CBR17 Book 6: "My Inconvenient Duke" by Loretta Chase

Page count: 384 pages

Rating: 4 stars

Nowhere Book Bingo 25: A book that takes place entirely outside the US

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. My views are my own. 

Spoiler warning! Because some of the issues I have with this book can't really be addressed without me spoiling some parts of the plot, skip the parts of the review I've marked with spoiler tags until you've actually finished the book.

While this is the third book in the series, most of the action takes place before the events in A Duke in Shining Armor and Ten Things I Hate About the Duke. You don't need to have read either of the two other books to enjoy this one, in fact, I would say you might enjoy this one more without prior knowledge of those stories. 

Lady Alice Ancaster has known Giles Lyon, the eighth Duke of Blackwood, since long before he was a duke. They first met when she was eleven and he was thirteen, and he was one of her brother's best friends and partners in crime. By the time she was seventeen and he was nineteen, there was a clear infatuation between them, and they shared one very memorable kiss. Knowing that Alice deserved someone better, and fully aware that he wasn't ready to give up his wild and reckless ways with his two bosom buddies, Blackwood chose to leave it with that one kiss and studiously avoided Alice thereafter. 

Eight years later, their drunken antics take an almost fatal turn, after they play with a loaded pistol and the duke of Ripley, Alice's brother only barely escapes a shot to the head. Alice is furious with Blackwood for letting things go so far (of the three Dis-graces, he is reckoned as the most sensible one). She declares that she hates him, and only a few days later, she sets off to London determined to find a husband. The idiotic stunt proves to Alice just how likely is that her brother will die unfortunately young and their loathsome cousin, Lord Worbury will inherit both the title and the estate. Worbory hates Alice because she and her best friend Cassandra beat him up for torturing a kitten when they were younger, and he hates Ripley and his friends for looking on. Worbury is already living beyond his means, promising his creditors money once he becomes the next Duke of Ripley.

Alice's aunt, Lady Julia, orders Ripley, Blackwood and Ashmont to stay far away from London while Alice tries to find a suitable husband. While Alice has lived a perfectly respectable life, the presence of her dissolute brother and his best friends will make it more difficult for her. Ripley and Ashmont dutifully agree, but Blackwood is unhappy with the idea of leaving Alice alone in London with Worbury still lurking about, so he stays behind to sort out some financial affairs (or so he claims).

Of course, after a series of chaotic events, involving the odious Worbury, a scruffy street urchin in need (whom readers will recognise from the previous two books in the series, not to mention in a slightly cleaner guise in The Dressmakers series), dealings with the criminal underworld, and then Ripley's sudden and unexplained disappearance, Blackwood and Alice have spent so much time travelling about unchaperoned with one another that Alice is likely to be at the centre of a terrible scandal, unless she and Blackwood marry. So they decide to do so (it doesn't hurt that deep down they have loved each other for over a decade) and for a blissful six months, their marriage seems like it will always be harmonious. That is, until the Duke of Ashmont gets himself into even more trouble than usual, and Blackwood has to go off to save him from himself. 

SPOILERS START HERE:

For two books now, Loretta Chase has been dropping hints about the marriage of Lady Alice Ancaster and the Duke of Blackwood, a union which so shocked polite society. In A Duke in Shining Armor, they appear to be estranged, but having gone back and looked at all the mentions of Alice, some of those hints may have been a bit misleading. Having also gone back and looked at Ten Things I Hate About the Duke, I don't understand why Cassandra, Alice's very best friend in the whole world, a person she refers to as a sister not in blood, wouldn't know the truth about Alice and Blackwood's marriage. Alice and Cassandra correspond regularly, and I don't understand why Alice wouldn't have told her friend that she and Blackwood had to spend more time apart because Ashmont was so out of control he had to have someone sensible accompanying him. Everyone who knew the three dukes would have understood why such a thing would be necessary. That most of society didn't know the truth about the Duke and Duchess of Blackwood's supposed estrangement doesn't seem strange at all, but why would Alice have kept the truth about her actually really happy marriage from her friend?

Obviously, it's because Chase wrote this book last, and can't really go back and rewrite her previous book for the details to fit in better. It is just frustrating that after two books setting up the strange and sudden marriage of Alice and Blackwood, and then their estrangement and supposed enmity, it turns out that nope, there's nothing. It feels deeply anti-climactic to have waited since 2017(!) to find out the truth about Alice and Blackwood, only to discover that their marriage was fine. They married because they loved each other, somewhat suddenly to avoid a scandal, and got along splendidly, with the exception of a few rows, where they realised their mistake and apologised to one another before it could ever become a big deal. I shouldn't be disappointed in a book because there isn't enough drama, and two very enjoyable characters have a happy marriage. But I was led to believe that there would be drama - and now I feel short-changed. 

END SPOILERS

The release of a new Loretta Chase book is always a treat, and it's difficult to describe my delight when I was granted a NetGalley ARC for this back in November. Obviously, I read the book almost instantly and had to re-read it now to remind myself of the plot details before I wrote my review.

Loretta Chase has written some absolute classics, including Lord of Scoundrels, which is 30 years old this year. It's a book I have read multiple times, but never actually reviewed (must absolutely rectify that later this year). I happen to think two other books in the series are better, and I've re-read them more often, but that does not take away from the fact that it's a great book, with a stupendous heroine. Chase has also written a lot of books that are fine when you read them, but a bit more forgettable once you put them down. This, sadly, is one of the latter ones. There's nothing wrong with it, as such, but having first read it right after my re-read of Ten Things I Hate About the Duke, which is a full five-star read and so very perfect, this paled in comparison. There's the issue that I mentioned in my spoiler section, and there's the fact that Alice and Blackwood running around after a street urchin seems to take up far too much of the plot, both in the first and last quarter of the book. 

It should be noted, that Loretta Chase is a queen of the romance genre for a reason, and even a not-perfect book by her is worth your time. Some of the things that annoy me about this book won't matter at all if this is the first book in the series you read. While writing this review and finding books to link to, I also discovered that there's a short story, featuring Lord Lovedon (who is Alice's main suitor in this, before it becomes obvious to everyone, including her, that Blackwood is the only man she could possibly be happy with). So now I've got more Loretta Chase to read. 

Judging a book by its cover: This cover differs from the other two in the series, in that on those books, there is a woman seen from the back, apparently running away or towards something. Here, the woman on the cover, who I guess is supposed to be Alice, is happily wandering about the garden, wearing a dress looking nothing like 1830s fashion (which to be fair, was awful, so well done cover designers). She's probably a lot happier, dreamily drifting along since her marriage came about in a much less dramatic way than that of Olivia Hightower or her best friend Cassandra. 

Crossposted on Cannonball Read

#CBR12 Book 88: "Ten Things I Hate About the Duke" by Loretta Chase

Page count: 384 pages

Rating: 5 stars

Official book description:

Cassandra Pomfret holds strong opinions she isn’t shy about voicing. But her extremely plain speaking has caused an uproar, and her exasperated father, hoping a husband will rein her in, has ruled that her beloved sister can’t marry until Cassandra does.

Now, thanks to a certain wild-living nobleman, the last shreds of Cassandra’s reputation are about to disintegrate, taking her sister’s future and her family’s good name along with them.

The Duke of Ashmont’s looks make women swoon. His character flaws are beyond counting. He’s lost a perfectly good bride through his own carelessness. He nearly killed one of his two best friends. Still, troublemaker that he is, he knows that damaging a lady’s good name isn’t sporting.

The only way to right the wrong is to marry her…and hope she doesn’t smother him in his sleep on their wedding night. 

It's been nearly three years since Ms Chase's last historical novel was published, but thankfully, she's proven herself worth the wait once again. I think that if I rate them against each other, A Duke in Shining Armor still has the edge, but once this book got going and the heroine and hero started bantering, I was very charmed by Ten Things I Hate About the Duke, which follows on almost immediately from the final scenes of the previous novel in the series (I suspect this would still work as a stand-alone, but why would you want to deprive yourself of the joy of reading a really good historical romance?). It also takes inspiration from Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew, not to mention the excellent high school comedy 10 Things I Hate About You. One of the three Dis-graces, the Duke of Ashmont was too drunk at his own wedding to keep his bride, who ran off and ended up married to one of his best friends instead. Ashmont and Ripley fight a duel to settle things, but having been such a shambles that he first lost the regard of a nice woman, followed by almost killing his friend, forces a man to start taking a closer look at his life choices.

