Customer Reviews

The Trouble with Moonlight

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

To support her sisters and aunt, Lusinda "Sinda" Havershaw slips through the London nights to recover lost or stolen items for a fee. Sinda's family is one of the rare Nevidimi. Upon becoming a woman, many of them gain special talents. Sinda considers her talent to be a curse. Sinda soaks up moonlight and becomes invisible. Yet clothing does not turn invisible. This is why her recovery business must be done without any clothes. If the moon is not full, Sinda must take time to soak up moonlight in order to phase into invisibility. Whenever talk begins about ghosts and spirits, the Havershaw family moves away to avoid discovery.

British spy James Locke is in the middle of cracking open a safe when he hears footsteps approaching. He hides and ends up astonished when he witnesses a ruby necklace steal out of the safe without any help. As the ruby necklace retreats, James follows. Now knowing Sinda's ability, he enlists her reluctant services to help him locate and retrieve a list containing the name of British agents.

Lusinda wants nothing to do with espionage, but to protect her family and earn more money to help them through the winter months she agrees. As James teaches Sinda lock picking, safecracking, and other tools of the trade, the two begin to find their close proximity to be very distracting. But can Sinda trust James to keep her secrets? Can James allow someone to become close to him and risk them being used against him sometime in the future?

***** Though this story focuses on Lusinda, her sister, Portia, begins to show some talents too by the ending. I hope Portia (and perhaps Rhea) will get a story someday. That in no way means the sisters' will have the same ability though. The author makes it clear that chances are Portia's talent will be very different and even more fascinating. I cannot say more without spoilers, so I will stop now. This story's plot is mainly on retrieving the list of agents before it can reach the Russians. There are no real sub-plots, but there are some slight arrangements for possible future stories about some secondary characters. As with most great stories, this one begins in the middle of something exciting. In this case, it is James seeing the ruby necklace being taken by the invisible Sinda. The story does not slow down in the middle of the book, which is a delightful surprise for readers. All-in-all, this is an exciting trip into the dark alleys of treason. I look forward to the author's next book! *****

Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.

While cracking a safe belonging to Lord Pembroke in a search for a list of British operatives, James Locke can hardly believe his eyes. He hears the footsteps of someone entering the study, but he sees no one. Then he sees the drawers of the safe opening and closing as if by magic. Logic tells him there must be a reasonable explanation, but he's baffled. When a ruby necklace floats out the door seemingly carried by nothing but air, he takes pursuit.

Lusinda Havershaw arrives home with the unsettling knowledge that she was seen taking the necklace. Little does she know that man followed her and is determined to discover her secret. Locke sets a trap and forces Lusinda to explain her extraordinary ability: she becomes invisible in moonlight. He proposes that she become a spy, but she's reluctant. Finally, she agrees because she's tired of running any time she faces the threat of being discovered. The notion of being protected by the Crown instead of being persecuted for her strange ability is new to Lusinda, but not unappealing. This may be her chance to provide a somewhat stable life for her younger sisters.

Meanwhile, Locke is trying to remember that it's a bad idea to develop any real feelings for Lusinda. No attachments. That's the code for spies like him. But this beautiful and compelling young woman poses a very serious challenge to his resolve.

Take the lively, engaging writing style of Donna MacMeans and combine it with a fresh paranormal twist in a popular historical setting and you've got a surefire winner. The characters in The Trouble With Moonlight are brought to life by this immensely talented author, and readers will feel Locke and Sinda's first kiss right down to their toes. With enough twists and turns to keep readers turning pages late into the night, The Trouble With Moonlight will undoubtedly find its way into hearts and keeper shelves. Definitely recommended.

~Lindy
Reviewer, TwoLips Reviews, LLC
www.TwoLipsReviews.com

I just can't say enough about this writer. I love her - check out her other books (the 3rd one goes on sale in a couple of days!).

I have some favorite authors and she stands out as one of the best. Her stories are light-hearted but sensual all the same. This one has a great plot without making it paranormal.

Can't wait for more of her books. Read them, you won't be disappointed!

Lusinda Havershaw has a unique ability. As a Nevidimi, she turns invisible in the moonlight. The fuller the moon, the longer she stays in that state. Lusinda uses her abilities as a recovery agent, taking back things that people have lost and want returned. It is while she is retrieving a ruby necklace that she comes into contact with James Locke, an agent for Her Majesty's government.

James is working to retrieve a list of British agents before it can fall into the hands of the Russians. When he sees a ruby necklace floating through the room on it's own he's flabbergasted. He follows the necklace, which leads him to Lusinda's house.

Once Locke figures out Lusinda's identity, and her secret, he trains her in espionage, deciding she's the best weapon a spy can have. What he doesn't expect, though, is to lose his heart to this sometimes invisible woman.

The Trouble with Moonlight is a delightful Victorian romance that follows two people who are each held captive by something, Lusinda by her unique power, and Locke by his past. Watching the two of them learn about each other, and recognize their love, was a sweet venture.

Lusinda's interactions with her aunt and two younger sisters added depth to the novel. Lovers of historical romance, who like a little danger mixed in, will enjoy The Trouble With Moonlight.

Amelia
Reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

This was an intriguing novel for me after many years of reading. The heroine turns invisible from only the moonlight. While I know it's not very scientifically realistic, that's pretty original for an historical romance novel and I loved it. Good plot all around.

