Genre: Historical Romance
Bottom Line: A romance with a bit of a gothic feel to it. A good storyline, but the relationship between the hero and heroine seemed to rely too much on sexual attraction.
Synopsis (Goodreads):
"I am many things," Lord Sheene said. "Kind is not one of them."
Beautiful Grace Paget has no reason not to believe these words. After all, she was kidnapped, spirited away to a remote country manor, and told she is to grant this man his every desire . . . or lose her life. But Grace is no common trollop. So she risks everything to save her virtue by planning a daring escape, even though she finds herself tempted by this handsome man. There is something in his eyes that makes her wonder if he is as dangerous as he would have her believe.
Sheene knew nothing of the plan to bring him this woman. Locked up as a prisoner, called "mad" by all of the world, he will do anything to reclaim his life, and Grace's sensuous beauty has distracted him from his goals. And although he finds her irresistible, he is horrified to hold her against her will. Now, together, they must both revolt against the strange set of circumstances that have forced them together—for only then will Grace truly surrender to him . . . forever.
My Thoughts:
This book put me in an odd position when I was trying to figure out how I felt about it. I think if this had been one of the first historical romances I had read, I would have really liked it. However, after reading a lot of similar novels, the plot fell a little flat for me. Campbell certainly has a way of creating very dark, cruel antagonists. Sheene's uncle, Lord John, and his servants are truly evil in this story. Lord John has locked Sheene up for the majority of his life. When Grace is imprisoned with Sheene, they find they are connected by a need to be free of Lord John's threatening presence.
This is a very dark romance with plenty of death threats and nasty, violent thugs. The romance that blooms between Grace and Sheene is the only light part of the story. While the passion between them was quite enjoyable to read, I felt like their attraction was shown almost entirely through sex. When they weren't having sex, they were thinking about having sex. Honestly, I realize there's not much to do when you're imprisoned on an estate together, but the middle third of the story was basically exploring their physical attraction to each other. I did enjoy the overall plot, as dark and fanciful as it was, and it was a nice, quick read. However, I would have enjoyed if there was a bit more substance to Grace and Sheene's relationship.
Find it on: Amazon | Goodreads | Anna Campbell
This book put me in an odd position when I was trying to figure out how I felt about it. I think if this had been one of the first historical romances I had read, I would have really liked it. However, after reading a lot of similar novels, the plot fell a little flat for me. Campbell certainly has a way of creating very dark, cruel antagonists. Sheene's uncle, Lord John, and his servants are truly evil in this story. Lord John has locked Sheene up for the majority of his life. When Grace is imprisoned with Sheene, they find they are connected by a need to be free of Lord John's threatening presence.
This is a very dark romance with plenty of death threats and nasty, violent thugs. The romance that blooms between Grace and Sheene is the only light part of the story. While the passion between them was quite enjoyable to read, I felt like their attraction was shown almost entirely through sex. When they weren't having sex, they were thinking about having sex. Honestly, I realize there's not much to do when you're imprisoned on an estate together, but the middle third of the story was basically exploring their physical attraction to each other. I did enjoy the overall plot, as dark and fanciful as it was, and it was a nice, quick read. However, I would have enjoyed if there was a bit more substance to Grace and Sheene's relationship.
Find it on: Amazon | Goodreads | Anna Campbell
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