Before Ashmont really has too much of a chance to repent and change, however, his pity drinking causes not only an accident but nearly a high society scandal. Ashmont fires his gun in the air to break up a fight, which causes Miss Cassandra Pomfret's carriage to run off the road. Her personal manservant Keefe (a retired jockey of great renown) is injured, Cassandra's maidservant runs off, and leaves Cassandra entirely unchaperoned at a country inn with one of the most scandalous rakes in England. If anyone discovers what has happened, Cassandra's already patchy reputation will be utterly ruined. 

Cassandra and Ashmont knew each other as children, and Cassandra once felt infatuated with the beautiful boy that he was. Now, however, she is simply disgusted with how much he wastes his privilege and refuses to take his life and position seriously. It doesn't help that she's already angry, as after Cassandra publicly dared to voice her opinions in a most critical manner, her father has declared that her beautiful younger sister Hyacinth will have her season canceled, and won't be allowed to go out or receive callers until Cassandra is married. Cassandra was on her way to visit her aunt when she was waylaid outside of London. Even with scandal looming, she refuses to leave until she knows Keefe will be well again. 

Ashmont is fully aware that he's screwed up badly, and offers to marry Cassandra to save her reputation. She, however, utterly refuses to hear his ludicrous suggestion, and he has to actually use his brain to try to fix the situation so Cassandra can return to London, with her reputation hopefully unbesmirched. While most other men are put off and intimidated by Cassandra, who's not only intelligent, outspoken, and combative, she's also taller than average, Ashmont is utterly smitten, especially because she refuses to in any way be charmed by him. He totally understands why she rejected his offer of marriage just to get out of a possible scandal but decides that no other woman will do for him, and if she's currently appalled by him and thinks him exactly the dis-grace he's worked for years with his best friends to appear, then he'll just have to do the work to prove himself worthy of her.

Ashmont is very much in the mold of a number of former Chase heroes, a big, handsome lug who appears more stupid than he actually is, mainly because that makes his surroundings underestimate him. Of course, Ashmont, along with his fellow dukes, have used their wealth and position in society to truly live a life of excess, pranks, decadence, and debauchery. He's not exactly particularly likable at the start of the book, but one of the reasons the romance works so well is that Ashmont himself chooses to change and better himself. He understands why Cassandra wants nothing to do with him, and why even their casual encounters can hurt not just her reputation, but the marriage chances of her younger sister. He also knows that while he's a duke and very wealthy, a discerning and intelligent father, like Lord de Griffith, who actually cares about his daughter, not just status, won't want him as a son-in-law unless he cleans up his act rather a lot.

I'm always going to be partial to romances featuring smart, capable, and dedicated women, paired with big, strong men who love them exactly as they are and have no need or wish for them to change anything about themselves. One of the arguments that Ashmont uses when trying to persuade Cassandra to be his wife is how much of a difference she could make, and how much could she can do as a duchess. He has his work cut out for him, however, as Cassandra has observed Ashmont for years, and doesn't really dare believe he has changed, at first. 

One of the reasons this doesn't get a higher rating from me is that I didn't really like the subplot involving the two "villains", who create a number of obstacles for our couple (but in some ways of course end up forcing them together even more). 

Because I really prefer to try to end on a positive note, two of the supporting characters I really liked were Cassandra's mother and sister. Hyacinth has all of her fun taken away (temporarily) because of her father's rash threat towards Cassandra, yet doesn't complain or blame her at all. While she is soft-spoken, demure, kind, and much more the image of proper Victorian womanhood, she is clearly also very clever and observant, if a lot more subtle about it than her older sister. Cassandra's mother is another example of the power women could wield within their assigned spheres. Lord and Lady deGriffith seem to have a very strong marriage, based on love and mutual respect, and while Lord deGriffith is the head of the household, he clearly consults with his wife on important matters - she's his partner and support behind the scenes.

I'm guessing that in the next Loretta Chase novel, we'll finally discover what's the cause of the tensions in the marriage of Lord and Lady Blackmoor. I'm hoping I won't have to wait three more years to read it.

Judging a book by its cover: A Duke in Shining Armor had a woman in a white wedding dress running, facing away from the camera, which while an anachronistic dress colour at the time (wedding dresses didn't tend to be white), at least fit with the plot of the book. Here we have a lovely redhead with long flowing hair, in a purple gown, running away from the camera - and while I see that the book covers complement each other, I think they could have chosen a better cover image for this one. 

Crossposted by Cannonball Read.  

#CBR12 Book 68: "Viscount Vagabond" by Loretta Chase

Page count: 228 pages

Rating: 2.5 stars

#CBR12 Bingo: Shelfie

Official book description:

Catherine Pelliston simply would not abide by her father's wishes and marry the slovenly Lord Browdie. But her escape through the streets of London only seemed to lead her from bad to worse. First, she was robbed. And then, her supposed "rescue" by a kindly old woman stranded Catherine in a bordello -- where the handsome Viscount Rand was intent on sampling her wares! A dire predicament indeed-especially when the dashing aristocrat decided to assume full responsibility for the ravishing runaway by taking her, quite against her will, into his home. But little did Catherine know that her struggle to preserve her virtue had inflamed the debauched gadabout's heart ... and might well net her a husband worth desiring!

This is one of Loretta Chase's early romances, originally published in 1988, and later re-issued in e-book format in 2012. One of her most famous novels, Lord of Scoundrels, didn't come out until 1995. This book is both shorter, and a lot less sophisticated than her later, more famous works. It's also not terribly memorable. I finished this book in mid-August and even now, reading through the blurb, I can only barely remember plot specifics. 

Chase's early writing really doesn't have the same wit and spark as many of her later novels. There are no classic, bad-ass heroines like Jessica Trent, charming rogues like Rupert Carsington, or enigmatic spies like the Comte D'Esmond. Catherine is pretty painfully naive and very lucky that the nobleman she appeals to doesn't in fact ravish her, but rather takes pity on her, rescues her, and promptly deposits her with his very respectable sister, who can act as her chaperone. See, I remember that much. I also recall that the sister's husband has a much better grasp of the various notable families of the ton, and therefore knows immediately who Catherine actually is and which family she's run away from, and happily aids his wife's matchmaking attempt for the rest of the book. I remember there was a potential of scandal when someone (not entirely sure who now), possibly Catherine's not-quite-fiancee, figured out that she had spent some time in a brothel - but it all comes right in the end - natch, this is a romance novel.

Checking my records, I actually bought this e-book back in 2012 (when I was still discovering Ms. Chase's back catalogue) and it's been sitting on my shelf ever since. I could have used it for the White Whale square, but it's one of those books that I've had for so long, I'd more or less forgotten about it when I was planning my Bingo Card. It did, however, fit in my Alphabet Soup reading challenge for V, and once I looked it up on LibraryThing, I was surprised at how long it had been on my digital shelves, unread. It's not exactly easy to take a photo of a digital book, but here is a screenshot of the LibraryThing shelf - which is the best I can do to fulfil the demands of the Shelfie square. 

In conclusion, if you're not a true die-hard completist about Loretta Chase, this is a book that is entirely skippable. If it didn't fit into a number of my reading challenges (I can cross off a bingo square, it fits in my historical fiction challenge, in my two TBR challenges, as well as the alphabet challenge) and I already owned it, I doubt I would have ever read it. 

Judging a book by its cover: This is the rather generic cover given to the new digital edition when I got the book. The original 80s cover is a true marvel of pastels, a very brooding hero and a swooning heroine in his embrace (but wearing historically appropriate outfits, which is more than one can say for a large majority of more modern historical romances published today - Lisa Kleypas' Ravenel series and Tessa Dare's Girl Meets Duke, I am especially thinking about you right now. 

Crossposted on Cannonball Read. 

