Mary Jo Putney
Author of The Rake
About the Author
Romance writer Mary Jo Putney was born in New York and graduated from Syracuse University with degrees in English literature and Industrial design. She served as the art editor of The New Internationalist magazine in London and worked as a designer in California before settling in Baltimore, show more Maryland in 1980 to run her own freelance graphic design business Her first novel was a traditional Regency romance, which sold in one week. Signet liked the novel so much that it offered Putney a three-book contract. In 1987 that first novel, The Diabolical Baron, was published. Since then, she has published more than twenty-nine books. Her books have been ranked on the national bestseller lists of the New York Times, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly. Most of her books have been historical romance. She has also begun writing fantasy romance and romantic fantasy. Putney has won the Romance Writers of America RITA Award twice, for Dancing on the Wind and The Rake and the Reformer and has been a RITA finalist nine times. She is on the Romance Writers of America Honor Roll for bestselling authors, and has been awarded two Romantic Times Career Achievement Awards and four Golden Leaf Awards. Her titles include: Dark Mirror, Dark Passage, No Longer a Gentleman, Never Less than a Lady, and Nowhere Near Respectable. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Disambiguation Notice:
Mary Jo Putney has also published fantasy romance novels as M.J. Putney.
Image credit: Franco
Series
Works by Mary Jo Putney
A Regency Christmas II [1990: Playing House/ Three Kings/ Sunshine for Christmas/ Last Wish/ Christmas Star] (1990) — Contributor — 101 copies
A Regency Christmas III [1991: Mistletoe and Folly/ Christmas Cuckoo/ Best Christmas Ever/ Home for Christmas/ Dark… (1991) — Contributor — 90 copies
A Regency Christmas IV [1992: Porcelain Madonna/ Christmas Rose/ Seasonal Stratagem/ Best Gift of All/ Christmas Tart] (1992) — Contributor — 88 copies
Bride by Arrangement (Wedding of the Century / Mismatched Hearts / My Darling Echo) (2000) 63 copies
Promised Brides (The Wedding of the Century / Jesse's Wife / The Handfast) (1994) — Contributor — 58 copies
The Wedding of the Century & Other Stories (The Wedding of the Century / Jesse's Wife / Seduced by Starlight) (2011) 51 copies
Amar Um Homem Perdido 3 copies
Mad, Bad, and Dangerous to Know 2 copies
The Demon Dancer 2 copies
O IUBIRE IMPOSIBILA 1 copy
Die Reise nach Neapel 1 copy
Magie indepartata 1 copy
UMBRELE TRECUTULUI 1 copy
O IUBIRE IMPOSIBILA VOL 2 1 copy
MIREASA DIN CHINA 1 copy
O NOUA VIATA 1 copy
Shining On 1 copy
Il demone danzante 1 copy
Lost Girls 1 copy
Promesse 1 copy
Associated Works
Dangerous Men and Adventurous Women: Romance Writers on the Appeal of the Romance (1992) — Contributor — 212 copies
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Other names
- Putney, M. J.
- Gender
- female
- Nationality
- USA
- Birthplace
- New York, USA
- Places of residence
- Baltimore, Maryland, USA
- Education
- Syracuse University (English Literature, Industrial Design)
- Relationships
- Word Wenches (writers collective)
- Awards and honors
- Romance Writers of America (Honor Roll)
Romantic Times Career Achievement Award
AAR Annual Reader Poll (Favorite New Discovery, 1997)
AAR Annual Reader Poll (Author Most Glommed, 1997) - Disambiguation notice
- Mary Jo Putney has also published fantasy romance novels as M.J. Putney.
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Found: YA Novel with Timetravel in Name that Book (September 2021)
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Statistics
- Works
- 107
- Also by
- 15
- Members
- 13,578
- Popularity
- #1,707
- Rating
- 3.7
- Reviews
- 466
- ISBNs
- 595
- Languages
- 12
- Favorited
- 22
- Touchstones
- 185
The book opens with Lord and Lady Tremayne discovering two young boys hiding in an alley in London. Their families had rejected Bran and Cade because they exhibited strange abilities. Taken in and raised by the Tremaynes, who also possess similar abilities, Bran and Cade learned to control and use their gifts for good. Both now work for the Home Office, doing what they can to protect their country. Bran's gifts lean towards investigation and being able to connect events to form an accurate picture of looming trouble.
Bran is shocked to return home one day and find a lawyer from Cornwall wanting to see him. It appears that the father who rejected him so cruelly years earlier now needs to find the only son he has left. Bran is not interested in Penhaligon's title, lands, or fortune, but his intuition tells him he must go to Cornwall. With another war with France looming, the Cornwall coast is a prime location for smugglers and spies.
Bran's arrival in Cornwall is just as awkward as he expected. While his mother and sister are welcoming and kind, his father is as dismissive and arrogant as Bran remembered. I loved Bran's ability to keep his cool, which riled his father more. Additionally, Bran feels a growing sense of danger as he spends time in the village and meets various people. There is also a sense that something else has drawn him there, but he doesn't yet know what it is.
Meanwhile, we meet a young woman simply called "Girl." She is being held captive by two people who appear to have nefarious intentions. One of her captors, Starling, has a gift for putting a mind block on Girl, keeping her subdued. But Girl has retained enough of a sense of self that she knows she must escape. I loved seeing her determination and how she worked to regain some of her control, eventually taking advantage of an opportunity to escape. My heart pounded as I followed her flight and how it led her straight to Bran.
I loved how Bran immediately recognized that Girl (who he calls Lady) is gifted. His protectiveness, patience, and kindness were balm to her soul as he helped her recover from her ordeal. The sparks between them are immediately noticeable. Bran has his work cut out to remember he's an honorable man, especially as she begins to recover her memories, such as her name, Merryn. There are some terrific scenes of them together as they get to know each other. Bran sends for Cade and his sister, Tamsyn, a healer, to help investigate the sense of danger and help Merryn. Seeing Bran struggle to resist Merryn's wiles while awaiting her complete recovery was fun. I especially enjoyed watching Bran attempt to explain the depth and reality of their connection to Merryn. The ending was great, and the epilogue was a perfect wrap-up for the book.
As the four of them delve deeper into the danger they feel, the twists and turns of discoveries and revelations kept them (and me) guessing about where and how the trouble would occur. Just when I thought I had it figured out, something would happen to complicate the situation. I never expected the particular gift that made Merryn so vital to the bad guys' plans and the danger it put her in. I was glued to the pages as everything came together, and they raced to prevent disaster. The resolution was well done.
The secondary characters were terrific and added extra depth to the story. I like the relationship between Cade and Bran, who have maintained their closeness into adulthood. Their love and respect for each other is evident throughout the book. I enjoyed seeing Cade confront part of his past. The surprise he discovered showed a little-known side of him, and I look forward to the possibility of seeing more of it. I loved their sister, Tamsyn, one of the three biological children of the Tremaynes. She is strong, independent, and gifted, and loves her family. The interactions between her and her brothers were fun. It was also evident that they respected her intelligence and abilities. I suspect that Cade and she will be the subjects of the next books in the series.
A secondary romance was going on between Bran's Penhaligon sister, Glynis, and the estate's lawyer, Matthew Davey. Her father forbids it, but she and Matthew find ways to be together. Matthew was a terrific man who loved her but wouldn't do anything that could hurt her. I liked Matthew's friendship with Bran and his willingness to assist with their investigations. Glynis was initially sweet and quiet, but her genuine personality began to show through as the book progressed. I loved her burgeoning friendship with Merryn and Tamsyn. I loved the twist at the end.
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