Lawson’s review of To Desire a Devil (Legend of the Four Soliders) by Elizabeth Hoyt
Historical romance released by Vision 1 Nov 09

Hoyt’s Legend of the Four Soldiers ends circling back to the beginning a little with the St. Aubyn family. Emeline’s brother who has been thought dead for seven years has appeared in London. Reynaud’s arrival is a shock to many, including the uncle that took over his title. Those that have been waiting for the revelation of the traitor of the 28th Foot at Spinner’s Falls will get that story resolved as well as see the happy endings of all those of the series so far.

When Reynaud St. Aubyn interrupts a political tea in his father’s town house, he really doesn’t know what’s going on. He’s feverish and happy to have made it back to London after seven years of captivity among a tribe in North America. After several days of recovery, he comes to know the niece of his uncle, the new Earl, Beatrice Corning, who has been caring for him.

Beatrice has been fascinated by Reynaud for years. She’s started for many hours many nights at his portrait, painted just before he went to the colonies. The real man is much more fascinating, dark, mysterious and damaged from his captivity. He’s also driven to reach the goal he’s had for the last seven years, which is to do anything to regain all that he’s lost. His title, lands, money and family. Unfortunately his uncle is attempting to prove his insanity to keep the title.

Placed in the middle and forced to make a choice, Beatrice works for her own ends trying to get a bill passed that would provide for veterans. Reynaud tries to get Beatrice on his side so that he doesn’t look insane and he can regain his title. The traitor works to cover his tracks so he won’t hang for his decisions.

Beatrice is a sweet, strong heroine, but she never seemed fully fleshed out. She’s devoted her life to helping her uncle, but she doesn’t agree with his political leanings. She devotes quite a bit of time to her friend Jeremy, who came home from the war horribly scarred. She spends time with her friend Lottie, who has some troubles with her marriage, which disillusions Beatrices towards love and marriage. While there are many facets to her personality, as a character, she seems a bit flat.

Reynaud is about the same. He sets out to use Beatrice and claim her as his own, but there isn’t much emotion involved in either decision. His focus is on the goal of regaining his life and damn anyone who wants to get in his way. He does get drawn into the search for the traitor by Vale, but that feeds is ultimate goals rather than is something that he feels he should do.

The story does have some interesting points, but they are just blips on the radar that get a bit overwhelmed by the somewhat interesting, but unfortunately flat characters of Beatrice and Reynaud. The other thing is Hoyt’s use of a fairy tale to open each chapter. While somewhat entertaining and showing a different side to the characters, the fairy tale, in the end, just distracts from the story. From the excerpt at the end of the book, it appears Hoyt will continue the use of fairy tales in the next series. While a concept that sets her apart from other writers, the fairy tales are almost like a schtick and don’t help the main story as they did in Hoyt’s first series.

Grade: C-

NOTHING IS MORE INTOXICATING-
Reynaud St. Aubyn has spent the last seven years in hellish captivity. Now half mad with fever he bursts into his ancestral home and demands his due. Can this wild-looking man truly be the last earl’s heir, thought murdered by Indians years ago?

OR DANGEROUS-
Beatrice Corning, the niece of the present earl, is a proper English miss. But she has a secret: No real man has ever excited her more than the handsome youth in the portrait in her uncle’s home. Suddenly, that very man is here, in the flesh-and luring her into his bed.

THAN SURRENDERING TO A DEVIL.
Only Beatrice can see past Reynaud’s savagery to the noble man inside. For his part, Reynaud is drawn to this lovely lady, even as he is suspicious of her loyalty to her uncle. But can Beatrice’s love tame a man who will stop at nothing to regain his title-even if it means sacrificing her innocence?

Read an excerpt

Elizabeth Hoyt fans have patiently and anxiously awaited the release of her latest book in her Legends of the Four Soldiers series. To Desire a Devil hit the shelves just yesterday, but if you don’t have your copy yet,  then you need to take a few minutes to read an excerpt.  This one just might be the best of the series yet.

NOTHING IS MORE INTOXICATING—

Reynaud St. Aubyn has spent the last seven years in hellish captivity. Now half mad with fever he bursts into his ancestral home and demands his due. Can this wild-looking man truly be the last earl’s heir, thought murdered by Indians years ago?

OR DANGEROUS—

Beatrice Corning, the niece of the present earl, is a proper English miss. But she has a secret: No real man has ever excited her more than the handsome youth in the portrait in her uncle’s home. Suddenly, that very man is here, in the flesh—and luring her into his bed.

THAN SURRENDERING TO A DEVIL.

Only Beatrice can see past Reynaud’s savagery to the noble man inside. For his part, Reynaud is drawn to this lovely lady, even as he is suspicious of her loyalty to her uncle. But can Beatrice’s love tame a man who will stop at nothing to regain his title—even if it means sacrificing her innocence?

So grab a cup of coffee, a Pepsi, whatever you’ll need because I didn’t cut anything out in giving you a look at Elizabeth’s new book. It’s going to take that few minutes and then some, but will it be worth it!

London, England
October 1765

Few events are as boring as a political tea. The hostess of such a social affair is often wildly desirous for something—anything—to occur at her party so as to make it more exciting.

Although, perhaps a dead man staggering into the tea was a little too exciting, Beatrice Corning reflected later.

Up until the dead-man-staggering-in bit, things had gone as usual with the tea party. Which was to say it was crashingly dull. Beatrice had chosen the blue salon, which was, unsurprisingly, blue. A quiet, restful, dull blue. White pilasters lined the walls, rising to the ceiling with discreet little curlicues at their tops. Tables and chairs were scattered here and there, and an oval table stood at the center of the room with a vase of late Michaelmas daisies. The refreshments included thinly sliced bread with butter and small, pale pink cakes. Beatrice had argued for the inclusion of raspberry tarts, thinking that they at least might be colorful, but Uncle Reggie—the Earl of Blanchard to everyone else—had balked at the idea.

Beatrice sighed. Uncle Reggie was an old darling, but he did like to pinch pennies. Which was also why the wine had been watered down to an anemic rose color, and the tea was so weak one could make out the tiny blue pagoda at the bottom of each teacup. She glanced across the room to where her uncle stood, his plump bandy legs braced and hands on hips, arguing heatedly with Lord Hasselthorpe. At least he wasn’t sampling the cakes, and she’d watched carefully to make sure his wineglass was filled only once. The force of Uncle Reggie’s ire had made his wig slip askew. Beatrice felt a fond smile tug at her lips. Oh, dear. She gestured to one of the footmen, gave him her plate, and began slowly winding her way across the room to put her uncle to rights.

Only, a quarter of the way to her goal she was stopped by a light touch at her elbow and a conspiratorial whisper. “Don’t look now, but His Grace is performing his famous imitation of an angry codfish.”

Beatrice turned and looked into twinkling sherry-brown eyes. Lottie Graham was only a smidgen over five feet, plump, and dark-haired, and the innocence of her round, freckled face was entirely belied by the sharpness of her wit.

“He isn’t,” Beatrice murmured, and then winced as she casually glanced over. Lottie was quite correct, as usual—the Duke of Lister did indeed look like an enraged fish. “Besides, what does a codfish have to get angry about anyway?”

“Exactly,” Lottie replied, as if having made her point. “I don’t like that man—I never have—and that’s entirely aside from his politics.”

“Shh,” Beatrice hissed. They stood by themselves, but there were several groups of gentlemen nearby who could overhear if they’d wished. Since every man in the room was a staunch Tory, it behooved the ladies to hide their Whig leanings.

“Oh, pish, Beatrice, dear,” Lottie said. “Even if one of these fine learned gentlemen heard what I’m saying, none of them have the imagination to realize we might have a thought or two in our pretty heads–especially if that thought doesn’t agree with theirs.”

“Not even Mr. Graham?”

Both ladies turned to look at a handsome young man in a snowy white wig in the corner of the room. His cheeks were pink, his eyes bright, and he stood straight and strong as he regaled the men about him with a story.

“Especially not Nate,” Lottie said, frowning at her husband.

Beatrice tilted her head toward her friend. “But I thought you were making headway in bringing him to our side?”

“I was mistaken,” Lottie said lightly. “Where the other Tories go, there goest Nate as well, whether he agrees with their views or no. He’s as steadfast as a titmouse in a high wind. No, I’m very much afraid he’ll be voting against Mr. Wheaton’s bill to provide for retired soldiers of His Majesty’s army.”

Beatrice bit her lip. Lottie’s tone was nearly flippant, but she knew the other woman was disappointed. “I’m sorry.”

Lottie shrugged one shoulder. “It’s strange, but I find myself more disillusioned by a husband who has such easily persuaded views than I would be by one whose views were entirely opposite but passionately held. Isn’t that quixotic of me?”

“No, it only shows your own strong feeling.” Beatrice linked her arm with Lottie’s. “Besides, I wouldn’t give up on Mr. Graham yet. He does love you, you know.”

“Oh, I do know.” Lottie examined a tray of pink cakes on the nearby table. “That’s what makes the whole thing so very tragic.” She popped a cake into her mouth. “Mmm. These are much better than they look.”

“Lottie!” Beatrice protested, half laughing.

“Well, it’s true. They’re such proper little Tory cakes that I’d've thought they’d taste like dust, but they have a lovely hint of rose.” She took another cake and ate it. “You realize that Lord Blanchard’s wig is crooked, don’t you?”

“Yes.” Beatrice sighed. “I was on my way to setting it right when you waylaid me.”

“Mmm. You’ll have to brave Old Fishy, then.”

Beatrice saw that the Duke of Lister had joined her uncle and Lord Hasselthorpe. “Lovely. But I still need to save poor Uncle Reggie’s wig.”

