Maris has always been grateful that her marriage to the aging Earl of Kelby saved her from spinsterhood. Though their union has been more peaceful than passionate, she and the earl have spent ten happy years together. But his health is quickly failing, and unless Maris produces an heir, Kelby’s conniving nephew will inherit his estate. And if the earl can’t get the job done himself, he’ll find another man who can…
Captain Reynold Durant is known for both his loyalty to the Crown and an infamous record of ribaldry. Yet despite a financial worry of his own, even he is reluctant to accept Kelby’s lascivious assignment—until he meets the beautiful, beguiling Maris. Incited by duty and desire, the captain may be just the man they are looking for. But while he skillfully takes Maris to the heights of ecstasy she has longed for, she teaches him something even more valuable and unexpected…
I ended up really enjoying this romance even though I am not terribly fond of this particular plotline. The situation always gets tricky when someone has to hire a man to get a woman pregnant but in the end, it worked very well for Maris and Reyn. One thing that really did not sit well with me though was Maris's marriage. She married a man who treated her like a daughter while she was growing up with his daughter...so that was just a bit off for me but I did see the deep caring and compassion she had for him. I also was not sure how Reyn could turn himself around because when we first meet him, Maris finds him in a most wickedly comprising position but turn around he did. I really fell for the dashing, confident, wickedly charming captain. He dealt with the awkwardness during their times together in a good way and with that, opened his heart to Maris. Maris was also a bit hard to warm up too but I really took to her in the second half of the book when she is finally free to just be herself.
So while the first half of the book was a bit slow and awkward, the second half let Maris and Reyn really discover the true force of their feelings and was very delightful. There was a nice little twist at the end that seemed to end the whole odd situation in a very positive manner and I also loved the three little epilogues They just brought a nice smile to my face to see this couple a few years in the future each time. Plenty of steam and some wonderful secondary characters in the form of Reyn's sister and her beau add to this romance. Recommended for fans of love growing out of unusual circumstances with heat, fun and no major drama. 4 stars
Review copy provided by eKensington via netgalley
The London List series
This could be read as a stand alone
July 30th
I think Maggie Robinson is not only a lovely lady, but also a great author. I’m really looking forward to reading this novel. I think it’s quite unique how her heroes are depicted as “larger than life” on the front of her novels.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing, Lisa! (I so owe you an email!) :-)
I have enjoyed all of her books as well! She is such a nice author to talk to online :) :)
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