The Last Hellion [Kindle Edition]

Loretta Chase (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

In 1820s England, 28-year-old Lydia Grenville is a few inches under six feet tall and mind-numbingly beautiful. Clever as well as gorgeous, she is the author of a London newspaper's most popular adventure serial and has also penned scathing articles about the prostitution trade in the city. Her less-than-ladylike occupation, checkered past, and questionable lineage make it highly unlikely that she will ever marry a member of the Regency ton. However, in keeping with a long legacy of hell-raising ancestors, Vere Mallory, the notorious Duke of Ainswood, has a reputation for flaunting society's dictates. Besides, one look at Lydia and he loses his heart, although at the time, it doesn't occur to him that love is what he feels. He terms it lust and sets out to bed the beautiful Lydia.

What follows is an endearing, hilarious contest of wills between a woman determined to hold her heart and body safe, and a man just as determined to conquer her. In a final, winner-takes-all contest, Lydia and Vere come to terms, but neither is sure just who won and just who lost the wager. Is it possible they may both come out winners? Meanwhile, Lydia's very public crusade against the worst offenders in the city's illegal prostitution business has earned her dangerous enemies. Just when it seems that Vere and Lydia may resolve their personal contest of wills, the dark forces at work in the seamier side of London threaten not only Lydia, but also Vere's beloved nieces.

The Last Hellion has a cast of well-drawn characters who play out their scenes against a backdrop of Regency England that's both lushly rich in descriptions of the wealthy and darkly gritty when traveling the back streets where poverty rules.

From Library Journal

When Vere Mallory, the seventh Duke of Ainswood and the last of the infamous "Mallory Hellions," ends up in the mud after being properly slugged by an outspoken, crusading journalist of Amazonian proportions, he decides to teach her a lesson?and ends up learning a few things himself. Well-matched, appealing protagonists, a lively, witty writing style, and excellent dialog complement this compelling story that addresses some of the more relevant social issues of the Regency era. Chase has won two Rita Awards, including one for Lord of Scoundrels (Avon, 1995), the prequel to The Last Hellion, and lives in Massachusetts.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Format: Kindle Edition
• File Size: 735 KB
• Print Length: 384 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins e-books (March 17, 2009)
• Sold by: HarperCollins Publishers
• Language: English
• ASIN: B000FCKOEU
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (58 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,728 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

More About the Author

Loretta Chase holds a B.A. from Clark University, where she majored in English and minored unofficially in visual art. Her past lives include clerical, administrative, and part-time teaching at Clark and a Dickensian six-month experience as a meter maid. In the course of moonlighting as a corporate video scriptwriter, she fell under the spell of a producer who lured her into writing novels... and marrying him. The union has resulted in more than a dozen books and a number of awards, including the Romance Writers of America's RITA® Award.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Books by Loretta Chase are worth waiting for!, May 11, 2000

By 

Jo Manning (Miami Beach, FL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Last Hellion (Mass Market Paperback)

I've enjoyed Loretta Chase since she used to write Regencies for Walker Publishing. Her research is first-rate and her characters full-blown and believable. The sexual tension she generates between her protagonists is always exciting and rewarding, too. Grenville and Mallory are made for each other, of course. Lydia Grenville was born to heal Mallory, the Duke of Ainswood's, tortured soul. They both lost children they adored---Lydia her little sister, Mallory his young nephew, and the losses bring them together. But, first, sparks fly as the two challenge and bring out the best (or is it the worst?) in each other and titillate the ton (English high society) with their very public antics and capers. There's a great dog in the story, too, great in size and great in personality. Loretta Chase is not one of those romance writers who comes out with a book every few months, but when she does come out with one, it is "cherce" (to quote Spencer Tracy describing Katherine Hepburn in one of their films). Chase's novels are "cherce" and worth the waiting. Unforgettable, too.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent story...I was completely hooked, January 1, 2006

By 

statengirl (Massachusetts, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Last Hellion (Mass Market Paperback)

Dickens would be proud of this captivating story with its twists and turns and family secrets, and a hero and heroine who must come to terms with their troubled pasts before they can be truly happy. Lydia Grenville, raised in poverty, lost her mother and sister as a child and was then abandoned by her wastrel father. She is now a crusading journalist for a popular London publication, and doesn't think very highly of men. Vere Mallory, Duke of Ainswood has his own turbulent history. His parents died when he was nine, and he is the last of his direct line, whose male heirs have all succumbed to untimely deaths. Since the death eighteen months ago of the previous Duke, his boy cousin, Vere has essentially been in a state of depression and denial. He has led a life of dissipation, shirking his responsibilities to his title and to his young female cousins who are his wards. He does not think very highly of women.

The meeting of the two opposing forces of Vere and Lydia is a wonder to behold. At times highly humorous, at times deeply moving, the dialogue is always engaging in the way the inimitable Ms. Chase does so well. Vere's oft-muttered epithets for Lydia are hilarious, and yet there are also times of amazing tenderness. This book has a fine cast of supporting characters, particularly the continuing character of Bertie Trent, who finally gets to prove his worth. The Last Hellion is a very satisfying romance and is highly recommended.

24 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hell of a good story, May 19, 2001

By 

Mary G Williams "bigbluey2k" (Crossville, TN United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Last Hellion (Mass Market Paperback)

I swore off Daniel Steele due to death scene images that depress me years later. Be forwarned, the prologue to The Last Hellion may lead to symptoms of melancholia. The cure, I'm happy to report, is found by reading the rest of this wonderful story. Grenville is more than a match for Vere, both in Vinegar Yard and in the bedroom. My favorite part was the wedding night when our hero pounded on his best friend's bedroom door: "The door swung inward and six and one-half feet of dark, arrogant, half-Italian, so-called friend advanced to fill the doorway. 'Ah, Ainswood. Come for instruction, have you?'" Hilarious. I was also glad to see Bertie from Lord of Scoundrels get some respect. His thought processes are disturbingly familiar. Do yourself a favor and read Lord of Scoundrels, The Last Hellion and Captives of the Night. Great reads, all.