“You courageous soul, you,” Lottie said. “I’ll stay here and guard the cakes.”
“Coward,” Beatrice murmured.
She had a smile on her lips as she started again for her uncle’s circle. Lottie was right, of course. The gentlemen who gathered in her uncle’s salon were the leading lights of the Tory Party. Most sat in the House of Lords, but there were commoners here as well, such as Nathan Graham. They would all be outraged if they found out that she held any political thoughts at all, let alone ones that ran counter to her uncle’s. Generally she kept these thoughts to herself, but the matter of a fair pension for veteran soldiers was too important an issue to neglect. Beatrice had seen firsthand what a war wound could do to a man—and how it might affect him for years after he left His Majesty’s army. No, it was simply—

The door to the blue salon was flung savagely open, cracking against the wall. Every head in the room swiveled to look at the man who stood there. He was tall, with impossibly wide shoulders that filled the doorway. He wore some type of dull leather leggings and shirt under a bright blue coat. Long black hair straggled wildly down his back, and an overgrown beard nearly covered his gaunt cheeks. An iron cross dangled from one ear, and an enormous unsheathed knife hung from a string at his waist.

He had the eyes of a man long dead.

“Who the hell’re—” Uncle Reggie began.

But the man spoke over him, his voice deep and rusty. “Où est mon père?”

He was staring right at Beatrice, as if no one else in the room existed. She was frozen, mesmerized and confused, one hand on the oval table. It couldn’t be . . .

He started for her, his stride firm, arrogant, and impatient. “J’insiste sur le fait de voir mon père!”

“I . . . I don’t know where your father is,” Beatrice stuttered. His long stride was eating up the space between them. He was almost to her. No one was doing anything, and she’d forgotten all her schoolroom French. “Please, I don’t know—”

But he was already on her, his big, rough hands reaching for her. Beatrice flinched; she couldn’t help it. It was as if the devil himself had come for her, here in her own home, at this boring tea of all places.

And then he staggered. One brown hand grasped the table as if to steady himself, but the little table wasn’t up for the task. He took it with him as he collapsed to his knees. The vase of flowers crashed to the floor beside him in a mess of petals, water, and glass shards. His angry gaze was still locked with hers, even as he sank to the carpet. Then his black eyes rolled back in his head, and he fell over.

Someone screamed.

“Good God! Beatrice, are you all right, my dear? Where in blazes is my butler?”

Beatrice heard Uncle Reggie behind her, but she was already on her knees beside the fallen man, unmindful of the spilled water from the vase. Hesitantly, she touched his lips and felt the brush of his breath. Still alive, then. Thank God! She took his heavy head between her palms and placed it on her lap so that she might look at his face more closely.

She caught her breath.

The man had been tattooed. Three stylized birds of prey flew about his right eye, savage and wild. His commanding black eyes were closed, but his brows were heavy and slightly knit as if he disapproved of her even when unconscious. His beard was untrimmed and at least two inches long, but she made out the mouth beneath, incongruously elegant. The lips were firm, the upper one a wide, sensuous bow.

“My dear, please move away from that . . . that thing,” Uncle Reggie said. He had his hand on her arm, urging her to get up. “The footmen can’t remove him from the house until you move.”

“They can’t take him,” Beatrice said, still staring at the impossible face.

“My dear girl . . .”

She looked up. Uncle Reggie was such a darling, even when red-faced with impatience. This might very well kill him. And her—what did this mean for her? “It’s Viscount Hope.”

Uncle Reggie blinked. “What?”

“Viscount Hope.”

And they both turned to look at the portrait near the door. It was of a young, handsome man, the former heir to the earldom. The man whose death had made it possible for Uncle Reggie to become the Earl of Blanchard.

Black, heavy-lidded eyes stared from the portrait.

She looked back down at the living man. Though his eyes were closed, she remembered them well. Black, angry, and glittering, they were identical to the eyes in the portrait.

Beatrice’s heart froze in wonder.

Reynaud St. Aubyn, Viscount Hope, the true Earl of Blanchard, was alive.

###

Richard Maddock, Lord Hasselthorpe, watched as the Earl of Blanchard’s footmen lifted the unconscious lunatic from where he’d collapsed on the floor of the sitting room. How the man had gotten past the butler and footmen in the hall was anyone’s guess. The earl should take better care of his guests—the room was filled with the Tory elite, for God’s sake.

“Damned idiot,” the Duke of Lister growled beside him, putting voice to his own thoughts. “Blanchard should’ve hired extra guards if the house wasn’t safe.”

Hasselthorpe grunted, sipping his abominably watered-down wine. The footmen were almost to the door now, obviously laboring under the weight of the savage madman. The earl and his niece were trailing the footmen, speaking in low tones. Blanchard darted a glance at him, and Hasselthorpe raised a disapproving eyebrow. The earl looked hastily away. Blanchard might be higher in rank, but Hasselthorpe’s political influence was greater—a fact that Hasselthorpe usually took care to use lightly. Blanchard was, along with the Duke of Lister, his greatest ally in Parliament. Hasselthorpe had his eye on the prime minister’s seat, and with the backing of Lister and Blanchard, he hoped to make it within the next year.

If all went according to his plans.

The little procession exited the room and, Hasselthorpe returned his gaze to the guests, frowning slightly. The people nearest to where the man had fallen were in small knots, talking in low, excited murmurs. Something was afoot. One could watch the ripple of some news spreading outward through the crowd. As it reached each new knot of gentlemen, eyebrows shot up and bewigged heads leaned close together.

Young Nathan Graham was in a gossiping group nearby. Graham was newly elected to the House of Commons, an ambitious man with the wealth to back his aspiration and the makings of a great orator. He was a young man to watch and perhaps groom for one’s own use.

Graham broke away from the circle and strode to where Hasselthorpe and Lister stood in a corner of the room. “They say it’s Viscount Hope.”

Hasselthorpe blinked, confused. “Who?”

“That man!” Graham gestured to the spot where a maid was cleaning up the broken vase.

Hasselthorpe’s mind momentarily froze in shock.

“Impossible,” Lister growled. “Hope has been dead for seven years.”

“Why would they think it’s Hope?” Hasselthorpe asked quietly.

Graham shrugged. “There was a resemblance, sir. I was close enough to study the man’s face when he burst into the room. The eyes are . . . well, the only word is extraordinary.”

“Eyes, extraordinary or not, are hardly proof enough to resurrect a dead man,” Lister stated.

Lister had cause to speak with flat authority. He was a big man, tall with a sloping belly, and he had an undeniable presence. Lister was also one of the most powerful men in England. It was natural, then, that when he spoke, men took care to listen.

“Yes, Your Grace.” Graham gave a small bow to the duke. “But he was asking after his father.”

Graham had no need to add and they stood in the Earl of Blanchard’s London residence.

“Ridiculous.” Lister hesitated, then said, lower, “If it is Hope, Blanchard’s just lost his title.”

He looked significantly at Hasselthorpe. If Blanchard lost the title, he would no longer sit in the House of Lords. They’d lose a crucial ally.

Hasselthorpe frowned, turning to the life-sized portrait hanging by the door. Hope had been a young man, perhaps only in his twentieth year, when he’d sat for it. The painting depicted a laughing youth, pink and white cheeks unblemished, black eyes merry and clear. If the madman had been Hope, he’d suffered a sea change of monumental proportions.

Hasselthorpe turned back to the other men and smiled grimly. “A lunatic cannot unseat Blanchard. And in any case, no one has proved he’s Hope. There is no cause for alarm.”

Hasselthorpe sipped his wine, outwardly cool and composed, while inside he acknowledged the unfinished end to his sentence.

There was no cause for alarm . . . yet.

###

It had taken four footmen to lift Viscount Hope, and even now they staggered under his weight. Beatrice watched the men carefully as she and her uncle trailed behind them, worried they might let him fall. She’d persuaded Uncle Reggie to take the unconscious man to an unused bedroom, although her uncle had been far from happy with the matter. Uncle Reggie had initially been of a mind to toss him into the street. She took a more cautious view, not only from Christian charity, but also from the niggling worry that if this was Lord Hope, they’d hardly help their case by throwing him out.

The footmen staggered into the hall with their burden. Hope was thinner than in his portrait, but he was still a very tall man—over six feet, Beatrice estimated. She shivered. Fortunately, he’d not regained consciousness after glaring at her so evilly. Otherwise she wasn’t sure they would’ve been able to move him at all.

“Viscount Hope is dead,” Uncle Reggie muttered as he trotted beside her. He didn’t sound as if he believed his protest himself. “Dead these seven years!”

“Please, Uncle, don’t let your temper fly,” Beatrice said anxiously. He hated being reminded of it, but Uncle Reggie had had an attack of apoplexy just last month—an attack that had absolutely terrified her. “Remember what the doctor said.”

“Oh, pshaw! I’m as fit as a fiddle despite what that quack thinks,” Uncle Reggie said stoutly. “I know you have a soft heart, m’dear, but this can’t be Hope. Three men swore they saw him die, murdered by those savages in the American Colonies. One of them was Viscount Vale, his friend since childhood!”

“Well, they were obviously wrong,” Beatrice murmured. She frowned as the panting footmen mounted the wide dark oak stairs ahead of them. The bedrooms were all on the town house’s third floor. “Mind his head!”

“Yes, miss,” George, the eldest footman, replied.

“If that is Hope, then he’s lost his mind,” Uncle Reggie huffed as they made the upper hall. “He was raving in French, of all things. About his father! And I know absolutely that the last earl died five years ago. Attended his funeral m’self. You’ll not convince me the old earl’s alive, too.”

“Yes, Uncle,” Beatrice replied. “But I don’t believe the viscount knows his father is dead.”

She felt a pang for the unconscious man. Where had Lord Hope been all these years? How had he gotten those strange tattoos? And why didn’t he know his father was dead? Dear God, maybe her uncle was right. Maybe the viscount’s mind was broken.

