Customer Reviews

Then Came You

5 star:		(51)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Lovely Lily Lawson was jilted as a young debutante because she was too intelligent, too independent, too much of everything to ever fit the description of a demure, passive Regency deb. She did attempt an obedient, maidenly facade with her fiance, but her bubbly nature bubbled over, and she lost him. Brokenhearted, she left England with her wealthy maiden Aunt Sally to travel on the Continent. While in Italy, Lily was seduced by an Italian scoundrel. After a regrettable night of painful, humiliating and totally passionless sex, she vowed off men and sex as an impediment to her life, as she would live it. Then she discovered that she carried a bambino - a souvenir from her Italian stallion. Her aunt, from whom she must have inherited most of her gene pool, was delighted and reassured Lily that they would live their lives in a villa in Italy - a perfect family of three.

Complications arose after the beautiful baby, Nicole, was born. Aunt Sally died, Nicole was kidnapped, Lily was blackmailed for lots of money to insure the safety of her daughter, and she had to return to London to be able to make the money she needed. Now, Lily gambles, almost nightly, at her Cockney friend's infamous gambling club, the only woman permitted to do so - and has a seemingly endless lucky streak. She is called Lawless Lily for her reckless ways; wildly riding in breeches to the hunt, drinking, cardplaying, etc. Ironically she is supposed to have had many lovers - in truth, there has been only one, once...and that was plenty for her.

Lily's younger sister Penelope is engaged to marry the arrogant Earl of Wolverton, in a loveless, arranged match. Lily, determined to save her sister so she can marry the man she loves, marches to the rescue...and the many and varied clashes between our heroine and the arrogant, but sizzlingly hot and handsome Earl begin. He matches her every move, but she won't play submissive to his dominant alpha male behavior. So he tries tenderness, kindness, soft sensuality...Wow!~! So...Does she change her mind about men? You have to read the book.

This book and its sequel "Dreaming Of You" are two of my favorite Lisa Kleypas novels. The storylines are intriguing, the characters are 3-dimensional and complex, the humor is laugh-out-loudable, and the sex is super steamy and very loving. What more could a reader want? Ms. Kleypas does it again!

I read Dreaming of You first without knowing it was the sequel to Then Came You. Nevertheless, this was an excellent read. Lily a spitfire schemes to break up the engagement of her sister Penny to Lord Alex Raiford, Earl of Wolverton. While he is not in love with Penny, he feels she is a good match for him as he lost the woman he was first engaged to in a hunting accident. Penny too meek, would not be as adventerous. His first impression of Lily is that she is a woman with many lovers as she acts quite the coquette. She visits his home where her sister and family are with the intention of getting her sister back with Zachary, the man her sister truly loves. Alex and Lily dislike each other but cannot fight the attraction. Both knowing and losing a loved one they have something in common. This is a great story about a man trying to get over his fiance and a woman not willing to trust this man with her secrets. A difficult book to put down. Lisa Kleypas does not disappoint her readers with this one. Men like Alex are the type you will never forget. His love for Lily was something to sigh over.

In this most excellent read by Lisa Kleypas, you are introduced to one of her more endearing heroines. Lily Lawson, sometimes referred to as Lawless Lily is known as a true eccentric and outrageous young woman. She gambles, swears, rides astride in pink breeches and seems to delight in shocking escapades. She wasn't always that way but after being jilted at the altar by her fiancé and her subsequent escape to Italy --- what had once been termed adventurous behavior was now termed outrageous! When an old and dear friend Zachary, Lord Stamford comes to her pleading that she intervene for him to save her sister Penny from marrying the harsh and cold Lord Alex Raiford, Earl of Wolverton, she finds that she couldn't refuse his request and travels to investigate herself how unsuitable a match this earl would be for her sister.

Alex's impression of Lily was that she was no better than a demimonde - he'd heard the rumors of her association with the gamester, Derek Craven and her outrageous behavior only reinforced his opinion. The fact that he was seriously attracted to her only further enraged him as he saw through her charade in attempting to bring Zachary, the man her sister Penny was secretly in love with back together. After Lily successfully engineered her sisters elopement she knew that Alex would be out to punish her, but she never dreamed that the punishment would be so satisfyingly sensual!

I first read THEN CAME YOU some years back and even knowing the story, I thoroughly enjoyed every single dialog and sensually sizzling scene all over again! Lily, is a heroine that will both shock you with her antics and tug at your heartstrings with her hidden heartbreak of losing her daughter. The secondary characters from her butler, to her good friend Derek Craven, and Alex's younger brother Harry are all carefully crafted to add depth and compassion to the story. The love Alex came to feel for Lily is the sort one can only dream of and he has been added to my list of my top ten heros! This is an extremely difficult book to put down, as for the second time around with this reissue, Lisa Kleypas will delight her readers again!