#CBR9 Book 114: "A Duke in Shining Armor" by Loretta Chase

Page count: 400 pages
Rating: 4 stars

Hugh Ancaster, seventh Duke of Ripley, is well-known in society (or possibly rather infamous) as one of the three dis-graces. He has returned from an extended trip to the continent just in time for his fellow dis-graces stag do. His best friend, the angel-faced Duke of Ashmont, has managed to find a bride and one from a respectable and upstanding family at that. Lady Olympia Hightower, only daughter of the Earl of Gonerby, is the lucky lady. Although she seems to be having second thoughts, as Hugh finds her about to climb out the window just moments before the ceremony. Having accepted the duties of best man, Ripley can't very well let the bride run off.

Lady Olympia Hightower should be deliriously happy. After seven seasons, during which she's been dubbed "Most Boring" and not received a single suitable marriage proposal, she is about to become a duchess. The fact that her absent-minded father is bad with money will no longer be a problem, and her many brothers will be more than amply provided for. Her future husband is wealthy, handsome and can be very charming (when he's not in his cups). Of course, he's a rake of the highest order, and Olympia isn't exactly expecting him to stay faithful, but she'll be a duchess and her wedding day should be a joyous one. Instead she's getting drunk on stolen brandy in the library and contemplating eloping. Alone.

Not only is she caught in the act by the groom's best friend, the infuriating Duke of Ripley, but he insists on following her, and trying to persuade her to return to the ceremony. Olympia is determined to go to her aunt's house in Twickenham, and persuades Ripley to take her there. It's become obvious to Ripley that Ashmont could probably benefit from properly wooing his bride a bit more before they actually tie the knot, so he reluctantly agrees to accompany Olympia, knowing that them disappearing together for a few hours will just be written off as one of the many pranks the dis-graces have played on each other and others throughout the years. What is supposed to be a simple journey of a few hours, turns complicated rather fast and Ripley is in for a much more time-consuming and complicated task than he ever suspected when he agreed to stand up for his best friend.

Dukes Prefer Blondes was one of my favourite romances last year, and I revisited it in audio book earlier this year. While some of Loretta Chase's Dressmakers series was so-so, she seems to be firmly back on form again now (possibly because she's taking a bit more time between each book). It's not been a super strong year for romances in general, I think, but this book is likely to end up of my romance top 10 and I was very entertained by it.

One of the remarkable things that Ms. Chase does in this book is make a story that takes place over less than a week not feel like the couple descend into insta-love. It's very correctly highlighted early in the book that Olympia has only had a few encounters with Ashmont before agreeing to be his wife, and that this really is perfectly normal in the higher levels of society. Husbands and wives of the upper classes didn't really need to know one another well, or even like each other much for a match to be a prosperous one. So while Olympia and Ripley only spend a few days together, those days really are packed with incident, and allow them to see the other in any number of stressful and unusual situations, probably getting a much clearer picture of each other's characters than any couple who have danced together at a few balls or chatted politely during a few drawing room encounters. It's also made clear that through the years Olympia has been out in society, she has certainly noticed and been attracted to Ripley (although never daring to dream she'd ever have a chance to even speak to him) and he has seen her and thought about her every so often, but clearly never felt that as a notorious rake he could ever speak to such a paragon of virtue.

Being tall, bespectacled and passionately interested in books and library organisation, Olympia won my heart even before she drunkenly tried to escape her own wedding in one of the first chapters. She's shocked to realise that Ripley isn't just being polite when she goes on about her love of ancient books and new ways to organise a library and amused that he's speaks to her as he would one of his male friends, rather than constantly consider her delicate sensibilities.

One of the flaws of the book is that we get a much clearer picture of who Olympia is than Hugh/Ripley. Apparently his father had some sort of mental episode while Hugh was still young and treated both his children and servants appallingly. Ripley's sister (who only appears briefly) is married to the third of the dis-graces, the Duke of Blackwood, and appears to be estranged from him. From what I can gather from Ms. Chase's blog, their book will be the third in the series, while Ashwood who (SPOILER) does not end up marrying Olympia, is the hero of the next book. Ripley is clearly a very loyal friend, even though it seems obvious from his nearly year-long holiday away from his cronies that he was growing a bit sick of their excessive and scandalous lifestyle. Much of the book he is agonising because he is falling for Olympia, but refuses to even contemplate betraying the trust of his friend. I wish Ms. Chase had included more back story on him, because while I feel I got to know Olympia well (and want to be besties with her), Ripley remained more of a cipher.

As well as the promise of future books featuring the Duke of Ashmont (who will no doubt be forced to mature and reconsider his life choices somewhat after the events of this book) and the Duke of Blackwood (who needs to reunite with his wife), there are hints of some sort of back story between Ripley's now widowed aunt and Ashwood's uncle, who is the main person responsible for him ever securing the hand of Lady Olympia. I hope that over the course of the next few books, we find out what went on in their mutual past and get to see if they can find some sort of happy future together too.

TL,DR: This book is fun and romantic and I highly recommend it.

Judging a book by its cover: So it seem like a new trend in romance covers isn't to do the traditional drawn covers, but just featuring a photograph, in this case of a bride running through the grounds of a stately home. Of course, the wedding dress looks way too contemporary to be anything Lady Olympia wears over the course of the book (and Loretta Chase can really be trusted to have researched her character's garments down to the last stitch), the woman in the picture is not wearing a ridiculous headdress, plus she appears to be running TOWARDS a big house, not AWAY from one. I appreciate the efforts here, people, but a little more could have gone a long way.

Crossposted on Cannonball Read.

#CBR9 Book 40: "Dukes Prefer Blondes" by Loretta Chase (now in audio)

Page count: 384 pages
Audio book length: 12hrs 11 mins
Rating: 4.5 stars

My first review of this book can be found here. It was the very first book I read in 2016 and having revisited it, I have decided that I may in fact have overly strict with my rating of it. Since I already recounted the plot and gave a thorough analysis for my feelings about the book there, that's the place to go if you're curious about what the book is about. This review will be more about my re-read and the audio book experience.

After finishing Where Dreams Begin, where (SPOILER) the heroine is struck down with typhoid fever for no particularly good reason (seriously, the couple are already married and don't need any sort of complications in the way to their HEA), I remembered how much better I thought that storyline was done in this book. I have recently realised that a trope I will almost always adore is one of the parties nursing the other one back to health. If it's the hero doing the nursing, so much the better. See also, The Hating Game, my very favouritest romance of last year. Since this book has Raven patiently and stubbornly nursing Clara through weeks of horrible illness, as well as a lot of wonderful banter from two very intelligent protagonists, it really should have rated higher for me.

What with the world going to hell around us (I'm so very lucky that I live in Norway, where things are much better than most places right now, but I still can't entirely ignore the news of the world around me) and me being in a rather emotionally fraught place at the moment, I've also been in a bit of a reading slump this year. I have an absolutely monstrous work load, which doesn't give me as much time as I'd like to read and relax. Additionally, there are a lot of things to stress me out not just on a global scale, but closer to home, that's causing me to be in a rather fraught place emotionally at present. Hence the revisiting old favourites in audio book form. While this is Ms. Chase's most recent novel (and sadly, there are no signs of her having another one out soon), I remembered it as one of her best in years, and I was glad to discover that I was not wrong, and that I might in fact like it even more upon my re-read.

As with all the other Loretta Chase audio books, this one is narrated by Kate Reading, who pretty much always does an excellent job and whose arch British accent seems very appropriate to these period romances. She's great at various accents, too, though, be they working class or foreigners and even with a variety of female and male characters, she always manages to give each person a distinct and identifiable voice. I'm always amazed at the skill of professional narrators, and can see why Kate Reading is so very popular.

Having never re-reviewed a book, so to speak, this was a new and interesting experience for me. Most of the things that I found problematic when I first read this book were now much lesser annoyances (possibly because I was prepared for them) and the things I remembered liking were even better on a revisit. I'm glad I gave this book a new chance and it's risen in my estimation.

