she is judgmental and rigid.

The investigation takes a nasty turn when Willow's family comes under suspicion. Suddenly, Willow's fury knows no bounds as she is highly protective of her mother who is suffering from a form of dementia. Willow has in fact decided that she will never marry so that she can take care of her mother.

The two leads bicker and kiss and then Willow gets angry. This continues for several encounters. The mystery was not all that interesting and neither were the characters. It took me a long time to finish this book because it never grabbed me from the start. There is a fourth novel in this series and enough clues were left in this one to point to what the new mystery will be. This mystery, however, was slow moving and the romance even slower.