Uncle Reggie gave voice to her awful thoughts. “The man is insane; that’s clear. Raving. Attacking you. I say, shouldn’t you lie down, m’dear? I can send for some of those lemon sweets you like so much, damn the cost.”

“That’s very kind of you, Uncle, but he didn’t get close enough to lay a hand on me,” Beatrice murmured.

“Wasn’t for lack of trying!”

Uncle Reggie stared disapprovingly as the footmen bore the viscount into the scarlet bedroom. It was only the second nicest guest bedroom, and for a moment Beatrice had a pang of doubt. If this was Viscount Hope, then surely he merited the first nicest guest bedroom? Or was the point moot since if he was Lord Hope, then he really ought to be in the earl’s bedroom, which, of course, Uncle Reggie slept in? Beatrice shook her head. The whole thing was too complicated for words, and, in any case, the scarlet bedroom would have to do for now.

“The man ought to be in a madhouse,” Uncle Reggie was saying. “Might murder us all in our sleep when he wakes. If he wakes.”

“I doubt he’ll do any such thing,” Beatrice said firmly, ignoring both her uncle’s hopeful tone in his last words and her own uneasiness. “Surely it’s only the fever. He was burning up when I touched his face.”

“S’pose I’ll have to send for a physician.” Uncle Reggie scowled at Lord Hope. “And pay for it m’self.”

“It would be the Christian thing to do,” Beatrice murmured. She watched anxiously as the footmen lowered Hope to the bed. He hadn’t moved or made a sound since his collapse. Was he dying?

Uncle Reggie grunted. “And I’ll have to explain this to my guests somehow. Bound to be gossiping about it this very moment. We’ll be the talk of the town, take my word.”

“Yes, Uncle,” Beatrice said soothingly. “I can supervise here if you wish to attend to our guests.”

“Don’t take too long, and don’t get too close to the blighter. No telling what he might do if he wakes.” Uncle Reggie glared at the unconscious man before stumping out of the room.

“I won’t.” Beatrice turned to the waiting footmen. “George, please see that a physician is called in case the earl becomes distracted and forgets the matter.” Or thinks better of the cost, she mentally added.

“Yes, miss.” George started for the door.

“Oh, and send Mrs. Callahan up, will you, George?” Beatrice frowned at the pale, bearded man on the bed. He was moving restlessly, as if he might be waking. “Mrs. Callahan always seems to know what to do.”

“Yes, miss.” George hurried from the room.

Beatrice looked at the remaining three footmen. “One of you needs to go tell Cook to warm some water, brandy, and—”

But at that moment, Hope’s black eyes flew open. The movement was so sudden, his glare so intense, that Beatrice squeaked like a ninny and jumped back. She straightened and, feeling a little embarrassed of her missishness, hurried forward as Lord Hope began to rise.

“No, no, my lord! You must remain in bed. You’re ill.” She touched his shoulder, lightly but firmly pushing him back.

And suddenly she was seized by a whirlwind. Lord Hope violently grabbed her, shoved her down on the bed, and fell atop her. He might be thin, but Beatrice felt as if a sack of bricks had landed on her chest. She gasped for air and looked up into black eyes glaring at her malevolently from only inches away. He was so close she could count each individual sooty eyelash.

So close she felt the painful press of that horrid knife in her side.

She tried to press her hand against his chest–she couldn’t breathe!–but he caught it, crushing it in his own as he growled, “J’insiste sur le fait—”

He was cut off as Henry, one of the footmen, bashed him over the head with a bed warmer. Lord Hope slumped, his heavy head thumping onto Beatrice’s breast. For a moment she was in fear of suffocating altogether. Then Henry pulled him off her. She took a shuddering breath and stood on shaky legs, turning to look at her unconscious patient in the bed. His head lolled, his piercing black eyes veiled now. Would he have really hurt her? He’d looked so evil—demented, even. What in God’s name had happened to him? She rubbed her sore hand, swallowing hard as she regained her composure.

George returned and looked shocked when Henry explained what had happened.

“Even so, you shouldn’t have hit him so hard,” Beatrice scolded Henry.

“‘E was hurting you, miss.” Henry sounded mulish.

She brushed a trembling hand over her hair, checking that her coiffure was still in place. “Yes, well, it didn’t actually come to that, although I admit for a moment I was fearful. Thank you, Henry. I’m sorry, I’m still a bit discomposed.” She bit her lip, eyeing Lord Hope again. “George, I think it wise to place a guard at the viscount’s door. Day and night, mind you.”

“Yes, miss,” George replied sturdily.

“It’s for his own sake as well as ours,” Beatrice murmured. “And I’m sure he’ll be fine once he recovers from this illness.”

The footmen exchanged uncertain glances.

Beatrice put a bit more steel in her voice to cover her own worry. “I would be obliged if Lord Blanchard didn’t hear of this incident.”

“Yes, ma’am,” George answered for all the footmen, although he still looked dubious.

Mrs. Callahan arrived at that moment, bustling into the room. “What’s all the bother, then, miss? Hurley’s said there’s a gentleman what’s collapsed.”

“Mr. Hurley is correct.” Beatrice gestured to the man on the bed. She turned to the housekeeper eagerly as a thought occurred to her. “Do you recognize him?”

“Him?” Mrs. Callahan wrinkled her nose. “Can’t say as I do, miss. Very hairy gentleman, isn’t he?”

“Says ‘e’s Viscount Hope,” Henry stated with satisfaction.

“Who?” Mrs. Callahan stared.

“Bloke in the painting,” Henry clarified. “Pardon me, miss.”

“Not at all, Henry,” Beatrice replied. “Did you know Lord Hope before the old earl’s death?”

“I’m sorry, no, miss,” Mrs. Callahan said. “Came on fresh when your uncle was made the earl, if you remember.”

“Oh, that’s right,” Beatrice said in disappointment.

“Practically the whole staff was,” Mrs. Callahan continued, “and them that had stayed . . . Well, they’re gone now. It’s been five years, after all, since the old earl passed.”

“Yes, I know, but I had hoped.” How could they say for certain who the man was until someone who’d actually known Hope identified him? Beatrice shook her head. “Well, it doesn’t matter at the moment anyway. No matter who he is, it’s our duty to care for this man.”

So saying, Beatrice ordered her troops and gave out assignments. By the time she’d consulted with the physician—Uncle Reggie hadn’t forgotten to send for him after all—supervised Cook making gruel, and planned for a nursing regime, the political tea was long over with. Beatrice left Lord Hope—if that was indeed who he was—under the eagle eye of Henry and drifted down the stairs to the blue sitting room.

It was empty now. Only the damp stain on the carpet gave any evidence of the dramatic events of several hours before. Beatrice stared at the stain for several moments before turning and inevitably facing the portrait of Viscount Hope.

He looked so young, so carefree! She stepped closer, pulled as always by some attracting force she couldn’t resist. She’d been nineteen when she’d first seen the portrait. The night she’d arrived at Blanchard House with her uncle, the new Earl of Blanchard, it had been very late. She’d been shown a room, but the excitement of a new house, the long carriage ride, and London itself had caused sleep to escape her. She’d lain wide awake for half an hour or more before pulling on a wrapper and padding down the stairs.

She remembered peeking in the library, examining the study, creeping through the halls, and somehow, inevitably—fatefully, it seemed—she’d ended up here. Here where she stood right now, only a pace before the portrait of Viscount Hope. Then, as now, it was his laughing eyes that had drawn her gaze first. Slightly crinkled, full of mischief and wicked humor. His mouth next, wide, with that slow, sensual curve on the upper lip. His hair was inky black, drawn straight back from a wide brow. He lounged in a relaxed pose against a tree, a fowling gun held casually through the crook of one arm, two spaniels panting adoringly up at that face.

Who could blame them? She’d probably worn the same expression when she’d first seen him. Maybe she still did. She’d spent innumerable nights gazing at him just like this, dreaming of a man who would see inside her and love her only for herself. On the night of her twentieth birthday, she’d crept down here, feeling excited and on the verge of something wonderful. The first time she’d ever been kissed, she’d come here to contemplate her feelings. Funny how now she couldn’t quite remember the face of the boy whose lips had so inexpertly met her own. And when Jeremy had returned, broken from the war, she’d come here.

Beatrice took one last look at those wicked ebony eyes and turned aside. For five long years she’d mooned over a painted man, a thing of dreams and fantasy. And now the flesh-and-blood man lay only two floors above her.

The question was, beneath the hair and beard, under the dirt and madness, was he the same man who’d sat for this portrait so long ago?

Welcome once again to Duck Chat!

And please welcome Elizabeth Hoyt to the Pond for the day!

If you’re an historical romance fan, you know that Elizabeth came racing into our lives in 2006 when her Princes trilogy debuted, and she hasn’t slowed down one bit since then. Next came her Legends of the Four Soldiers and she’s now working on a new series, which she’ll tell us about in a bit.

Elizabeth is married; she loves gardening but I’m assuming she doesn’t grow tomatoes since she really doesn’t care for them, but she does have twenty-six named varieties of daylilies in her garden; she grew up in Minnesota, the daughter of a frog biologist. She began her writing career at age thirty-five and her first book was published just after her fortieth birthday. Lucky for us it didn’t take any longer than that! Be sure to leave a comment or question for Elizabeth because she’s giving away a signed copy of To Desire a Devil!

So now that you know a little about Elizabeth, let’s chat!

DUCK CHAT: Elizabeth, for those few readers who may not have read your books yet – hopefully it’s only a few! – would tell us about your first series, The Princes Trilogy, just an overview of how the series came about and a little something about each book?

