Customer Reviews

Wanton Angel

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

 

 

In 1811 English spy Derrick Jamison and American painter Elizabeth Blackthorne are attracted to one another, but his assignment for the crown keeps them apart. Besides which they ran in different circles as she is a noted bohemian reputed to pose nude while he is a foppish aristocrat. Though both want it, nothing comes of their first encounter in Washington DC.

They next meet in Naples where they fall into each other's arms and make love. However, not long afterward, pirates capture Beth and sell her to the dey of Algiers so though not a virgin she can join his harem. Derrick manages to rescue her, but their adventures have just begun even as that initial attraction turns to love.

WANTON ANGEL is such a non-stop action thriller that readers will need oxygen to keep up with the frantic pace. However, the cost of all the action is that the characters are not quite developed so that the audience never understands Beth's attitudes on life, so different from her peers. Still Shirl Henke knows how to spin a heated tale so that Regency fans will enjoy a change of pace caper after caper tale that never slows down until the final safe kiss.

Harriet Klausner

I loved the book, but it might not be the cup of tea for those readers who want a Regency anchored in London ballrooms. In this novel, the various settings are almost as interesting as the lovers Beth and Derrick. Whether it's the seamy side of Naples or a harem in Algiers, Henke paints the scene so vividly that you can really see it, imagine yourself there. The realistic portrait of harem life was truly fascinating. Heck, get out of those stuffy London ballrooms for awhile and travel through the exciting world Henke has created and lit up by the fireworks between Beth and Derrick.

You can always count on a Shirl Henke novel for well-crafted plots, sizzling romance, and a most interesting and sometime bizarre cast of supporting characters. This book is no exception with its beautiful, strong-willed heroine and handsome, brooding hero -- the artist and the spy. But you also get to meet the "wickedly" sophisticated Contessa Vittoria, Beth's mentor (and risqué "fairy godmother"), the witty little fop Drum, and Sir Percival, a spaniel, who is himself technically an English spy. Good grief, a canine spy who has his own annoying personality, especially when his master Derrick makes Beth unhappy? Percy delights in avenging her by leaving "messages" in Derrick's boots. In so many ways this book was a romp!

This book was a pleasant surprise. It had a little of everything. Spies, harems, Naples, America and England. I didn't expect it to have so many twists and turns.In all it was a good and quick read.

Wanton Angel has a sweeping scope--from Italy, to North Africa, to Regency London, to Scotland, but the trip is worth it. Redheaded Beth is the eternal rebel. The darkly handsome Derrick, a bit of a rogue, is nonetheless a man who embraces duty, even when he hates it. The two shouldn't be lovers but they are, and that's what makes their relationship so interesting. The tension of the tale is how or if they can find a way to make their union work, without one destroying the spirit of the other.