by Meredith DuranPublisher: Pocket Star
Release Date: June 28, 2011
Source: sent by publisher
My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Summary from goodreads.com:
IN GRITTY, WORKING-CLASS LONDON, SHE DOES WHAT SHE MUST TO SURVIVE...
When Nell Whitby breaks into an earl's house on a midnight quest for revenge, she finds her pistol pointed at the wrong man—one handsome as sin and naked as the day he was born. Pity he's a lunatic. He thinks her a missing heiress, but more to the point, he'll help her escape the slums and right a grave injustice. Not a bad bargain. All she has to do is marry him.
A NOTORIOUS LADIES' MAN COULD TAKE HER FROM POVERTY TO OPULENCE... BUT AT WHAT PRICE?
A rake of the first order, Simon St. Maur spent his restless youth burning every bridge he crossed. When he inherits an earldom without a single penny attached to it, he sees a chance to start over—provided he can find an heiress to fund his efforts. But his wicked reputation means courtship will be difficult—until fate sends him the most notorious missing heiress in history. All he needs now is to make her into a lady and keep himself from making the only mistake that could ruin everything: falling in love....
My Review:
At first this book seemed like it was just another rags to riches tale with very little romance. But once the hero and heroine started to fall in love, this story flew off the charts! The romance was so intense, and there were so many obstacles for this couple to overcome, I couldn't turn the pages fast enough.
I really liked Simon, he was more complex than some heroes are in historical romances. He wasn't a stereotype at all, and he didn't always make the most flawless decisions. All of this made his character much more believable.
Nell's gutter-snipe slang was a little over the top at first. And I felt like her "street urchin becomes heiress" tale was taking over the story instead of letting the romance have center stage. But towards the end, I had to cut her some slack because her future was in a really precarious position.
I love the almost melodramatic tone of the romance. Their all-consuming love is over the top but it works so well in Duran's writing style, I couldn't get enough.
Main Characters: 5/5
Supporting Characters: 4/5
Setting: 4/5
Romance: 5/5
Uniqueness: 4/5
Cover: 5/5
Writing: 4/5
Bottom Line: This is an intense, brooding story of true love winning out in spite of money or class differences.
I agree that the gutter-snipe thing was a bit much, but oh my gosh I loved this book too! I think what I liked so much is that they fell in love pretty quickly but also believably. They had this relationship where they came to depend on and trust each other quickly and there was no deception between them. And I loved the story with the sister, though I thought Nell forgave her a bit too easily at the end. Katherine needs to grovel significantly more, IMHO. Great book, great review! ;)
ReplyDeleteSo pretty! Can i have the cover :D
ReplyDeleteThe premise does sound cool too and I am glad it works
Sarah, I'm glad you loved it too! I didn't mention Katherine in the review but I liked her character a lot too. I loved that all the characters were so complex, and not one sided at all.
ReplyDeleteBlodeuedd, I know, I love this cover. It's really one of the prettiest I've seen for awhile.
First of all, gorgeous cover! Second, I love your review and ratings. This definitely seems like a book I'd like to read.
ReplyDeleteThis was one of the books I bought at the Border's going out of business sale. I loved the cover and was really surprised at how much I liked the story. Nice review. :-)
ReplyDeleteDefinitely picking this one up. I love the concept and I'm glad to hear that you enjoyed the author's writing.
ReplyDeleteI love that cover. It really stands out from other historical romance novels. It sounds fantastic and something I would read. I don't think I've read many of the rags to riches stories so this would be fresh for me.
ReplyDeleteGreat review! I’ve heard so many wonderful things about this author. I’ve got to check her out.
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