ELIZABETH HOYT: The Princes Trilogy books are (loosely) linked by the heroes, an odd trio of friends who all belong to the Agrarian Club which meets in a coffee house. The Raven Prince, is a about Edward de Raaf, the Earl of Swartingham, who lost his entire family in a smallpox epidemic when he was a boy. Edward is trying to re-create his family and has already found a suitable lady to marry. But then his land steward hires a new secretary for Edward while he is away and she turned out to be a rather argumentative widow who turns all of Edward’s plans upside-down. Harry Pye, the hero of The Leopard Prince, is a mysterious land steward. He finds to his horror that his employer, Lady Georgina Maitland, insists on visiting the land he oversees in the north of England and interfering with both his work and his private life. Simon Iddesleigh, Viscount Iddesleigh, is the hero of The Serpent Prince. He’s a sophisticated gentleman with a cutting wit, but he is entirely undone by a provincial lady who sees right through his blather.

These were the first books I wrote and actually I can’t really remember how they came about other than the fact that I was trying my hand at writing historical romance and then (as now) I was most interested in the hero of a story.

DC: If you could retire any question and never, ever have it asked again, what would it be? Feel free to answer it.

EH: The dreaded “Where do you get your ideas?” It’s dreaded because I honestly don’t know. Ideas just arrive while I’m driving or weeding my garden. It’s just part of being a writer, I think.

DC: Then there’s your Legend of the Four Soldiers series. What’s the genesis of this series? To Taste Temptation and To Seduce a Sinner are the first two books in the series; would you tell our readers about those stories?

EH: Well, okay, I do know (partly) where I got the idea for these books. The war in Iraq had just started and I wanted to address the plight of the soldier returning home from war. I grew up just post the Vietnam War, with all the books and movies about the subject, and I used to read World War I poetry as a romantic teenager. The idea of the soldier with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has always interested to me. So I wanted to explore what would happen to good soldiers, brave soldiers, who had fought well and returned home to an era that didn’t know anything at all about PTSD and where mental illness was considered a moral weakness.

The Legend of the Four Soldiers is about four very different men who were in the same regiment during the French and Indian War in the American Colonies. While marching in the New England woods, their regiment is ambushed and massacred. To Taste Temptation starts the series six years later with Samuel Hartley who was an American scout. He’s now a wealthy merchant come to London ostensibly on business, but in reality to find the man who betrayed his regiment. To do this he needs entry into London society and he seeks the help of Lady Emeline Gordon, a proper widow who is rather aghast at his backwoods ways.

To Seduce a Sinner is about Jasper Renshaw, Viscount Vale, a bon vivant, always the center of attention during the day, who hides a secret at night. After Jasper is left at the altar by his flighty fiancée he is propositioned by Melisande Fleming. Melisande is plain and brown and has been in love with Jasper for years—though he has no idea of that when he hastily marries her.

DC: In May To Beguile a Beast, the third book in the series, hit the shelves. We meet Alistair and Helen in this story. Can you give us some insight to them and their relationship?

EH: Sir Alistair Munroe is a naturalist who was horribly scarred during the war. Because of his scars he’s hidden himself away in his crumbling castle in Scotland. But one and dark stormy night he answers the door to find a beautiful woman on his doorstep claiming to be his new housekeeper. To Beguile a Beast is a “Beauty and the Beast” story, but I wanted to explore what physical disfigurement meant in an age without plastic surgery, how a man can lose all hope and how he can regain it with the right woman.

DC: Then in November we’ll see the long-awaited To Desire a Devil, all about Reynaud and Beatrice. Can we get a little sneak peak, please?

EH: Reynaud St. Aubyn, Viscount Hope is the fourth and final soldier in the series. Presumed dead for seven years, he escapes captivity and returns home, ready to resume his life. But the life he left isn’t there anymore. His father, the Earl of Blanchard is dead, another man has claimed the title, and there are rumors that he’s insane. Everyone seems to be against him except the new earl’s niece, a woman named Beatrice Corning. Beatrice for her part is dangerously attracted to Reynaud, but can she make him see that what they have may be more important than the life he’s trying to regain?

DC: I’ve heard writers often say their stories take them in surprising directions, or dialogue flows from some unknown place. Is it the same with you? Do your characters surprise you sometimes?

EH: Sure. In fact, when I wrote the first scene of To Desire a Devil, I ended up with a character I hadn’t planned on (Beatrice’s friend, Lottie.)

DC: Do you ever argue with your characters while you’re writing? Who usually wins?

EH: Hmm. I don’t find myself arguing with characters, but I as I’m writing the book does sometimes go off the road and into the woods.

DC: And congratulations are in order for your new series, Maiden Lane, you just contracted with Grand Central Publishing for. Wicked Intentions is the first book in the series. Can you tell us about the series as a whole and then some about Wicked Intentions?

EH: The Maiden Lane series is set during the gin craze in London when one out of every four houses sold gin for a penny and a half a cup. There was wide-spread addiction, crime, and violence, but for economic reasons it took forever for Parliament to crack down on the sale of gin. My fictional Maiden Lane is smack in the middle of one of the worst areas of London at this time, St. Giles, And on Maiden Lane is the Home for Unfortunate Infants and Foundling Children run by Temperance Dews and her brother. But the home has recently lost its patron and the home is in dire financial straits. One night a man appears in her sitting room, Lazarus Huntington, Lord Caire, who has an interesting proposition: if Temperance will help him search St. Giles for a murderer, he will help her find a new patron for the home.

DC: What is sure to distract you from sitting down and working/writing?

EH: A good book.

DC: Now, I have to ask you about a few of the fun facts I read on your website. I became quite curious about some of them! First, you found yourself accidentally locked in at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, England, not hearing the bell indicating closing time. How long were you locked in? How did you get out? What was the reaction of the museum staff? I could go on for a bit on the little questions, so anything else you can tell us about the experience, please!

EH: The Ashmolean Museum is a wonderful place and I highly recommend it to anyone who happens to be in Oxford. When I was sixteen my family spent a year in Oxford and I used to walk to the “Ashmole” (as my art teacher called it) and spend entire afternoons there. On this particular day I was looking at Greek pottery, which at that time was literally stacked up in cases in the Ashmolean. Greek pottery can be quite pornographic, so I was taking a deep, artistic interest in the pottery when somehow I didn’t hear the warning bell, (Which, in my own defense, was kind of a musical chime.) Then I heard the door lock to the room I was in. So being a resourceful teenager I ran over and pounded on the doors and was let out by a middle-aged security guard who told me to listen better next time. Sadly, I still stare at Greek pottery in museums.

DC: How do you feel your male or female characters have evolved over your career? Do you think you write them differently now than you did when you started?

EH: Well, my “career” is only three years old—I was first published in 2006. I don’t think my heroes and heroines have evolved much in that time. Readers may disagree.

DC: Another fun fact tidbit is the fact you learned the difference between a frog and toad from your father due to this profession. I know this probably won’t be the question on the list, but I’m curious! LOL, what is the difference??? I’m a country girl and couldn’t tell you!

EH: My father used to take the entire family frog collecting in Minnesota when I was a child. He was interested in leopard frogs (the green frog with black spots that most people think of when they think of frogs.) Frogs generally have webbed fingers, toads don’t. Frogs generally live in or near wet spots and have smooth, damp skin (I once made the mistake of calling it “slimy” in front of my father!) Toads have dry, generally bumpy skin and the most common toads in North America excrete a poison from the bumps on their backs. It doesn’t hurt people, but it tastes bad to animals.

DC: Is there a genre you haven’t tackled but would like to try?

EH: I’d love to write a middle school book someday.

DC: What advice would you give to your younger self?

EH: Not to worry so much. But I wouldn’t have listened.

DC: Okay, just one more and I’ll let my curiosity go! You met your husband on an archeological dig. Would you tell us about that, where you were, what type of dig, and any romantic details you’d like to share?

EH: It was a summer field school in southwestern Wisconsin in the middle of a corn field and it was very hot and dirty and I thought my future husband was a complete jerk. He was the TA in charge of the dig (an older man!) and he strode around the dig in a tiny pair of running shorts (it was the 1980’s) and a bandana around his neck—no shirt—and was very grim because the dig was his doctoral thesis. (Which led to the comment whenever something went wrong, “it’s not my thesis!” Sadly, my future husband didn’t find it very funny.)

Almost a year later I took a lab class in which my future husband was the TA, although (as he made very clear) he didn’t grade me. After a couple of months he asked me out and six weeks later we were engaged.

DC: If you were a book, what would your blurb be?

EH: Hidden depths

DC: What would be your “voice’s” tagline?

EH: Strong, sensuous, and smart

DC: You also write as Julia Harper. For the Love of Pete is your latest release there. Can you tell us about that book and also what’s next for Julia?

EH: For the Love of Pete is about Dante Torelli, an undercover FBI agent assigned to protect a mob informant and his family. But when the informant’s hiding place is blown, a baby girl is snatched by a ruthless hitman. Now, Dante must save the toddler, uncover the traitor in his department, evade various bad guys, and deal with the toddler’s sexy aunt, all before the biggest mob trial in Chicago history, set to begin in just three days.

I’m contracted for one more Julia Harper book, right now we don’t have a release date.

DC: If you had never become an author, what do you think you would be doing right now?

EH: Who knows?

DC: Aside from your Maiden Lane series, anything else exciting on the horizon for Elizabeth Hoyt?

EH: Well, I’m writing and posting a free novella on my website this year. It’s called The Ice Princess and features a secondary character from the Princes Trilogy, Coral Smythe, the Aphrodite of Aphrodite’s Grotto. All the chapters to date are posted here.