Judging a book by its cover: As I hadn't started this "feature" on my blog the last time I reviewed the book, I now get to critique the cover! Yay for re-reads. This is one of the many romance covers where a lady (I'm assuming it's supposed to be Lady Clara) is facing away from the cover, while wearing a fancy gown that's coming undone in the back. Underneath, she wears absolutely nothing at all, which seems especially inappropriate with regards to this book, which has been tacked onto The Dressmakers books, and in which Loretta Chase goes to some lengths to explain exactly how intricate the clothing of the time was. There is absolutely no way any lady of the time would wear a dress without layers of undergarments underneath, but the wide expanse of naked back seems extra insulting here. Lovely green colours, however, both in the dress and the brocade backdrop.

Crossposted on Cannonball Read.

#CBR9 Book 28: "Captives of the Night" by Loretta Chase

Page count: 352 pages
Audio book length: 13hrs 8mins
Rating: 5 stars

Leila Beaumont is a beautiful and very talented portrait artist, as celebrated throughout Europe as her husband, Francis, is becoming reviled. While Leila is aware of Francis adultery, his tendency to drink and take drugs to excess, she is unaware that he also ran a brothel in Paris and tended to make money through the blackmail of prominent members of society. While she hasn't allowed him in her bed for years, Leila is nonetheless grateful to Francis for rescuing her when she was orphaned in Venice ten years ago, after her traitor father ran afoul of some people he betrayed. While Francis later seduced her, he also married her and made sure she got training with the best artists, allowing her to have the career she now thrives in. Their marriage is not a peaceful one, however, which is why Leila is the prime suspect when Francis turns up dead.

Even Alexandre Delavenne, the Comte D'Esmond, initially believes that Leila murdered her husband. He first met and was enchanted with the beautiful artist in Paris, but while Francis normally cared little for all the men fawning over his wife, knowing that his constant digs at her and his own behaviour had pretty much put Leila off men entirely, he was extremely jealous about D'Esmond's attentions towards her. That this was because he himself also fancied the man, and was firmly rebuffed is not something Leila was aware of. She just knows that the very beautiful man made her uneasy in Paris and now again in London, when the world seems ready to call her a murderess. D'Esmond works for the Home Office, however, and orchestrates a beautiful show of an inquest, where there is left no doubt to anyone that Francis Beaumont died of an accidental overdose.

Once the public's mind has been set at ease about Beaumont's death, D'Esmond's superiors at the Home Office nonetheless want to figure out who actually killed him, and set D'Esmond to investigate the crime. This means he and Leila have to spend a lot of time together, reluctantly fighting their growing attraction towards one another. D'Esmond may have been working for the Home Office as an agent for the last ten years, but there are dark deeds in his past, and he realises that some of them affected Leila indirectly. Even as he wants to seduce her and win her love, he is terrified that the intelligent and dangerously perceptive woman will figure out the secrets of his past, and how he may have been the person to set her on the path to her disastrous marriage to Francis in the first place.

This book, while one of my all-time favourites, is probably not for everyone. There is too much of a mystery element to the story and the romance is probably the most angst-filled of all of Chase's books. The Comte D'Esmond is actually the villain in Chase's earlier novel, The Lion's Daughter, where as a ruthless Albanian prince, he not only tries to usurp his cousin, the Pasha, but becomes obsessed with the daughter of an English nobleman and chases her and the man she loves across Europe, intent on stealing her back. Ismal Delvina, as he was then, is stopped and nearly dies and takes up a career with the Home Office to atone for his sins, but he was not a nice individual and in his wild chase across Europe, he also stopped in Venice to demand money from Leila's father, who shortly afterwards ended up drowned in a canal. While he never saw Leila in person, he knew her father, Bridgeburton, had a child, and commanded his henchmen to drug her while they were doing business. Leila woke up groggy and disorientated in the carriage of Francis Beaumont, who claimed he had rescued her from burglars, breaking the news of her father's death to her.

While Leila is completely unaware of this, once it's revealed to Ismal/D'Esmond that she is Bridgeburton's daughter, he is painfully conscious of the fact that his former actions led to her being in the clutches of Francis Beaumont, an innocent and sheltered girl, who was easily seduced by him and later shackled in marriage to him for the next decade. For all that she's not had a great marriage and is aware of many of her husband's flaws, Leila refuses to see herself as a victim and is grateful to her husband for making her the artist she now is. It takes her a long time to realise just how insidious and toxic his influence over her has been, and how many insecurities and hang-ups she harbours, all placed there carefully by her husband, to ensure that while she may not be allowing him into her bed, she certainly wasn't going to sleep with and experience pleasure with anyone else either. Leila is so strong and smart, yet so wounded and vulnerable and the process she has to go through in this book is rather painful to read about in parts.

Ismal/D'Esmond has long since gotten over the woman he chased across Europe, who has been happily married for the last decade. Leila is probably the first woman to fascinate him as much, yet he is painfully aware at all times that the secrets he harbours will hurt her when they come to light. That she is frighteningly perceptive and sees things in him that others don't appear to doesn't help. He is in love with her long before he's able to finally break through the layers of conditioning that make her think sex is something rather repellent and allowed access into her bed. He knows that when she finds out the truth (and he has no illusions that she won't eventually figure things out), she will be deeply hurt and possibly ask him to leave her forever.

Seriously, this is a really angsty book with very complex and wounded people. Once Ismal/D'Esmond finally manages to seduce Leila, we're about 70% into the book (although they seem to make up for lost time once they get started), so for much of the book there is just a fairly complicated and somewhat tiresome murder investigation (even the protagonists admit that this mystery is tedious), with the couple learing more about one another as they question and investigate others. Francis Beaumont is an absolutely odious individual, so there are MANY people with a will and motive to murder him. He was a master manipulator, and it takes Leila a long time to realise and deal with the ways he messed her up.

Anyone looking for a light-hearted and amusing romp, would be much better off checking out Mr. Impossible or The Last Hellion, or reading something in Tessa Dare's Spindle Cove or Castles Ever After series. This is not an easy or comfortable book, but the romance feels so much more earned at the end because of it. It should also be pointed out, for those readers who are sick of "pregnancy epilogues" - Leila is barren and can't have children, and there is a frank and very touching discussion about adoption in the later half of the book.

A final note - I listened to this in audio book this time around, and as with the other Loretta Chase historicals, it's narrated by the excellent Kate Reading. She is especially good at accents and the way she changes the voice and accent of D'Esmond/Ismal once he reveals his background and true identity to Leila is really well done.

Judging a book by its cover: My paperback cover of this has a blond dude with stubble looking out from behind a curtain. I refuse to believe it's supposed to be Ismal/D'Esmond, but refuse to acknowledge this, as he's described several times in the book as the most beautiful man anyone has ever seen, and the slightly scruffy surfer dude on the cover clearly doesn't fit that. The audio book cover is this underwear-clad red-head, where I always get more distracted by the beautiful blue brocade wallpaper than the woman. Not sure if that was entirely the effect the cover designers were looking for.

Crossposted by Cannonball Read. 

#CBR9 Book 24: "The Last Hellion" by Loretta Chase

Page count: 384 pages
Audio book length: 12hrs 59 mins
Rating: 5 stars

Another re-read of one of my all-time favourites, once again narrated by the excellent Kate Reading.

Vere Mallory becomes the Duke of Ainswood after pretty much every other male in his family line dies, including several family members he cared deeply for, and he's quite happy to drink and debauch himself into an early grave so the accursed title can't take anyone else, thank you very much. An endless existence of carousing gets tedious after a while, though, and once he crosses paths with Miss Lydia Grenville, the formidable investigative female journalist doing her best to inspire reform in London's poorer areas, ending up quite humiliated after their first encounter, he finds something new to keep him occupied and challenged.

Miss Lydia Grenville was trying to rescue a confused young woman from being abducted by one of London's most notorious madams when the giant nobleman got it into his head to interfere, and while she managed to outwit him and leave him as a laughing stock, she can't seem to get Vere Mallory and his impressive physique out of her mind. When he starts taking an interest in her career, showing up everywhere she goes, she concludes he's decided to make a conquest of her. While Lydia is a confirmed spinster and hasn't really had the time or interest in men before, the dissolute Duke of Ainswood appeals to her like no other. While she wishes she could remain unaffected, she's just as attracted to him as he is to her. How can she make sure he forgets her and takes his interest elsewhere?