In London's haute ton, no other woman is more admired than the fearless, headstrong and strikingly beautiful Lily Lawson. Finding great amusement in being unconventional and improper, she is notorious for her outrageous antics and colorful vocabulary, earning her the nickname "Lawless Lily". Whereas other women would have been condemned for such behavior and cut off from the society, Lily gets away with it. Men find her all the more desirable because of her uniqueness, while women are secretly envious of her. To everyone, Lily is a happy-go-lucky who doesn't seem to have a care for the world. Yet behind closed doors, she secretly harbors pain over her estrangement to her family, and her agony over her missing daughter, Nicole, whom she has kept a secret.

As the Earl of Wolverton, Alex Raiford is one of the wealthiest and most influential aristocrats in England. Since the death of his parents, he has lived a very responsible life looking after his younger brother, Henry. Reserved and private, he has lived a tormented life ever since he lost his fiancée, Caroline, in a hunting accident two years before. For fear of losing his heart once again, he picks a meek and docile lady for his bride - none other Penelope, Lily's sister.

But when Penelope's true love, Zachary, approaches Lily seeking her help in preventing the marriage, Lily fears for her sister's life hearing how cruel and mean Alex is supposed to be. So she vows to do everything in her power to make sure that Penelope and Zachary end up together. And as she set out to stop the wedding, she realizes that she's never had so much fun in provoking a man.

Meanwhile, Lord Raiford finds himself fascinated by Lily and the puzzle that she presents him, much to his chagrin. While always in control of himself and everything around him, he finds himself unable to do so when around Lily, the most distracting woman he had ever met. Before he could stop it, he finds himself developing feelings for her, wanting to protect and take care of her. And for once in his responsible life, he decides to follow his heart and make Lily his.

THEN CAME YOU is a story of two people who are both trying to escape from grief; Alex over the death of his fiancée, while Lily is trying to get her daughter back, who for all she knows might no longer even be alive. And it is this secret that she knows could possibly tear them apart, a possibility that tears at her guts for Alex is the only man who has ever given her happiness.

With a great storyline and wonderful characters, this is a very witty and exciting novel, backed up by great secondary characters (notably Derek Craven, Henry Raiford and even Burton, the butler). I thoroughly enjoyed the banter between Lily and Alex and I loved the scene at Craven's when Alex places a wager against a night with Lily. It was so exciting to read! Another great addition to this is Derek Craven. His part in this book is sure to pull at your heartstrings and will make you wish that he found his own happiness, which I am glad to say he will in his own story, DREAMING OF YOU.

This is the second novel of Lisa Kleypas that I have read. I actually read DREAMING OF YOU first, which is the sequel (and even better than this). Read this and I guarantee that you will want to read Lisa Kleypas' other books.

When you are first introduced to our heroine, Lily, I must admit I wasn't sure what to think. She lives by her own outlandish rules and does the exact opposite of what is considered respectable. However, she is a woman on a mission and wrapped in her own hidden agenda. When she puts aside a family grudge too help her younger sister try and prevent an unwanted marriage, she sees her parents for the first time in years. While constantly sabotaging the life of Alex Raiford, the attraction that blooms between the two could ignite a forest fire.

Alex wants a biddable wife even though he is drawn to Lily and her outlandish way of living. He has loved before, and his fiancé was thrown from a horse, and died. He doesn't want to ever have to deal with falling in love with anyone and having to face that type of loss again.

Okay, WOW! THEN CAME YOU is so thoroughly engrossing, I had a hard time coming up for air! Ms Kleypas has a writing style that sucks you in and keeps the story well organized so you don't get lost or confused. Her characters are well developed and I felt, very believable. Lily is one amazing woman; she is so full of life and strength that she is easily one of my favorite heroines. Alex has so many chances to publicly humiliate her, yet you fall in love with his compassionate side even as he fights against himself (trying not to fall in love).

Additionally, I really liked the secondary characters, and am so glad that Derek will have his own story (DREAMING OF YOU). It tore at my heart that he didn't think he was good enough for Lily, but at the same time he protected her...even when Lily didn't think he was acting in her best interests.

While the bad guys get their due in the end and our couple gets together, there are so many interesting twists that THEN CAME YOU will end before you are ready. I recommend reading this book when you know you can read the tale from start to finish!

Lawless Lily is a delightful and vivacious contradiction to the usual heroines. She is not for one minute bashful, blushing, or naive. She works the fellas around her pinky finger and shocks the matrons of the ton. She is tolerated because her antics are so amusing but if they only knew about her past...maybe they woudn't.