Lightning Round:

- dark or milk chocolate?   – milk chocolate
- smooth or chunky peanut butter?    – chunky
- heels or flats?    – flats
- coffee or tea?    – either, depending on my mood
- summer or winter?    – winter
- mountains or beach?     – mountains
- mustard or mayonnaise?   – both
- flowers or candy?    – flowers
- pockets or purse?     – purse
- Pepsi or Coke?    – Pepsi
- ebook or print?   – large print print book

And just because:

1. What is your favorite word?    – I’m a writer, I have an infinite number of favorite words. But I’ll go with serendipity.
2. What is your least favorite word?    – Squat. Isn’t that just the ugliest sounding word?
3. What turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally?    – I get excited by other people’s creativity and talent. A really well written, smart movie, for example, ramps up my own creativity.
4. What turns you off creatively, spiritually or emotionally?    – people who are jerks
5. What sound or noise do you love?   – crickets at night
6. What sound or noise do you hate?   – revving motors.
7. What is your favorite curse word?   – fuck
8. What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?     – None. I’m very, very happy with what I do for a living.
9. What profession would you not like to do?   – Anything that involves a boss
10. If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?   – “You’ve done well.”

DC: Elizabeth, we’re so glad you joined us today!  Thank you!

I know you’ve all been saying to yourself, “Self, I have not read any scintillating content from Shannon C. lately. Does she not love us anymore?”

To which the answer is, no. I’ve just been behind on reviewing, and I’ve been kind of underwhelmed by a lot of the romances I’ve picked up.

Still, I did want to post something so you’d know I hadn’t fallen off the face of the planet, so here’s a series of Quick Quack Reviews, covering the stuff I’ve been reading.

Shannon C’s Quick Quack review of The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie (Highland Pleasures, Book 1) by Jennifer Ashley
Historical Romance released by Leisure Books 28 Apr 09



The Madness of Lord Ian MacKenzie is one of the few books I’ve read this year in which I felt the hype was even a little justified. The titular Lord Ian MacKenzie has Asperger syndrome, which makes him blunt, socially awkward, and unable to look people in the face. He is drawn to Beth Ackerley, a young widow recently freed from her obligations as a companion to a shrew of an old lady.

Beth is equally drawn to Ian, and soon she’s falling for him.There’s a lot to like here. Ian is a fascinating character, as are the rest of his family. But, surprisingly, I actually liked Beth. Romance heroines are hard to portray well, and I’m rarely pleased with them. But Beth was confident without being brash, knew what she wanted in life, and was interesting in her own right as something other than a foil for Ian.

There is a mystery that doesn’t entirely work for me, and the way in which a feud one character has with the MacKenzies is resolved in a way that didn’t work for me, since it felt a bit too schmaltzy. But this is a unique romance, and I strongly recommend it to fans of historical romance.

Grade: B+

Summary:
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The year is 1881. Meet the Mackenzie family–rich, powerful, dangerous, eccentric. A lady couldn’t be seen with them without ruin. Rumors surround them–of tragic violence, of their mistresses, of their dark appetites, of scandals that set England and Scotland abuzz.
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The youngest brother, Ian, known as the Mad Mackenzie, spent most of his young life in an asylum, and everyone agrees he is decidedly odd. He’s also hard and handsome and has a penchant for Ming pottery and beautiful women.
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Beth Ackerley, widow, has recently come into a fortune. She has decided that she wants no more drama in her life. She was raised in drama–an alcoholic father who drove them into the workhouse, a frail mother she had to nurse until her death, a fussy old lady she became constant companion to. No, she wants to take her money and find peace, to travel, to learn art, to sit back and fondly remember her brief but happy marriage to her late husband.
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And then Ian Mackenzie decides he wants her.
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Read an excerpt here.

Shannon C’s Quick Quack review of Burning Alive (The Sentinel Wars, Book 1) by Shannon K. Butcher
Urban Fantasy released by Onyx 5 May 09



Burning Alive by Shannon K. Butcher isn’t the kind of story I generally go for. It’s one of an increasingly annoying trend of books featuring groups of paranormal alpha men so manly even Chuck Norris would be forced to back down in shame. These guys, of course, fight supernatural creatures, which for some reason nobody ever notices.

As per usual, Drake, our studly manly hero is paired with a woman with all the flavor of wet Kleenex. Helen is good and sweet and gentle, and doesn’t appear to do anything with her life except take her elderly friend Miss Mabel out to dinner. Oh and she’s afraid of fire, having seen a vision of herself burning to death while a man who, coincidentally, looks like our hero, Drake, watches with a smile.

Drake discovers by accident that when he touches Helen, the constant pain he’s endured all his life dissipates, so he basically kidnaps her and throws her into the paranormal world.The setup for this book is so incredibly cheesy, but I can’t help it. I like stuff like this, in moderation. There’s something about a man being literally unable to keep his hands off the object of his desire that gets me every time. But even without my personal biases, I’m not sure I’d recommend this one.

The setup will ring familiar to many paranormal readers, and I really don’t know how many books featuring dull heroines and exaggeratedly alpha men we need. Also, the book is set in the vicinity of where I live, and so there were a few geographical mistakes that wouldn’t detract from the story that I noticed.

Grade: C

Summary:
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There are worse ways to die…
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They are the Sentinels. Three races descended from ancient guardians of mankind, each possessing unique abilities in their battle to protect humanity against their eternal foes–the Synestryn. Now, one warrior must fight his own desire if he is to discover the power that lies within his one true love…
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For too long, Helen Day has been haunted by visions of her own death, surrounded by flames as a dark-haired man watches her burn. So when she sees the man of her nightmares staring at her across a diner, she attempts to flee–and ends up in the man’s arms. There, she awakens a force more powerful and enticing than she could ever imagine.
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The instant the Theronai warrior Drake touches Helen, the anguish he has borne for years fades away. He is determined to know why this beautiful, fearful woman has such power over him. The answer lies in his very blood–and in Helen’s as well. For together, they may become more than lovers–they may become a weapon of light that could tip the balance of the war–and save Drake’s people…
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Read an excerpt here.

Shannon C’s Quick Quack review of Tomorrow by Samantha Kane
Science Fiction Romance released by Ellora’s Cave 22 Apr 09



Tomorrow by Samantha Kane is Ms. Kane’s first foray into science fiction romance. Samantha Kane’s historicals are favorites of mine for their depth of characterization and the fact that she’s one of the few authors that can convince me that any group of two men and one woman belong together. Unfortunately, this story of a bounty hunter, a rebel princess and a space pirate didn’t work at all for me. I think i was first turned off by the names.

Our heroine is Cerise, and one of her men is named Tie. Tie? I dunno, a guy named after an article of men’s clothing is just not doing it for me.The story does have its moments, but there wasn’t really anything unique in the world Ms. Kane is using, and her characters lacked the depth I’ve come to expect. The story also suffered from what felt like an overabundance of sex scenes. Yes, I know this is an erotic romance, but still… Even for that subgenre, there are still times when enough is enough. I’m not sure this is a series I’m going to continue, though if Ms. Kane writes any more historicals, I will buy them right up.

Grade: D+

Summary:
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A Hunters for Hire book.
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What if a beautiful rebel princess, on the run from an evil government, fell in love with the pirate who rescued her and with the bounty hunter who captured her? And what if the pirate and the bounty hunter used to be lovers?
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Princess Cerise Chessienne has the power to enslave men with sex. She’s never used it—until now.
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Regan is the most feared pirate in the galaxy, renowned for two things—his temper and his loyalty to the princess.
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When bounty hunter Tie captures Cerise, he gives in to his desires. Now the two are addicted to sex with each other. Then Cerise leads Tie to his long-lost lover Regan, and Tie realizes that tomorrow—the day he starts his life over—has arrived.
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The Amalgamation wants to execute all three of them. So what are a beautiful princess, a pirate and a philosophical bounty hunter to do? Have amazing sex, of course. And somehow lead the rebellion while avoiding capture.
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Read an excerpt here.

Shannon C’s Quick Quack review of Strange Attractions by Emma Holly
Erotic Romance published by Berkley 1 Nov 05



Strange Attractions by Emma Holly, on the other hand, gets the balance of eroticism and romance much better. Charity is invited to stay with eccentric physicist BG Grantham and his long-time friend, Eric. In exchange for playing sexual games with the two men, Charity will receive a full scholarship to attend college.

The setup sounds kind of hokey, but in this book, it really works. Ms. Holly creates three-dimensional characters in our three protagonists, and she does a great job of developing the characters during sex. I also liked that this was very much a story of Charity’s self-actualization. I liked the fact that Charity is much more empowered by the end, something that seems all too rare in the romance I’ve read.

Grade: B+

Summary:
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Determined not to repeat her mother’s mistakes, high-school dropout and unrepentant heartbreaker Charity Wills is eager to get an education any way she can. When she’s offered a chance to go to college for free, she jumps at it. There’s just one little catch.
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She must travel to the estate of B.G. Grantham, a reclusive physicist who likes to play sex games as exotic as the particles he studies. B.G. is obsessed with the unattainable: the meaning of life, the mysteries of desire, and the thrill of being refused the one thing he craves. Charity has more than enough spirit to provide a challenge-especial with Eric Berne, her sexy “keeper,” to lend a hand . . .
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Read an excerpt here.

Shannon C’s Quick Quack review of To Beguile a Beast (Legend of the Four Soldiers, Book 3) by Elizabeth Hoyt
Historical romance released by Grand Central 19 May 09



To Beguile a Beast by Elizabeth Hoyt is the third book in Hoyt’s Legends of the Four Soldiers series. The first two books were quite entertaining, and I see why Hoyt is well-thought-of in the romance community, because she can write well. This third book, however, is my least favorite in the series. It follows Helen Fitzwilliam, the mistress of a powerful duke, who has fled with her children to the highlands of Scotland, to the castle of Sir Alister Monroe, a scarred war veteran.

What follows is a standard beauty and the beast romance, which follows the conventions of such a story in a predictable way. The predictability doesn’t make for a bad story, but it does make for a less than satisfying one, and I wish the mystery plot had been dragged forward a bit more. This isn’t a bad book, however, and Ms. Hoyt is a talented writer.