Loretta Chase's Lord of Scoundrels still features on most "Must Read Romance" lists you can find on the internet. While that is a perfectly fine book, I find the hero frustratingly dumb for much of the book, and much prefer this one, which is loosely connected with it. Vere Mallory is one of Dain Ballister's best friends (and drunkenly confuses the heroine Jessica for a harlot in a memorable scene). Bertie Trent, a secondary character in this book is heroine Jessica Trent's bumbling brother, yet surprisingly finds happiness in this one, in a very satisfying secondary plotline. I think Vere is a much better hero than Dain. He starts out a bit arrogant and full of himself, but like all the best heroes, knows well enough when he is facing off against someone far superior to himself and that such a woman is not to be feared or avoided, but rather claimed, cherished, encouraged and honoured.

That Lydia Grenville shares her name with my BFF and the sister of my heart doesn't hurt, but I challenge anyone not to love Miss Grenville and her tireless quest to improve the straits of those worse off with her critical journalism. That she's also secretly the author of the wildly popular romantic adventure story "The Rose of Thebes" is just a bonus (and I would kill to get my hands on a full version of that - wonder if Loretta Chase could be persuaded to write it). The illegitimate daughter of a Ballister cousin (so a gently reared noblewoman) and a rather unsuccessful actor, Lydia was raised by eccentric relatives after her mother died early, her father ended up in debtor's prison and her younger sister died in the same prison. At 28, she's pretty much accepted that she's going to be a spinster and even if she does give into her lust for the Duke of Ainswood, it's not like she'd ever be a suitable match for him.

This book is so much fun and the two very stubborn and headstrong protagonists facing off against one another is delightful. While this is my fifth re-read of the book, I'd forgotten Vere's wonderful habit of referring to Lydia in his mind with new nicknames every time they encounter one another. "Attila the Hun" or "Ivan the Terrible" Grenville are probably my favourites. Vere's rather unorthodox courting of Lydia is resolved about halfway through, when the book changes pace and the couple have to work together to locate Vere's young cousins, who have run away from home to come see him in London, and fall into the clutches of the very same madam Lydia has been working to take down.

While I freely admit that this book is probably not going to be a favourite for everyone, it's still a very good example of Loretta Chase's excellent plotting, banter and skill. I find something new to love in it every time I revisit it, and highly recommend it as a classic of the genre.

Judging a book by its cover: The audio book cover for this seems hilariously inappropriate, because with the exception of the cover model having long blond hair, the simpering, contemplative pose with the pretty dress and the flowers is pretty much the opposite of everything Miss Lydia Grenville embodies. Dressed in severe and sensible black for much of the novel, Lydia is fierce, stubborn, no-nonsense and a far cry from he demure and insipid lady on this cover. The pastels and wind-blown look of the heroine on the paperback cover I have aren't exactly fitting either.

Crossposted by Cannonball Read.

#CBR9 Book 19: "Mr Impossible" by Loretta Chase

Page count: 320 pages
Audio book length: 11hrs 48 mins
Rating: 5 stars

Rupert Carsington is the fourth son of the Earl of Hargate and has been sent to Egypt to get out of the way of all the calamities he's been able to get tangled in at home in England and on the continent. He finds himself locked up in a dungeon jail after seeing a bunch of soldiers beat up a beggar in the street and deciding to defend the man, beating up a horde of soldiers as a result. His bail is paid by Mrs Daphne Pembroke, a widow searching for her missing brother.

Daphne Pembroke may still be wearing widow's weeds, but she doesn't really mourn her elderly and close-minded husband. He did leave her an absolute fortune, which now allows her to pursue her passion for ancient languages, trying to decrypt the hieroglyphs. After the judgement and disapproval of her late husband, Daphne has learned to hide her intellectual pursuits. Everyone believes her brother Miles is the renowned linguist, while she's just his assistant and secretary. Now he's missing without a trace and the expensive papyrus he gave her, that she's been busy decoding, has been stolen from their house. The British consul is pretty sure Miles is just drunk in a bar somewhere, wants her to go away, and sees his chance to get rid of the troublesome Mr. Carsington at the same time.

It's clear to Rupert that Mrs. Pembroke is very clever and much more likely to keep him around if he pretends to be nothing but a dumb lug who she can order around. From her reactions to coming home to find her house burgled, and the way she speaks about languages and Egyptology, he can clearly see that she's a scholar in her own right and that the papyrus that was stolen is hers, not her brother's. He agrees with her that it's more likely that something bad has happened to Miles, and it's probably best if they find him sooner rather than later. They travel down the Nile in a river boat, trying to locate him, while sinister individuals follow them and try to do away with one or both. Travelling in close quarters also makes it clear that they have great chemistry and mutual attraction. 

Mr. Impossible is the very first romance I read back in 2008, when I was re-discovering romance as a genre, having not really read any of it since I was a teenager (when I would buy it translated into Norwegian in these cheep paperbacks with lurid covers). It's still one of my favourite historicals, one of the many with a very clever heroine and the strong and handsome man who falls for her while accompanying and protecting her. Rupert, while his entire family seems to find him an impulsive idiot, is actually much smarter than he seems, he's just also very fond of brawling and drinking and tends to get himself into scrapes by hitting first and thinking later. Daphne got married when really young and spent pretty much her entire marriage being criticised and negged by her elderly husband, who was jealous that she was smarter and more adept at languages than him. Rupert and Daphne compliment each other beautifully and much of the story is a fun adventure romp, as well as a slow-burning romance. Revisiting it in audio after several years was a treat. The only thing I didn't like was the way Kate Reading voiced Rupert, but she's very good with all the various other accents.

This book is technically part of the Carsington series, but works perfectly fine as a stand-alone. It's by far my favourite of the four books, that all centre around one of the sons of the Earl of Hargate. It's a really fun book and a great romance and if I were to make a list of my all-time classics, as Mrs. Julien has done on her blog, this would absolutely have a spot on it. 

Judging a book by its cover: My somewhat tattered paperback copy of this has a bright fuschia cover and a headless dude in a partially undone ruffled shirt which always made me feel as if I should cover the book up with a bag to not attract pointed looks on public transport. I'm not sure if the audio book cover is better or worse, but at least has the benefit that few people would see it on your listening device. As a lot of romance covers features naked male flesh and a lot of muscle tone, I suppose the cover designers should be applauded from showing a toned back, rather than the traditional glistening chest and six-pack abs.

Crossposted on Cannonball Read. 

#CBR8 Book 1: "Dukes Prefer Blondes" by Loretta Chase

Page count: 384 pages
Rating: 4 stars

Lady Clara Fairfax, eldest daughter of the Marquess of Warford and sister to the Earl of Longmore, was raised to marry a duke. The Duke of Clevedon, to be precise, but he ended up falling in love with a dressmaker instead. Not that Clara is lacking in high-born suitors. Twice a week they show up in her mother's drawing room to ask for her hand in marriage and Clara, well bred lady that she is, politely refuses them. Clara wants to make a difference. She wants to make her mark in the world. However, no matter how wealthy and powerful her father and brother are, how rich and privileged she is, the fact remains that on her own, as an unmarried lady, there is very little she can do. She bestows as much patronage as she can on the girls apprenticed with the Milliners' Society, but when a girl comes to her, confessing that her brother's been taken in by a gang of street thieves, she is determined to get the boy back, no matter how difficult or dangerous it proves.

She seeks out Oliver "Raven" Radford, a barrister famous for championing the cause of the poor. Radford was a schoolfriend of her brother's, but she hasn't seen him since she was a girl, trying to pummel his unfortunate cousin Bernard for teasing him. Now the odious cousin Bernard is a duke, and through a strange set of events, Raven is second in line to inherit. He has no wish to do so, and does his very best to get his cousin's financial affairs, not to mention health in order, so the man can go on to re-marry, sire heirs and live a long life, not bothering Raven or his ailing father, who just want to practise law in peace.

