Tessa Dare

So... the first half of this book was simply amazing. I have never laughed out loud at a book so much in my life. I was drawn in from the very first page. The banter between Piers and Charlotte is just perfect. Charlotte is also not your typical helpless little damsel. She has spunk, she's not afraid to go for things and speak her mind. I truly adore her. The aubergine and peach scene had me laughing until I cried.

HOWEVER. Things took a turn for the worst in the second half. Basically, show more after she's poisoned, Piers panics and decides he has to make her his so he can protect her. Sounds lovely, right? Well, not quite. Not when he sets her room on fire while she's in his bedroom specifically for the purpose of them having to run out and have everyone know they were together and she wasn't in her room. He basically catches her up in a scandal that everyone is aware of so that she has no choice but to end up marrying him. On purpose. Not your typical, "oh no we got caught in a lover's tryst and now we must marry" scenario. No. He intentionally took her choice away because he's "in love" (obsessed with sex) with her. It just totally killed everything for me. And the worst part? She forgives him immediately, because OF COURSE SHE DOES. That's what women do in these books. The men can do no wrong. I was so pissed I wanted to throw my kindle. I didn't want her to forgive him. I wanted her to go off on her adventure and show him that she didn't need him and she wasn't going to let him trap her like that. But of course, that's not going to happen. What a let down. Also, the stupid "mystery" is laughable. We've dealt with Edmund's little bratty rump screaming MURDER for the entire book, and them trying desperately to find out who the lovers were so they could get out of the arrangement, and the conclusion was ridiculous. Such a disappointment. I don't know that I've been this angry over a book in a while.

Also, I did not enjoy her sex scenes. Everyone talks about how amazing this author is at writing sex scenes and how spicy they are, but I didn't get that vibe. I've read much, much better smut than this.

I'm sad because I was hoping to give this 5 stars and love it, but, oh well... show less

This may be my favorite book in the series, possibly because I'd grown quite fond of Diana by the time her book came around. Her mother puts Mrs. Bennet to shame, and wants Diana married--and married WELL. Diana, on the other hand, doesn't see the appeal of titles and whatnot, but she does see the appeal of the blacksmith. And WHO WOULDN'T?! He's adorable. I was impressed with how this book addressed class differences, since that's something that seems to be missing in quite a few historicals.

This may be my favorite book in the series, possibly because I'd grown quite fond of Diana by the time her book came around. Her mother puts Mrs. Bennet to shame, and wants Diana married--and married WELL. Diana, on the other hand, doesn't see the appeal of titles and whatnot, but she does see the appeal of the blacksmith. And WHO WOULDN'T?! He's adorable. I was impressed with how this book addressed class differences, since that's something that seems to be missing in quite a few historicals.

This was my first book by Tessa Dare, but definitely not the last. I despise spineless heroines so I'm very pleased to add Izzy to my list of strong female leads! Despite her rather precarious situation she maintains such a positive outlook, never falling into the "poor me" routine and never losing her ability to be kind to everyone around her. She also refuses to kowtow when our hero, Ransom, the Duke of Northbury, gets surly...which is most of the time. This leads to extremely funny show more dialogue between the two throughout the book. Her quick wit nearly drove our hero mad.

Ransom is a tortured soul and a rather interesting character who has withdrawn from society after suffering a devastating injury. As circumstances push the couple into closer proximity, he finds himself caught between his growing feelings and desires for Izzy and his initial plan to maintain his solitude by ousting her from his castle. He was so "gloriously grumpy" that I couldn't help but like him!

Even if romance isn't really your thing, you should at least give this a try. There is so much more to the story than the romance. It's a wonderfully satisfying story with a strong foundation that will keep you laughing through the pages!

As for me, I'll definitely be moving on to book two! show less