Grade C+

Summary:
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CAN A WOUNDED BEAST . . .
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Reclusive Sir Alistair Munroe has hidden in his castle ever since returning from the Colonies, scarred inside and out. But when a mysterious beauty arrives at his door, the passions he’s kept suppressed for years begin to awaken.
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TRUST A BEAUTY WITH A PAST . . .
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Running from past mistakes has taken legendary beauty Helen Fitzwilliam from the luxury of the ton to a crumbling Scottish castle . . . and a job as a housekeeper. Yet Helen is determined to start a new life and she won’t let dust-or a beast of a man-scare her away.
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TO TAME HIS MOST SECRET DESIRES?
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Beneath Helen’s beautiful façade, Alistair finds a courageous and sensual woman. A woman who doesn’t back away from his surliness-or his scars. But just as he begins to believe in true love, Helen’s secret past threatens to tear them apart. Now both Beast and Beauty must fight for the one thing neither believed they could ever find–a happy ever after.
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Read an excerpt here.

Shannon C’s Quick Quack review of Truth and Consequences (Hearts of the South, Book 1) by Linda Winfree
Romantic Suspense published by Samhain Publishing 29 Apr 08

Truth and Consequences is the first in Linda Winfree’s Hearts of the South series, which comes highly recommended by many readers. I have to agree with them. Ms. Winfree manages to pack a lot into a rather short novel, and the romance between Georgia Bureau of Investigation agent Kathleen and troubled and poor town bad boy Jason is well-executed. We also get to glimpse many of the people whose lives orbit around the main couple. I never felt overwhelmed by the number of characters, and I’m definitely looking forward to seeing more of them.

Grade B+ 

Summary:

When deceit and desire collide, the results can be deadly…
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Book One of the Hearts of the South series.
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For undercover FBI agent Jason Harding, coming face to face with the grown-up version of his adolescent dreams is a nightmare. Kathleen Palmer sees him as a despicably corrupt small-town law officer and a murder suspect. Trapped in a web of his own making, he must see his mission through to the end and bring down the crooked cops who’ve run Haynes County for decades. To do so, he must betray the only family he’s ever known and fight his growing love for Kathleen, a relationship that could get one, or both of them, killed.
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Determined to uncover the truth, Georgia Bureau of Investigation agent Kathleen struggles with her attraction to the one person who’s awakened her since she buried her heart and emotions in her son’s tiny grave. Listening to her heart could destroy all she has left in life-her career and reputation. When the truth about Jason’s identity surfaces, they both face unimaginable consequences: Jason may lose his life and Kathleen the man she loves.
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Warning, this title contains the following: explicit sex, violence.
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Read an excerpt here.

Recently I read on a list that history is all a matter of opinion, not of specific facts, so I thought it was worth revisiting the historical romance, and the knotty topic of accuracy. Does it add to a romance, or take away from it?  [Gwen ed.: read more about the Ducks' views on historical accuracy by following the Accuracy tag here.]

If you take the various Acts of Parliament, the political history in general (it’s all documented, word for word, always has been), plus the economic developments then you have a sound basis for discussion and opinion. But you can’t do it without that framework, and in my mind it’s unalterable. There are certain facts you can’t change, and some that evolved and arrived gradually, but there are some things you can’t alter.Sometimes it’s because they never happened, and there has to be a reason why not, other times it’s anachronisms.

To take things I’ve seen in historical romances, there are some things that just couldn’t have happened.

• A known, famous courtesan marrying a peer of the realm and them being accepted into society with open arms.

Never happened. Couldn’t. Various authors (including me, I have to admit, in A Chance To Dream) have played with the trope, but you have to work really hard for it to become probable.

• Peers of the realm becoming pirates.

It never happened. You have to dig into the wherefores to work out why, but since it never happened, there must have been a reason why not. (Lots of reasons, any of which would work). The most important thing – it never happened.

• Regency gentlemen drinking whisky or whiskey from a decanter on the sideboard.

Whisky (which is Scotland-specific) or whiskey (anywhere else) wasn’t legalised until 1823 and the great technical development, the Coffey still, which made it possible to produce Scotch in bulk, wasn’t invented until 1831. A gentleman could have it distilled for his own use, but it wasn’t a common drink, and didn’t really get popular until the 1840′s. Give the darlings brandy instead.

• A medieval Scottish warrior brandishing his claymore.

No claymores until the late 16th century. They weren’t even called that until then. I’ll leave it to the weapons experts to explain why, because it’s not my area.

• A medieval Scottish warrior wearing a skirted kilt in his clan’s tartan.

Skirted kilts weren’t developed until the 18th century. Before then, they had a plaid, sometimes known as the “great kilt.” No clan tartans until the 19th century, although there were geographically-specific patterns and colors from which the tartan was developed. So you’d be able to say “from the Lomond area” but not “You’re a Campbell.” Or something. If you could see the colors, because the plaid was never washed. It served as a blanket, as well as an item of clothing.

If you know anything about history, it’s likely these details will jerk you out of the story. If you don’t, it’s likely the story will be the “generic” type and if the reader has experience with lots of historicals, they’ll notice how flat the story is, and not be able to put her finger on it. If it’s labelled “historical fantasy,” go girl, put a dragon in and I’ll run all the way to the bookstore to buy it!

Writers owe it to their readers, and to the people they are writing about to make it as real as they can – and that includes sound world-building and accurate history. By all means, speculate, discuss, but base it on a knowledge of what happened then, how people thought then, and you’ll have a great story.

Are there any books based in American history that are this far out? Would a writer of contemporaries get away with sending the traffic the wrong way up Madison Avenue, or having all the avenues in New York have two-way traffic? Why should we expect anything less of the historical writer?

It’s an insult to say “it’s only a romance, so it’s okay, I can write what I like and get away with it” or something else I’ve overheard, “They’ll never notice.” So what? The other person a writer should respect is herself and her art.

I’ve only read one Elizabeth Hoyt so far, for instance, and I already know I love her work and I can forgive her the odd slip, if she makes them, but I’m too busy reading to notice. She gets the feel right, the spirit of the age, and she works hard to fit her characters into a recognisable era and voice. I don’t ask for absolute accuracy, only that the author tries. Or calls it something else.

So if the writer respects the genre they right in, the people and the times she is writing about, and her own writing ability, she should think about getting the details right. Please. So I have more historical romances to read. I dearly love a good historical romance, and I haven’t read too many recently.

And when is the new Kinsale coming out? Please make it soon, my copy of Shadow Heart is worn out!

This just in…

Elizabeth Hoyt just announced she has signed a three-book deal for a new series!

~ The new deal was made about a month ago with her publisher, Grand Central Publishing, for the three books to be published in 2010 and 2011.

~ Elizabeth is currently working on the first book, Wicked Intentions, in the series, which is entitled Maiden Lane.

~ The hero of Wicked Intentions is Lazarus Huntington, Lord Caire, an emotionless aristocrat searching for the murderer of his mistress. To find the murderer Caire needs the help of Temperance Dews, a proper widow who runs a foundling home in St. Giles. But neither Temperance or Caire are quite what they seem on the surface…

~ Keep checking Elizabeth’s site for more information as it becomes available!

Consider yourself flashed.

Lawson’s review of To Beguile a Beast (Legend of the Four Soldiers, Book 3) by Elizabeth Hoyt
Historical romance released by Grand Central 19 May 09

This is the third book in Hoyt’s Legend of the Four Soldiers series, about survivors of a massacre during the Seven Year’s War (that would be the French and Indian War to the Americans). The first book followed a colonist acting as a scout, the second followed one of the officers, and this one follows a civilian botanist attached to the unit. All of the survivors have scars from the massacre, but Sir Alistair Munroe has the most physical scars (hence the Beast in the title). A common story that ties all the books together is the search for a possible traitor that betrayed the unit to the French and the Indians that perpetrated the massacre.

The book starts off in Scotland with Helen Fitzwilliam and her children coming to a castle in the middle of a storm. When Sir Alistair sees a woman and two children on his doorstep he attempts to send them away since he doesn’t often inspire good first impressions from people due to his scars. Nor does he want more people around that will intrude on his solitude and possibly disturb his work. Having given up on society, Sir Alistair instead has devoted his time to cataloging the different species in the British Isles.

Helen hopes that the castle is remote enough that her former lover won’t find her and her children. Though Sir Alistair is gruff at first, Helen stands her ground and makes a deal for her children and her to stay. Though she’s had a pampered life, Helen takes to the task of being Sir Alistair’s housekeeper with determination and starts the tough task of cleaning the messy castle as well as reorganizing his life to accommodate having more people around on a daily basis.

When Helen’s past finds her hiding place and puts her as well as her children in danger, Alistair must face society which tends to run screaming at the sight of his scars. Helen also has to face what is truly important in her life and how much she can let her past make her future.

Sir Alistair has become all too used to people’s reactions to his appearance, which is why he hides in his castle, even from his own sister. He never thinks that a woman as beautiful as Helen would want to be with him and the way she slowly shows him her attraction to him and gets past his fears due to his appearance are sweet and sexy. With Helen managing his household, Alistair is able to work and feel contented and happy with his life. Especially with her children.

Helen chose her path in life and while she doesn’t regret that it gave her two children, she does miss some things. That she has to do things she never thought she would as a housekeeper, she feels rewarded caring for a home, her children and very quickly Alistair. With her experience in life she’s a bit hesitant to give in to her feelings for Alistair, but because she opens her heart it allows him to open his.

As with other Hoyt books, there is a fairy tale, though it does have a bit of a twist that fits with the story rather well. The interesting thing in this story is the addition, at times, of the point of view of the children as well as the villain of the story. The resolution with the villain is interesting and creative and though it works with the story, it’s hard to see someone such as he not thinking in the long term and while satisfying, went a bit against the coldness of the character.

A good, sweet, touching and quite sexy beauty and the beast story and an interesting way to take the traitor plot line that runs through the books of the series, which sets up an interesting possibility for the next installment in this series. The next book comes out in November, and it’s one that I’ll keep a lookout for.