While most men are struck dumb by Clara's staggering beauty (and/or the overwhelming outfits she wears), Raven is merely very curious as to why she has sought him out. Highly intelligent and ambitious, he's used to being the smartest person in the room at any given time, and doesn't bother to hide his disdain for the stupidity of others. He wants to become a judge and perhaps even rise to Lord Chancellor one day, and helping Lady Clara Fairfax search the slums of London for a kidnapped street urchin is not the way to go about such things. Yet he cannot forget the little girl who jumped on his cousin's back and chipped a tooth biting him, and when Clara actually loses her carefully maintained composure and actually yells at him, confessing what a gilded cage she is stuck in, frustrated by all the unfairness in the world and unable to do a thing about it, Raven promises to help, even though he knows it's a bloody stupid idea. As they work together, Raven is surprised to discover that while she may be angelically beautiful, Lady Clara also has one of the sharpest minds he's ever encountered, often able to keep up even with him. He begins to understand how stifled she feels by society's rules for women and keeps going against his better judgement to allow her to participate in the search for the orphan boy.

The urchin in question is eventually rescued, but Clara pays a high price for her impulsiveness while on the rescue mission. Struck down with typhoid fever, she is close to death, and Raven, having been alerted by Clara's irate maid, takes it upon himself to nurse her back to health, as he already survived it. The high society doctors refuse to even believe a marquess' daughter could have contracted such a disease and their suggested treatments would kill her for sure. Clara's dowager aunt has no choice but to accept the obnoxious barrister's help if she wants her niece to have any chance of survival. During her long recovery, Raven and Clara's maid work in shifts to monitor and care for her. Nearly a month later, Clara is well again, and the unflappable and arrogant Raven Radford, barrister extraordinaire, has been added to the list of men who want Clara as his wife. Once Clara provokes him enough to confess his true feelings, they just needs to convince her parents that he will be a suitable match for her.

Lady Clara has been a supporting character in the previous Dressmaker books, but as I was extremely underwhelmed by the first two in the series, I can't be bothered to go back and re-read to see exactly how she appeared in those books. Suffice to say, you can easily read this book without any previous knowledge of the series, as it stands fine on its own. Chase has taken two characters that could be absolutely unbearable and made them not only a suitable match for each other, but very entertaining to read about. Lady Clara has been raised in the lap of luxury, always knowing that her ambitious mama wanted her to be a duchess one day. Suitors without titles or with very low ones need not apply for her hand in marriage. She has a dresses that cost enough to feed a family for a year and the freedom to move about London as she chooses. She is stunningly beautiful. Yet she's discouraged from reading and improving her mind or wanting to spend too much time bestowing charity on the poor seamstresses of the Milliner's Society. Until she gets married, she is under the control of her father and brother and once she does get married, her husband will have total power over her and the frighteningly large dowry she'll bring to the marriage. Most men see only her face and figure and completely disregard her formidable brain.

Clara has had many suitors and while she has been very sheltered, she knows what attraction feels like. While Raven Radford may be the most infuriating man she's ever met, he also makes her heart beat faster and after their first encounters, he actually seems to listen to her and see not just her polished looks, but Clara as a whole person. After he drops everything at his cousin's estate and rushes back to London to nurse her back to health, she has all the proof she needs that this man would make her the perfect husband. She just needs to provoke him into proposing and hope he is clever enough to win over her parents.

Raven Radford was clearly an obnoxious little oaf even as a child. While he may have been the grandson of a duke, his father became a barrister and married a divorced woman, causing quite the scandal. His many rich cousins tried to make his life hell in school, without much success. Always aware that he's most likely smarter than those around him, Raven grew up to be just as arrogant and frustratingly rude as he was as a child. He doesn't suffer fools and has made many enemies as a result. He assumes Clara is a pretty, yet frivolous lady, bored with her lot in life and seeking some adventure. He keeps being proven wrong, and while he has managed to keep his baser instincts firmly buried to get ahead in life, being as frustrated by lady Clara as she is by him makes it impossible for him to retain a professional distance. Raven, rudely blunt and annoyed at the stupidity of everyone around him, reminded me a lot of Doctor Jonas Grantham, one of my favourite romance heroes. It would also not at all surprise me if Chase has modelled him on Benedict Cumberbatch's portrayal of Sherlock Holmes - there were similarities there in both looks and demeanour. Neither of these things made him any less attractive to me.

The plot of the book, it must be said, is a bit all over the place. It starts out with Clara's mission to rescue the street urchin from the band of thieves, intertwined with Raven's difficulties in getting his cousin to take his role as Duke seriously. Then there's Clara's illness, followed by Raven having to win her parents over. They get married and have to negotiate married life together, all the while nefarious individuals from the criminal underworld are determined to have their revenge on Raven, and possibly his new wife. Raven's father is old and ailing, his cousin Bernard the duke is oafish and reckless. It's mentioned enough times that Raven is second in line for a dukedom that it'll come to no surprise to anyone at all, when the Radfords suddenly have a change of status. Here, at least, Clara comes into her own, having been trained from girlhood to manage large households.

I can see why Chase might have thought that just having Raven and Clara meet and try to negotiate their relationship might have been a bit dull, so she had to throw in criminal court cases and police raids and vengeful crime bosses with colourful side kicks to spice things up a bit. I don't think it was necessary at all, but it didn't detract or derail the story enough that I was annoyed either. While I found it extremely unlikely that the French seamstresses of slightly dubious descent all ended up married to a duke, an earl and a marquess, it doesn't actually seem that inappropriate for the daughter of a marquess to marry a man second in line to a dukedom. While Raven doesn't hold a noble title at the point in which he proposes to Clara, he's clearly of good family and with his ambitions, would have risen to a position of prominence in society, even if he weren't likely to inherit a dukedom.

If you've liked Chase's books in the past, but were scared away because of the first two books in the Dressmaker series, I have good news for you. This book is, while not Chase at her best, a very enjoyable read, especially if you don't mind obnoxiously rude men being brought low by love. It celebrates intelligence in both its protagonists and continues to give insight into the truly ridiculous fashions of the late Georgian, early Victorian era. The scene where Raven falls asleep on his wedding night waiting for hours for Clara to have her gown properly removed made me laugh. Look elsewhere for your bodice ripping.

Crossposted on Cannonball Read.

#CBR6 Book 67: "Vixen in Velvet" by Loretta Chase

Page count. 384 pages
Rating: 4 stars

Leonie Noirot is the youngest of the three Noirot sisters, and the only one still unmarried and able to spend all her energies on running Maison Noirot, the sisters' successful dressmaking shop in St. James. The eldest sister, Marcelline (from Silk is for Seduction) is currently pregnant and rather indisposed and the middle sister Sophy (from Scandal Wears Satin) is off on an extended wedding trip in Scotland until the scandal surrounding her nuptials dies down. Each sister has their own strengths, in Leonie's case, it's finance. She's a mathematical prodigy, but because she's also the most practical and level-headed of the three sisters, she knows how important it is that the shop keeps bringing in new customers and stays popular among the fashionable ladies.

While out advertising one of the shop's many elegant outfits, Leonie is struck mute by the Botticelli painting of Mars and Venus and then by its owner, the insanely handsome Simon Blair, Marquess of Lisburne. He, is in return very taken with Leonie, and decides that his stay in London might not be as boring as he had previously feared. Lisburne is in London to make sure his cousin, the sensitive Lord Swanton, who currently can't go anywhere without being mobbed by adoring young ladies, doesn't get into trouble. Swanton published a volume of poetry that became unexpectedly best-selling, and he wants to use his new-found celebrity to do some good, speaking at various charity benefits to great acclaim. Lisburne is worried that someone will take advantage of his cousin, so guards him carefully.

Leonie decides that to really show off the skills of the dressmakers at Maison Noirot is to transform Lisburne's cousin, the rude, insecure and extremely gawky Lady Gladys Fairfax, into an elegant and sought after swan. Lisburne would rather Leonie focus on him than on dresses, spread sheets and his cousin Gladys, so Leonie proposes a wager. If she can make Lady Gladys so popular the woman receives a marriage proposal in a mere two weeks, Lisburne has to give her his Botticelli painting. If Leonie fails, which Lisburne is convinced she must, Leonie has to become Lisburne's mistress, and give him two full weeks of her undivided attention.