Fair warning: historical romances aren't my favorite genre. I also don't have the kind of background to tell you just how accurate (or not) the historical aspects are. So I'll tackle the rest of the story and let other reviewers help you with those parts!

Part of the reason for my lack of patience with historical romances is that I just can't get into the whole female "I must preserve my virtue & reputation" angst. When that seems to be the majority of the force keeping two people apart, I get impatient and annoyed with the characters. If you enjoy that kind of romance---and I know there are plenty of readers that do---then I expect you'll like this one much more than I did.

In the case of The Trouble with Moonlight, the whole virtue/virginal thing also lead to a scene that... Well, lets just say that a scene that can result in a woman saying she accidentally lost her virginity makes me roll my eyes. It came across as silly---and not in a planned, entertaining way.

To finish getting the things I wasn't so fond of out of the way, the heroine struck me as inconsistent. One minute she was reveling in the freedom of walking naked and invisible in front of London's population, and the next she was as uptight as any historical lass. Also, there were several times when I found it hard to believe she couldn't identify the bad guy---she kept recognizing that his voice was familiar, and she was familiar with so few men at that point that this should have been sufficient for identification.

Unfortunately, however, you probably now think I didn't like this book, and that isn't the case. I loved the original premise of Lusinda's people and their hinted-at detailed background. Locke was a wonderfully fresh hero character, and he and Lusinda had lovely chemistry. The book was paced beautifully and I found it hard to put it down in order to get some sleep. I think that someone who appreciates the conventions of historicals more than I do would get a lot more out of it than I did.

This book was so much fun to read. It's a sweet romance and I enjoyed reading about the main character's "moonlight mishaps". I don't think you'll be disappointed.

In 1877 British spy John Locke trying to obtain a list that will help his side in the combat when he is stunned to see a ruby necklace float by itself in the air past him. Curious he follows the necklace to Lusinda Havershaw. He learns Lusinda has a skill that would be useful in his espionage efforts; she can literally vanish in the moonlight. He gives her a choice between prison and working for him.

Lusinda is shocked having never been caught before. She earns a living for her family by repossessing stolen goods by entering homes naked so that no one sees her and takes back the item to the original owner. John assigns her to help him expose a Russian spy, a potentially lethal mission if caught, but what frightens the reluctant spy is her attraction to her blackmailer; he on the other hand pretends he can concentrate on the case rather than her when she owns his brain.

This is a fun Victorian romance with a touch of fantasy starring a fascinating heroine and a bewitched roguish espionage agent. Their pairing makes for an entertaining lighthearted read as John Locke philosophizes that THE TROUBLE WITH MIDNIGHT is being diverted from your dangerous mission by falling in love. This is a terrific historical

Harriet Klausner

BWAH HA HA!!! I'm still laughing at this novel even though its humor is unintentional. If English was your worst subject in school, you might like this book. If it was your best subject, you might enjoy it even more--for a while. Is the recession so bad that the publishing houses of America have laid off all the proofreaders?

The principal plot device is quite imaginative--our heroine, Lusinda, has the ability to become invisible after exposure to moonlight. Of course, she has to be naked since her clothes remain visible. Her ability has certain limitations, and they are exploited reasonably well, with Lusinda in danger of being caught more than once when time runs out and she begins to reappear at an inopportune time. Lusinda is descended from a line of people who originated in Russia and have long guarded the secret of their talent. They are called, with cleverness and charm, the Nevidimi. This is an idea worthy of J. K. Rowling, and I found the premise quite intriguing when I first picked up The Trouble with Moonlight.

But the novel suffers from a number of shortcomings. It begins promisingly when Lusinda, discovered by chance "recovering" stolen jewels for a client, is trapped by James Locke, a spy who wants to use her gift in the service of the Crown to recover a stolen document. From this point the plot lurches along, stumbling over too many scenes that do nothing to advance the plot. It seems that every page has at least one stock sentence that describes the reactions of James's loins, groin or some other naughty part to Lusinda's provocative presence. I was tired of it by the third time, and there are many more repetitions of it before the couple finally gets down to business--except they don't, even after Lusinda "accidentally" impales herself on James! The long deferred culmination of their tedious attraction (until page 195) is forced and unspontaneous, a routinely written exercise devoid of romance.

It's disappointing, because clearly this author has the stuff to do a much better job. A huge problem seems to be slapdash proofing and editing. It seemed that there were two authors--one who could write clear scenes with cracking good action, another who was not a native English speaker. Grammatically, it's as if the book were written by Mrs. Malaprop and edited by Norm Crosby. (In case you're too young to know, Crosby is a comedian known for using fractured English). There are so many errors that I started giggling. I quickly forgot about the plot. Who can keep their mind on the book after reading, "It's a long and evolved story;" or "Your interruption detracted me from my mission;" or "I haven't extinguished the realm of possibilities?" Other sins of syntax and even spelling abound as well: "However, contemplating that possibility soon dimmed in the light of family reality." "The soft knock at the door tossed her into giddy exhultation [sic]." "Her chest cringed." So did I. This is Bad Stuff. It doesn't take an intellectual snob to be appalled by this writing. Even this humble secretary couldn't finish the book. Maybe an evening with Georgette Heyer will fix me up.

Donna MacMeans shows her versatility with the refreshing THE TROUBLE WITH MOONLIGHT. Set in Victorian England, the book features a heroine with an unusual ability and a spy desperate to protect those in service to the Queen.

Well-written with a dash of humor, this is a real treat for fans of historical romance.