Grade: B

Summary:
.
CAN A WOUNDED BEAST . . .
.
Reclusive Sir Alistair Munroe has hidden in his castle ever since returning from the Colonies, scarred inside and out. But when a mysterious beauty arrives at his door, the passions he’s kept suppressed for years begin to awaken.
.
TRUST A BEAUTY WITH A PAST . . .
.
Running from past mistakes has taken legendary beauty Helen Fitzwilliam from the luxury of the ton to a crumbling Scottish castle . . . and a job as a housekeeper. Yet Helen is determined to start a new life and she won’t let dust-or a beast of a man-scare her away.
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TO TAME HIS MOST SECRET DESIRES?
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Beneath Helen’s beautiful façade, Alistair finds a courageous and sensual woman. A woman who doesn’t back away from his surliness-or his scars. But just as he begins to believe in true love, Helen’s secret past threatens to tear them apart. Now both Beast and Beauty must fight for the one thing neither believed they could ever find–a happy ever after.
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Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

Shannon C.’s review of To Seduce a Sinner (Legend of the Four Soldiers, Book 2) by Elizabeth Hoyt
Historical romance released 01 Nov 08 by Forever

I’ve been feeling a bit guilty lately. I have a ton of historicals on my TBR, none of which I’ve read although they all look so good. But when Elizabeth Hoyt’s second book in the Legend of the Four Soldiers series came out, I knew I had to drop what I was doing and pick it up. This despite my reservations. I mean, come on. How many times do we have to read the fake rake meets bluestocking romance? Thankfully, what I got was so much more than that. 

This book picks up where the prequel, To Taste Temptation left off. Jasper Renshaw, Viscount Vale, is left at the alter when he is approached by Melisande Fleming. Melisande proposes that Jasper marry her instead, since he does need a wife to beget an heir. Both Melisande and Jasper have secrets, and painful parts of their pasts, and each begins to slowly whittle away at the other.

Melisande really impressed me. So often, I feel that heroines in romances could just be there as placeholders. Not so Melisande. She really was perfect for Jasper, and she was a strong woman in her own right. I loved that she knew exactly what she wanted and went for it. She was also a woman of her time, not simply a 21st century woman in costume. And it was refreshing to see that Melisande remained a bit of a brown sparrow throughout the story. There was no makeover, no moment in which Jasper’s eyes widened at her sheer and suddenly stunning beauty.

As for Jasper, I liked him and found him refreshing in his own right. He hides his pain behind joviality and good cheer, which I think is a much more interesting response than writing proverbial emo poetry. I love that it is Melisande’s personality that he is drawn to, and I love that he always tries to do the right thing by her. He is definitely a man I could understand pining after for many years, and I loved the evolving love between these two. The scene at the end when Jasper presents Melisande with a tin snuffbox, the inside of which is encrusted with jewels is possibly one of the sweetest things I’ve ever read.

I liked the secondary characters. The secondary romance between Melisande’s maid, Sally Suchlike (which is not my favorite name ever in the history of the world, to put it mildly) and Jasper’s valet, Mr. Pynch, was sweet. I also liked the hero and heroine of the third book and think they are going to be interesting together, though I did think their introduction was a bit random and awkward, as was the plot thread involving a book of German fairy tales, which seems to go from heroine to heroine.

The mystery of what exactly happened at Spinner’s Falls which permeates the series as well was interesting, but not nearly as compelling for me as the romances. I also really loved the twist at the end of the book, though to give that away would be a spoiler.

This is a great series, and I am sad that I have to wait all the way until next May for the third book. I particularly think those looking for strong historical heroines will want to give this series a go. I think To Seduce a Sinner could be read as a standalone without missing much, though reading the first book certainly will enrich the experience.

Grade: B+

Read other takes on this series by following the Legend of the Four Soldiers series tag.

Summary:
THE ONE THING HE CANNOT REVEAL
For years, Melisande Fleming has loved Lord Vale from afar . . . watching him seduce a succession of lovers, and once, catching a glimpse of heartbreaking depths beneath his roguish veneer. When he’s jilted on his wedding day, she boldly offers to be his.

TO THE ONE WOMAN HE MOST DESIRES
Vale gladly weds Melisande, if only to produce an heir. But he’s pleasantly surprised: A shy and proper Lady by day, she’s a wanton at night, giving him her body-though not her heart.

IS HIS DEEPEST NEED . . .
Determined to learn her secrets, this sinner starts to woo his seductive new wife-while hiding the nightmares from his soldiering days in the Colonies that still haunt him. Yet when a deadly betrayal from the past threatens to tear them apart, Lord Vale must bare his soul to the woman he married…or risk losing her forever.

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

To Desire A Devil, Book 4, Nov 2009

LauraD’s review of To Seduce a Sinner (The Legend of the Four Soldiers) by Elizabeth Hoyt
Historical Romance published by Forever 28 Oct 08

Elizabeth Hoyt already has already made such a name for herself in the romance community that it’s hard to remember she’s only published four books prior to this one. They have all been outstanding, and she is an auto-buy author for me.

Jasper Renshaw, Viscount Vale, has just been stood up at the altar. Again. Melisande Fleming gathers her courage and suggests to Vale that he marry her instead-and Vale, who just wants to produce an heir, says yes. Little does he know that Melisande has loved him for years, even when he was engaged to her best friend. Nor does he know that he will quickly become fascinated with his reserved young bride.

These are simply two wonderful characters. Jasper isn’t a typical romance rake, although he is tortured and does his share of carousing. He’s a solid, loyal, dependable man with a sly sense of humor and plenty of patience. Melisande is intelligent, as well as lovely. She knows just how to play Jasper in order to intrigue him, and the scenes in which she slowly seduces him are a treat to read. Melisande has a history that Jasper doesn’t know about, and she is at heart a very sensual woman. While it’s not readily apparent that behind her practical mask lies a seductress, once Jasper realizes her inner nature he embraces her fully.

The majority of To Seduce a Sinner is the wonderful evolution of Jasper and Melisande’s relationship from society marriage to a true love union of equals. The dialogue is a treat to read, often amusing and always clever. The book is the second in Hoyt’s Legend of the Four Soldiers series, and the mystery thread from the first book continues. It fits very nicely within the love story, and the conflict it creates between the couple is dealt with beautifully. Once they’ve admitted to themselves that they are in love, both Melisande and Jasper stand up for one another in ways that made me want to cheer out loud.

A truly heroic hero and a smart, sensual heroine. A romance novel in which the relationship develops without too much melodrama. Secondary characters that add to the story. Very sexy love scenes. A mystery that makes sense, and doesn’t require the heroine to be imperiled. Go get this book, if you haven’t already! The Elizabeth Hoyt stack on my keeper shelf grows…

Grade: A+

Summary:

THE ONE THING HE CANNOT REVEAL
For years, Melisande Fleming has loved Lord Vale from afar . . . watching him seduce a succession of lovers, and once, catching a glimpse of heartbreaking depths beneath his roguish veneer. When he’s jilted on his wedding day, she boldly offers to be his.

TO THE ONE WOMAN HE MOST DESIRES
Vale gladly weds Melisande, if only to produce an heir. But he’s pleasantly surprised: A shy and proper Lady by day, she’s a wanton at night, giving him her body-though not her heart.

IS HIS DEEPEST NEED . . .
Determined to learn her secrets, this sinner starts to woo his seductive new wife-while hiding the nightmares from his soldiering days in the Colonies that still haunt him. Yet when a deadly betrayal from the past threatens to tear them apart, Lord Vale must bare his soul to the woman he married…or risk losing her forever.

Read an excerpt.

Other books in the series:

To Desire A Devil, Book 4, Nov 2009

Well, it’s taken me a week to recuperate and get back into the swing of things since I got home from San Francisco.  Was it all worth it?  Damn straight!

I was supposed to be at the RWA National Conference as a writer.  I started writing only a year or so ago, so I was really looking forward to learning more about the craft.  But who was I trying to kid?  I was 99.9% reader in San Francisco.   I couldn’t help myself.  Everywhere I looked were authors I’d been reading for years, authors who I just discovered, and even newer authors who I hadn’t yet discovered while at the conference.   And the books!  You’ve all seen my TBR mountain.  You all know how bad my addiction is.  There was no way in hell anyone could have kept me away from the books in the city by the bay, no matter how they tried.  So while I did learn a little, I had a dream of a week just schmoozing and staring in awe the majority of the week.

I had some wonderful highlights during the hustle and bustle of the conference.  The first was meeting two of my all-time favorite authors, who have also become friends.  First is Sandy Blair.  I started reading her books because of the time travel elements that appear every so often in her Scottish historicals.  But I joined her fan club because she’s one of the nicest, sweetest ladies I’ve ever met.  So it was a thrill, indeed, to meet her in person.  We had lunch together a couple of times, had drinks together, just chatted, laughed our tails off — she’s a great storyteller even outside of her books — and I enjoyed my time with her immensely.  I will remember each and every one of those moments forever.

Added to all that, I found some friends to get re-acquainted with while schmoozing with Sandy B.  It was great to meet author Tracy Garrett since getting to know her when I interviewed her online last year, and soon-to-be-published-I-just-know-it Suzy Welsh from the Romance Bandits is a hoot and a half and it was nice to chat with her outside Sandy B’s group.  I also met author Jo Davis, who just had her debut book, Trial by Fire, released last week.  You know, I started talkin’ with a southern accent after spending time with all those Texas ladies!

My next highlight came when I met author C.L. Wilson.  We’ve been chatting online for the last year or so after the release of her first two books, Lord of the Fading Lands and Lady of Light and Shadows.  Her series of Fae and magic and flying jaguars has captured not only my imagination, but the world’s.  It was so enjoyable meeting this lady who has such a lyrical voice when writing, an imagination that takes you away into fantasy so that you never want to leave.  Cheryl is a delight.  She’s so friendly, open and honest, and getting to know her was a pleasure.  She also joined Sandy B. and me for lunch on our first day in San Francisco. Let me tell you, I haven’t laughed so darned much and so darned hard in a very long time.   Author Susan Edwards also joined us at lunch, along with several other friends, and a good time was had by all and another wonderful memory was made.