It's been two years since Scandal Wears Satin came out, and as I found that book one of the most disappointing Loretta Chase had ever written, I was very much hoping that the postponed publication date for this book meant that it would be of a higher quality. While it's not going to join my all time favourite romances, or even the top five of Chase's works, it is a much better book than her last two and a return to form for one of the masters of the romance genre.

Leonie is so focused on her work and making sure her family business is running smoothly. She has clearly never taken the time to relax and enjoy herself, being the pragmatic, sensible and most level-headed of her sisters. So when Lisburne comes along and pretty literally sweeps her off her feet, insisting on distracting her, taking her to the circus, for drives in the park and forcing her to forget about finances and have a little fun on occasion. The Noirots come from a long line of charmers, schemers and scoundrels and are usually far too easily swayed by their emotions. Leonie has up until now never been in love, or met anyone who could even vaguely inspire her to be, but the stunning and dangerously charming Lisburne, who she keeps comparing to a Roman or Greek god, completely discombobulates her.

Lisburne knows that he's ridiculously attractive, so it's a change of pace for him when Leonie acknowledges this, but still goes about her daily life almost forcefully ignoring him. Up until recently, when every woman in the room started swooning around his cousin, Lisburne's clearly never really had to work to woo a woman, and Leonie provides an interesting challenge. He's obviously not looking for any long term commitment, but the more time he spends with Leonie, the more fascinated he is with her.

If you've read any of Loretta Chase's books from before her Dressmaker-series, I'm happy to recommend this as another book of hers that will entertain you and while away a few hours. I was engrossed enough that I stayed up until the early hours of the morning to finish it (thank God for summer vacation!). The secondary romance in the book, involving Lady Gladys is also very enjoyable, if not exactly surprising or ground-breaking. As far as I can tell, the next Loretta Chase book will be about the Noirots' sister-in-law, Lady Clara, and because this was so much fun, I'm now very much looking forward to it.

Crossposted on Cannonball Read.

#CBR6 Book 43: "The Sandalwood Princess" by Loretta Chase

Page count: 240 pages
Rating: 3.5 stars

Philip Astonley, youngest son of the Viscount Felkoner, also known as the Falcon to a select few (which is surprising to me as it's not exactly a secret identity very different from his family name), is hired by the wealthy and powerful Marquess of Hedgrave to steal a sandalwood statue and bring it from India to England. He can barely believe his luck when he discovers that the statue is given as a gift to Miss Amanda Davencourt as a farewell gift from her dear friend, the Rani Simhi, also known in India as the Great Lioness. He ambushes Amanda on her way home and steals the statue, but discovers that the rani is close on his trail and has poisoned his servant, near fatally. In order to get passage on the next ship to London, he has to pretend that his servant is one of Hedgrave lawyers, while he is in fact said man's valet.

It just so happens that Amanda Davencourt is on board the same ship, along with her chaperone and one of the rani's most dangerous servants, who ran away to escape his mistress' wrath once he discovered that Amanda had been attacked. Amanda knows that Hedgrave wanted the statue, and suspects that his lawyer may have it in his possession. She fully believes Philip's ruse that he is a servant, though, which also causes difficulties on the long journey back to England as the Philip tries to get to know her to discover if she's one of the rani's clever accomplices or just as innocent and naive as she seems to be. As they spend more time together, Amanda and Philip grow more attracted to each other, and as she believes him to be a simple valet, it's not like anything can come from their shipboard attraction.

Amanda isn't quite as innocent and sheltered as Philip believes, and manages to steal the sandalwood statue back before Philip and his servant are about to leave the ship in Portsmouth. Having been promised fifty thousand pounds for the artifact, not to mention because his professional pride has been wounded, outsmarted by a spinster, Philip tracks Amanda down to her remote estate in Yorkshire and manages to convince her that he was fired when his employer discovered the statue was missing. He's hired to be her butler, and shortly after also takes the duties as secretary. Amanda is writing a book about Indian gods and mythology and while she is clearly a brilliant scholar, she's not very organised. Philip makes himself completely indispensable to her and her household, plotting and scheming how he can get Amanda to remove the sandalwood statue from her bank vault so he can steal it back. Meanwhile, Padji, the Rani's erstwhile enforcer and now Amanda's temperamental cook is deeply suspicious of Philip's motives and does whatever he can to keep the rogue and his beloved mistress from growing closer.

The Sandalwood Princess is one of Loretta Chase's early romances, first published in 1990. Unlike most of her more recent romances, it's more in the style of Georgette Heyer's novels, with a very chaste romance and a very slow build-up. Anyone expecting crazy smexy-times must look elsewhere. For a lot of the novel, very little happens. Most of Philip and Amanda's relationship is gradually changed. It takes them months on board the ship back to London to get close to each other, and Philip spends at least two thirds of a year in Yorkshire as her devoted servant. All this while concealing his true motives and social rank from her. He's determined to carry out his mission, even after he falls in love with Amanda.

My favourite part of the book is absolutely the last third. Too much of the story just doesn't seem to go anywhere, even though I much prefer a slow-burning and gradual romantic development to a couple who fall madly in love with each other over the course of a week (or less). There are a few unexpected twists revealed towards the end of the book, that raises it from a mere three stars, and the constant scheming and double-crossing of the protagonists is a delight. I would say that this is a novel to check out if you are a Loretta Chase completeist, but not the one to begin with if you're interested in trying her books. I would recommend Lord of Scoundrels or Mr. Impossible as good jumping-on points.

Crossposted on Cannonball Read.

#CBR5 Book 147. "Knaves' Wager" by Loretta Chase

Page count: 240 pages
Rating: 4 stars

Thanks to Mrs. Julien for her awesome romance review template!

Knaves’ Wager is a romance of the you are everything I never knew I always wanted AND opposites attract variety: Boy meets girl. He is the reprobate former best friend of her now-dead husband. She hates him because she believes he drove her husband to his early death, and is left owing him crippling gambling debts. He agrees to a foolish wager to seduce her against all odds. Boy and girl move forward together secure in their love and commitment.

A historical romance set in the Regency era just around the end of the Napoleonic wars and written by Loretta Chase, Knaves’ Wager is my fourteenth book by this author. I generally find her work at least enjoyable, and at its best, spectacular and infinitely re-readable. Chase is, most famously, the author of Lord of Scoundrels, the book All About Romance’s readers have voted as the number one in their top 100 for more than a decade. Personally, I prefer The Last Hellion, but what do I know? I found Knaves’ Wager, one of her early romances diverting, enjoyable and romantic. This book is a clean (lacking in any sex scenes, graphic or otherwise) romance, and I’ve seen it compared to the writing of Georgette Heyer. However, none of the Heyer books I’ve read contain the palpable sexual tension present in this novel, or kisses half so scorching as some of the ones in this book, so be aware that it’s not entirely chaste. I have several of Chase’s early romances still on my TBR List and will continue to seek them out because this one really was very enjoyable indeed and I would absolutely recommend it to others.

The main plot of Knaves’ Wager focuses on the reformation of a rake. Lord Julian Wyndhurst, Marquess of Brandon is that rake. He is stinking rich, handsome as sin and has a reputation for gambling and vice. He’s also been on the Continent for seven years since his involvement in a particularly scandalous duel, working closely to bring down Napoleon, and is exasperated to be brought home only to sort out his young cousin, Lord Robert Downs’s scandalous betrothal. Lilith Davenant is a widow and a victim of circumstance. She is formidable, all that is proper, decorous and virtuous, and a caring and affectionate aunt, willing to sacrifice even the last remains of her fortune to secure happier futures for her nieces and nephews than she herself found in her unfortunate marriage. Due to her husband’s gambling debts to Lord Brandon, she is forced to accept the proposal of an old friend to secure her future. Brandon agrees to seduce Lilith in order to get Robert’s mercenary mistress to release Robert from the betrothal. Julian and Lilith start out as antagonists, at least in Lilith’s eyes, yet they cannot deny the attraction they feel towards each other. Over time, they come to discover that despite any challenges they face, they make an excellent team.