Alex, Lord Raiford is a man sealed off from love by loss. When his fiance died the part of him that was light and winsome was sealed tightly leaving only an impervious shell that he keeps him safe. Nothing would crack his wall of safety or his steely heart so when the realization that he must indeed marry he chooses a safe, pretty, English doll to foist his upcoming heirs upon. Just so happens that this doll is Lawless Lilly's sister.

Lily realizes that Raiford is a complete beast and will not do for her gentle sister and sets out to sabotage this union. Sparks and tempers fly immediately. Raiford is not only threatened by her...he is shaken to his very safe little core.

This book is a masterpiece. I can't get enough of Kleypas. You know that she really loved these two characters just by reading the effort she put into them. It is a constant, edge of your seat, smouldering romance fest that won't disappoint you.

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This was my first Lisa Kleypas book. It was on the shelf for the longest time before I picked it up. Gosh! I was NOT disappointed. The first chapter of the book had me hooked, I couldn't put it down! The main charater Lily was beautifully portrayed, and her troubled story made her character bold, beautiful and courageous. I was a little put out with the hero Lord Alex and his over bearing attitude, but I realized that the clash between these two made the book flow. I loved the sex scene in the apartments of Derek Craven, Ms. Kleypas writes the sex scenes with a passion that is not trashy or "fake", she knows how to engross you into the lives of the characters. The plot fits so beautifully together so that when the book ends, it leaves me feeling content that this was truly a beautiful love story!

I hope that Ms. Kleypas writes a story about Derek Craven, even though he had a thing for Lily, I believe that his story is one that would be worth reading! I loved his "bad-trouble boy" image and I believe he would light the pages up! Heads up Ms. Kleypas! Beautiful work!

This was my very first Lisa Kleypas book. I LOVED it! The book had me from page 1! I loved the "rebel" and strong willed Lily. She didn't care what people thought of her, she did as she felt she wanted and what her heart thought was the right thing - rather than do as she was expected to do. I loved the deep love and protection Alex felt for Lily and that he let her be who she was and didn't try to change her. Wonderful love story! No one will be disappointed in reading this book! Again, don't judge the book by the negative reviews - read it and form your own opinion, you will be glad you did!!!

Having been in Italy for a time Lily returned to London and has been making waves, sometimes literally, ever since. Lily is not what the London ton society is used to, she is brash, daring and outspoken. She hunts; she gambles and has even been known to wear trousers! *gasp* She has cut her hair short and goes against all the normal rules for women in society.

Determined to save her sister from a loveless marriage to Lord Alex Raiford; Lily hatches a scheme that puts her in his home and places her and Alex at odds every chance she can get. Alex is determined to marry the quiet, biddable sister, but it's hard to ignore Lily's effortless charms. Forcing her sister into the arms of her true love, Lily is responsible for Alex being single yet again. Alex sets out to teach her lesson at the gambling house where she frequents, but they both get a little more than they bargained for.

My sister has been begging me to read this story for years. I kept putting it off and putting it off. Finally the other night she gave me this book and the next in the series and made me promise I would read it next. Well I started this book yesterday and could hardly put it down.

I loved Lily and her outgoing personality. I love how she never backed down from Alex. I loved the huge impression she made every where she went. But mostly I loved the vulnerable and private side of her that she kept hidden, I found her an admirable and emotionally deep and bright heroine. Lily has a secret past and everyday she is haunted a little by the past. Alex was the perfect match for her.

This was not a one dimensional romance. With Lily's past and her interesting present, it makes for more than an engaging read. There are some very tender and heart breaking moments mixed into all the laughter and mischief. Lily has a best friend, Derek, who owns a casino. His story, Dreaming of You, is the next and if his story is half as intriguing as this one, and half as entertaining as his character was in this one, it will be another excellent read. This was a wonderful and refreshing historical, one I am not sure I will give back to my sister! ;)

Cherise Everhard, February 2008

This is the story of Lawless Lily, the heart-breaking quest for her kidnapped daughter, saving her sister from a loveless marriage and throwing her into a full of love marriage, and the inspiring & not-so-surprising fall into a full of love marriage herself.

I love the stories where the hero & heroine start off hating eachother. it makes for stimluating & funny dialogue and when the feelings start to change, it makes for super-charged emotions that you can feel yourself. It was heart-breaking, yet at the same time, FUNNY, how wrong Alex had gotten Lily. Falling in love definitely takes humility.

I wish I had read this novel before I read "Dreaming of You" because it really sets the scene quite well for Derek's story. I think Derek & Sara's story is better written and more enthralling & entertaining. But Lisa Kleypas pens an exciting read. However, i recommend her hiring a new editor, since this book had MANY grammatical errors. Things such as changing the word "being" to "begin" really is quite easy to see and quite simple to correct. BAD JOB to the editor, whoever you are!