In the Thrill of the Night (Merry Widows) [Paperback]

Candice Hern (Author)

Book Description

Series: Merry Widows | Publication Date: February 7, 2006

Assured of both money and position, none of the five respectable ladies who form the Merry Widows need ever marry again, so they make a daring pact-each will consider taking a lover for the pure pleasure of it.

Marianne Nesbitt adored her late husband David, but the racy reminiscences of the Merry Widows make her wonder if she missed something special. Might she find it now through a love affair? Uncertain how to go about it, she asks Adam Cazenove, an old friend and notorious rake, to tutor her in the arts of seduction-a brazen request that turns Adam's world upside down.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

For almost two years, Marianne Nesbitt had been a devoted widow, but now she's about to become a "merry" widow. After listening to her four best friends and fellow board members of the Benevolent Widows Fund vividly debate the advantages of taking a lover, Marianne believes it might be time for her to consider the merits of the idea herself. But Marianne has no idea how to attract a man, and the only man currently in her life is her treasured friend and neighbor, Adam Cazenove, who is betrothed to Miss Clarissa Leighton-Blair. So Marianne asks her unavailable friend to help her develop a list of potential candidates, but as far as Adam is concerned, the only man suitable for Marianne is Adam himself. Hern gracefully crafts a tale of friendship and romance between two beautifully matched protagonists that is delectably sexy, delightfully clever, and simply superb. John Charles
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

"A fresh, fun, and fabulous frolic! Only Candice Hern can be both naughty and nice at the same time!" -- NY Times best-selling author Teresa Medeiros

"A sparkling celebration of female friendship ... outrageousy sexy fun ... every page is pure satisfaction." -- NY Times Best-selling author Lisa Kleypas

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Signet (February 7, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451217845
• ISBN-13: 978-0451217844
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,009,017 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Candice Hern is the award-winning author of historical romance novels set during the English Regency, a period she knows well through years of collecting antiques and fashion prints of the era. She travels to England regularly, always in search of more historical and local color to help bring her books to life, and prides herself on the detailed research that goes into each novel. Her books have won praise for their "intelligence and elegant romantic sensibility" (Romantic Times) as well as "delicious wit and luscious sensuality" (Booklist). Candice's award-winning website (www.candicehern.com) is often cited for its Regency World pages, where readers interested in the era will find an illustrated glossary, a detailed timeline, illustrated digests of Regency people and places, articles on Regency fashion, research links, and much more. The website also provides readers with more information on all Candice's books, including excerpts and a look "behind the scenes" of each novel. You can also find Candice on FaceBook and Twitter.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My Favorite Candace Hern!, February 7, 2006

By 

Viv (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: In the Thrill of the Night (Merry Widows) (Paperback)

This is an extremely emotionally charged read. It employs one of my favorite premises: love from afar.

The heroine, Marianne, is a young widow looking for a lover, not love. The hero, Adam, her late husband's best friend, has been in love with Marianne for years and not realized it. Not until he betrothes himself to another and Marianne wants to experience true passion. Though she loved her husband, she comes to understand her sex life was lacking.

Adam is extremely jealous of all her "candidates", but has no say in Marianne's life. He is to be wed and she is free to live and love whomever she wants.

"ITTOTN" is packed with sexual tension, spicy love scenes, and strong emotion. There is no mystery sub-plot to bog down the romance.

Another addition to my keeper shelf.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Merry Widows - INDEED!!!, April 17, 2006

By 

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

This review is from: In the Thrill of the Night (Merry Widows) (Paperback)

IN THE THRILL OF THE NIGHT you will find the most deliciously sublime romance that will leave you with an afterglow, long after the last page is turned. Ms. Hern has concocted a lovely tale full of lively secondary characters as well as the perfectly matched duo of Marianne and Adam. The basis of this tale was five widowed friends pledging a pact to support each other in not letting family railroad them back into marriage. It was taken one step further when one very satisfied widow proposed that each consider taking a lover - just for pure physical pleasure of it! Marianne, who had been deeply in love with her husband David, was, after listening to the descriptive confessions of what physical pleasure could be, feeling that just possibly she'd been missing something in her marriage.

Enlisting the aid of her and her husband's best friend Adam, she asked that he be her guide in finding a suitable candidate for a lover. Her timing could not have been worse, for Adam had just announced his own betrothal. Adam was convinced that Marianne would never re-marry and the thought of her taking anyone to her bed, especially now that he could not accommodate her himself, was tragic beyond belief!

Wickedly good fun, this first book in Hern's Merry Widow series had me smiling from the very first page. Adam's manipulations in heading off Marianne's suitors were a pure pleasure and this author has certainly whetted my appetite for whatever new delights await the rest of the `merry widows'. With witty dialogs and an abundance of characters you can love, I most heartily recommend this for a perfectly lovely reading experience.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars In the Thrill of the Night, February 21, 2006

By 

Lucy Broadston "Velvetglove" (Iowa City, IA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: In the Thrill of the Night (Merry Widows) (Paperback)

This is my first Candice Hern, but definitely not my last. Hern is an articulate author who doesn't waste pages with the old "I really shouldn't, he's a rake and not right for me but I really want to" ploy.

Her plot--5 widows who have decided to have affairs rather than marry again and give over their lives and finances to a husband, is provocative, to say the last.

I found Adam, the protagonist in this first story in the Merry Widows series, to be an especially appealing character, although I became very frustrated at times with his determination to do the honorable thing even after admitting his betrothed was all wrong for him and that he had always been in love with Marianne, even while her husband, and his best friend, was alive.

Hern has written a most tender, appealing yet erotic love scenes in this novel. It will be interesting to see if she can even come close when she writes about Beatrice and Grace.