The subplot in Knaves’ Wager revolves around Robert, Brandon’s young, somewhat dim cousin and Lilith’s clever niece Miss Cecily Glenwood, who is in London for her first season. The seemingly guileless country miss sets about not only getting her chosen husband, but making sure her aunt doesn’t end up in a stuffy marriage of convenience either. It was an excellent addition which nicely complemented the main plot. 

While an early effort of Chase’s, written in the early 1990s, this novel still has great characterisations, an excellent eye for detail and wonderfully witty banter. Brandon really has his work cut out for him, wooing and charming the icy Lilith, and it’s glorious to see the calculating libertine gradually fall head over heels for the irreproachable widow. As some of Chase’s most recent novels have been rather mediocre and a bit of a disappointment, it was delightful to discover that I have more of her good work to look forward to. For anyone wanting a gateway into romance reading, you would be strongly recommended to check out Loretta Chase, but avoid her Dressmaker series, pretty much everything else she’s written is better.

© 2013 Mrs. Julien Presents

CBR4 Book 69: "Scandal Wears Satin" by Loretta Chase

Page count: 384 pages
Rating: 3.5 stars
Date begun: June 27th, 2012
Date finished: June 27th, 2012

This is the second book in Loretta Chase's Dressmaker series. The book can be read perfectly independently from the first in the series, Silk is for Seduction, although the main couple in this book are introduced in the first book in the series. This review will contain spoilers for the first book in the series, so don't read on unless you want to find out who the central couple in that book are.

Sophy Noirot is the middle of the three dressmaker sisters determined to take London society by storm with their innovative designs and wonderful creations. While her older sister is the creative genius, and her younger sister is the financial whiz, Sophy excels at marketing and sales, and could probably sell sand to Bedouins. The Noirot sisters need wealthy patrons, but the scandal they caused when Marcelline Noirot married the Duke of Clevedon is not going to be easy to live down. However, the Clevedon's former bethrothed, Lady Clara, sister to the Earl of Longmore, is still their friend, and determined to wear the Maison Noirot designs even if her mother is threatening to disown her.

But then Lady Clara is compromised in a very public place, and rather than marry the scoundrel who tricked her, runs away. Sophy needs to get her back, even if it means working with the Earl of Longmore to do it. And while his mother may hate the Noirot sisters, Longmore is extremely taken with Sophy, and determined to spend as much time with her as possible.

I love Loretta Chase, but this is one of her weaker efforts. Over the course of two novels, not one, but two dressmakers from a rather dubious background end up with extremely high ranking members of the British nobility, and I have no doubt that the youngest Noirot sister will find herself a nobleman as well in "Velvet is for Viscounts"(wonderfully coined by Mrs. Julien) or whatever the book will end up being called. Unfortunately, Marcelline and Clevedon were a much more enjoyable couple to read about. I didn't particularly care about Sophy and Longmore, and Lady Clara, who I felt a lot of sympathy for in the previous book, mainly annoyed me in this one. Still, this was by no means a bad book, it still contained a lot of the sparkling dialogue that Chase does so brilliantly, and I wasn't actually bored, but I still hope that the final volume in the trilogy is of higher quality.

CBR3 Book 53: "Silk is for Seduction" by Loretta Chase

Publisher: Avon
Page count: 384 pages
Rating: 4 stars
Date begun: July 1st, 2011
Date finished: July 3rd, 2011

Marcelline Noirot is the daughter of two notorious scoundrels and swindlers, but is determined to make an honest living as a dressmaker, aided by her two younger sisters. She runs a fashionable and fairly successful establishment, but most of the rich and noble ladies still stay loyal to her competitor. Maison Noirot could use a truly high profile client, and when rumour has it that the Duke of Clevedon is finally returning to London to propose to his best friend's sister, Marcelline decides that said high profile client will be Lady Clara, the future Duchess of Clevedon.

To secure this contract, she brings her most spectacular outfits and hunts down Clevedon in Paris. He, like every man who sees Marcelline, is instantly smitten, and is rather astonished when Marcelline doggedly pursues him not for his looks or status, but to fashion outfits for his intended bride. Having lived a life of leasure and frivolity on the Continent, Clevedon is determined not to disappoint his friends in England any longer, and having faithfully corresponded with Lady Clara throughout his European adventures, he knows that he must "come up to scratch" and propose. Once he meets Marcelline, however, he can't seem to get her out of his thoughts, and he finds that he has nothing to say in his letters to Clara.

Marcelline is charmed by the Duke, but knows that no dressmaker will get wealthy female clients if they think she steals their men. She wants a strictly professional relationship with Clevedon, and flees Paris when it is clear that he is attracted to more than the dresses she wears. When she meets Lady Clara, she likes the lady a great deal, and helps the young woman realize that she doesn't have to listen to her domineering mother in matters of fashion, or on how to live her life. Her plan to make the future Duchess the best dressed woman in London seems to be going swimmingly, until Maison Noirot burns to the ground, leaving Marcelline, her sisters and her daughter homeless.

In Silk is for Seduction Loretta Chase has the difficult task of convincing the reader that the hero and heroine getting together, possibly at the cost of a very nice third party's happiness. Lady Clara is a beautiful, smart and likable character, and it's only through very clever writing that Clevedon doesn't come across as a total cad. It's clear that Chase is also setting up Marcelline's two younger sisters (a blonde AND a redhead - Marcelline is a brunette) as heroine's in future novels. I hope Lady Clara gets her happy ending in one, as well.

CBR2 Book 73: "Last Night's Scandal" by Loretta Chase

Publisher: Avon
Page count: 384 pages
Rating: 4 stars
Date begun: August 4th, 2010
Date finished: August 4th, 2010

The hero and heroine of Last Night's Scandal first met when she was 12 and he was 14, in Loretta Chase's Lord Perfect. Ten years have passed, and Peregrine Dalmay, Earl of Lisle, has spent as much time as possible in Egypt, excavating and discovering with Rupert and Daphne Carsington (from Mr. Impossible). Now he is back in London, and his melodramatic and over-emotional parents want him to go to Scotland to restore a family property that is rumoured to be haunted. Just the thought of the dark, dank climate of Scotland fills Lisle with dread, and he has no intention of going along with their plans - he just wants to return to Egypt as soon as possible.

Miss Olivia Carsington is one of the richest girls in London, and a favoured gossip topic as she constantly seems to be doing something dramatic and has broken countless engagements. She has faithfully corresponded with Lisle for the past decade, and is delighted to see him home again, but knows that Egypt comes first in his heart, and she needs to help him outwit his parents and return there. Extremely independent and adventurous, she knows that soon she will have to settle for being some lord's wife, and all the grand adventures and quests she dreamed of as a young girl will be beyond her. She comes up with a grand scheme to put Lisle back in his parents' good graces (they threaten to cut him off entirely) and have one last adventure before she must accept the strictures of society.

With two old widows for chaperons, a small army of servants, Olivia and Lisle go to Scotland to see if they can't restore the ruined castle, get to the bottom of the hauntings, and possibly find the buried family treasure. In the five years that passed since Olivia and Lisle last met, they have both changed, and Lisle is especially shocked to realize that the freckled redhead who beat him over the head with his sketchbook the first time they met is now a stunning beauty with a very appealing figure. Despite being pretty much opposites when it comes to personality, the two old friends find themselves very attracted to each other, and try as best they can to fight the sexual tension, while bickering and sparring and nearly driving each other mad.

Loretta Chase's previous novel, Don't Tempt Me, was a great disappointment to me. She is probably my favourite romance author of all time, only rivalled by Julia Quinn, and hence my expectations to her books are very high. Last year's novel did not in any way live up to them. So when I heard that she was returning to characters I had first read about and loved in Lord Perfect, I was very excited, and I'm relieved that this book was a lot more like her other classics.

Having mentally gone through my list of her novels, this is probably my sixth favourite, but that is only because she has written some truly amazing books before - compared to almost any other romance novelist, this is an amazing book. The book is funny, and seeing how the children she first depicted have grown into adults is very rewarding. Both characters know each other so well, and love each other as friends, but also exasperate each other deeply. To see the friendship develop into romantic love is great.