If you haven’t read Cheryl’s books yet, you should.  There’s very few authors out there who can string ordinary words together and make them sing like Cheryl.  The next two books in the series, King of Sword and Sky and Queen of Song and Souls,  are being released this October and February 2009, respectively.  Start now and I guarantee you will be mesmerized and anxiously awaiting those new release dates.

Then there’s the Goody Room that’s a highlight at every conference.  My heavens, what an oasis and/or cacophony, depending on how you look at it and when you were there, of activity and goodies that was.  And everything there was free!  Books, buttons, bookmarks, candy, ink pens, CDs enticing you with book excerpts, business cards and flyers advertising anything and everything, and so much more filled table after table throughout the room.  You had to be quick in that room too.  No thinking you can come back later and pick up whatever you were looking at.  No guarantees whatsoever.  You had to make quick decisions and stick with them!

The Literacy Signing on Wednesday night was almost ovewhelming.  500 authors just waiting for you to walk up, chat for a minute, and buy a book.  What reader wouldn’t be in heaven while in that room?  I met more authors there who I’d corresponded with online or had gotten a thank you for reviewing their book:  Melissa Mayhue, Nancy Haddock, Lorraine Heath, Jill Shalvis, Lisa Kleypas, Kresley Cole, Kathryn Smith, Lynda Sandoval, just to name a few.  Then there were the authors that I’d read and loved for so long and newer authors who have given me hours of reading pleasure: Shana Galen, Jennifer Ashley, Shana Abe, Susan Crandall, Marianne Stillings, Christina Dodd, Julia Quinn, Gena Showalter, Elizabeth Hoyt, Bonnie Edwards and the list goes on and on.  And so many more than I’ll ever be able to remember!  It was a spectacular night and all topped off quite nicely when we learned the next day approximately $60,000 had been raised for literacy.  Good show!

There were other book signings the last days of the conference, and I had been warned to take large totes, rolling and handheld, and to be prepared to ship box after box of books home.  Pffft.  We were able to drive to San Francisco, who needs to ship the books back home?  I did.  Four of them.  Four big, big boxes of books.  I’m glad I took all the advice given to me. I definitely went prepared and I’m sure I was a sight lugging all those books across that big old hotel for two days!

My last huge highlight was meeting author Melissa Mayhue for dinner at Bubba Gump’s on Pier 39 our last free night of the week.  What a lovely lady!  Not only is she a wonderfully talented author, Melissa is one of the sincerest, kindest people I’ve ever met.  And there’s something about authors and humor.  Twelve women together with writing in common and we laughed and laughed.  And laughed.  For several hours.  I made a few more new friends that night and hope to keep in touch in the future.

In fact, I made new friends throughout the entire week, even some from my area.  It was a great time to share experiences and knowledge and I’m so glad I was part of it.  It was a time in my life that will never be forgotten, even when I attend another conference in the future.  The first time is special and the people I met will always have just as special a place in my heart.

Oh, the writer in me?  Yes, I did go to workshops and I did learn some.  So maybe the next time I’ll have more percentage points on the writing part of it all.  I have a feeling, though, the reader in me will emerge once again because she just has to be part of the fun.

I had everything planned. Really, I did. Yeah, right. I had plans too. Besides meeting and chatting with all the authors I’ve gotten to know online over the past several years, I was going to write to ya’ll and let you know what’s happening. What’s stopped me? I forgot my wireless adapter for my laptop. Hmmmm. Do I have a brain? I thought my brain was intact and figured it would be so until I met my first real, live author. Maybe not. 

So I’m doing the next best thing. Paying for internet access at the Marriott. It’s better than nothing, which is what I’ve had for the last two days. Has it been worth it? Not having access to net? At all? You betcha!

I’ve had lunch with Sandy Blair and C.L. Wilson, chatted with Jade Lee, Jo Davis, Eve Silver, Caroline Linden, Jill Shalvis, Thea Devine and a multitude of other writing greats, dinner with Melissa Mayhue, chatted with aspiring authors like myself who have been nomiated for the Golden Heart, drinks with Tracy Garrett. I’ve listened to wonderful, humorous speeches by Victoria Alexander and Connie Brockway. I’ve gotten great advice from Elizabeth Hoyt and Susan Elizabeth Phillips so far. There’s still a boatload of workshops to choose from to learn so much more from those authors who I’ve admired for years. And there’s still the RITA and Golden Heart Awards Ceremony Saturday night to experience.

Talk about a dream come true. I never, ever thought I’d be doing any of this just a few short years ago. If I hadn’t listened to friends and decided to begin writing again, I wouldn’t have known RWA was going to be sorta in my backyard this year. Of course, I’m having fun more as a reader this week.

More than 500 authors were at the Literacy Signing on Wednesday night. OMG. Left and right, up and down aisle after aisle I saw Sabrina Jeffries, Cherry Adair, Jayne Ann Krentz, Lorraine Heath, Shana Abe, Stacey Kayne and so many more than my poor brain can’t even recall them all in one sitting. Who I couldn’t see because of all the people in line and surrounding them so you had to ask folks who they were in line for, Nora Roberts and Sherrilyn Kenyon just to name a couple. That’s okay though this time around. My noggin probably would have exploded if I’d seen them up close and personal!

Despite the tiredness and the sore feet, I’m in heaven. As usual, time is going way too fast and I’ll be headed home before I know it, but I’m going with a myriad of memories that will last me a lifetime. Usually when I come to San Francisco for a visit, I’m the common tourist roaming through Fisherman’s Wharf, Piccadilly Square, riding the cable cars, taking a crooked drive down Lombard Street, eating shirimp cocktails while watching waves roll across the ocean. Haven’t missed that a bit this time. And I won’t think of San Francisco in the same way ever again.

Time to go! Have more authors to meet! I’ll chat with ya’ll when I’m back home and recovered from the trip of my dreams!

Sandy M’s review of To Taste Temptation (The Legend of Four Soldiers, Book 1) by Elizabeth Hoyt
Historical romance released by Forever 1 May 08

I’m still trying to figure out why I didn’t just totally love this book. I’m known in these parts for loving practically everything I read. So while love is not the right word for me this time, I did like this book very much. I like the storyline, the characters, the romance, the mystery. But for some reason it stopped just short of me closing the book after reading the last page and having stars in my eyes while thinking, “Wow!”

The best part of the book is the hero. Samuel Hartley is a man who is haunted by demons from his past. During the French and Indian War his regiment is ambushed by Wyandot Indians and all but a few men perish. Sam has been branded a coward during the intervening years because of his seemingly hasty retreat as the fighting began. He’s never defended himself against these accusations, deciding instead to live a simple woodsman life in America until he receives information he and his men had been betrayed. He goes to England to ferret out the culprit and uses the ruse of introducing his sister Rebecca into society as a cover. Killing two birds with one stone, Sam goes to Emeline Gordon, a beautiful widow who teaches young ladies proper etiquette and whose brother died in the attack, thus giving Sam his own entree into society.

Lady Emeline is not impressed with the coarse and tactless American. But she certainly is attracted to him. Every single thing different about Samuel should rub her the wrong way, but it’s those very things that keep her thinking about him even when he’s not around. Emeline tries her darnedest to keep him at arm’s length with her cool hauteur and uppity attitude, but Sam relentlessly pursues her. It took me a bit to warm up to Emeline. She takes herself a little too seriously and definitely lives by the rules of society. But when she finally gives in and lets Samuel love her, the sparks fly like crazy. She still tries to push him away, though, and she nearly loses him. Silly woman. I’m glad she finally wised up and realized what she could have. I do like her relationship with her son. He’s definitely a “little man” and her love for him is quite palpable.

The emotion Samuel goes through is heart-wrenching. He literally has physical symptoms to fight when he encounters anything that triggers memories of the ambush. The scene between he and Emmie when he returns from his harrowing run after an especially frustrating time for him in his investigation is simply wonderful when she ministers first aid to his injuries, and the consequences of such actions and closeness is all consuming. Each and every intimate scene between these two characters is fraught with every emotion imaginable.

My second favorite character is Rebecca. She’s an engaging young woman on the cusp of experincing everything thrilling and frightening in life, but she faces it all with grace and intellect. I’m hoping the third book in the series, To Beguile a Beauty, due out in May of next year, is her book, and I look forward to her budding romance with O’Hare. I also enjoyed the parallel fairytale at the beginning of each chapter throughout the book; a different story but with the same moral as the book itself.

As much as I’ve gone on about the book here, there’s still something that holds me back from putting this one on my keeper shelf. I will definitely continue the series and I know I will enjoy them all. Maybe I just need to work my way up to “Wow!”

Grade: B+

Read Shannon C’s review here and Lawson’s here.

From the back cover:

EVEN THE MOST REFINED LADY
Lady Emeline Gordon is the model of sophistication in London’s elite social circles, always fashionable and flawlessly appropriate. As such, she is the perfect chaperone for Rebecca, the young sister of a successful Boston businessman and former Colonial soldier.

CRAVES AN UNTAMED MAN
Samuel Hartley may be wealthy, but his manners are as uncivilized as the American wilderness he was raised in. Who wears moccasins to a grand ball? His arrogant disregard for propriety infuriates Emeline, even as his boldness excites her.

TO RELEASE HER PASSION…
But beneath Samuel’s rakish manner, he is haunted by tragedy. He has come to London to settle a score, not to fall in love. And as desperately as Emeline longs to feel this shameless man’s hands upon her, to taste those same lips he uses to tease her, she must restrain herself. She is not free. But some things are beyond a lady’s control…

Read an excerpt.

Lawson’s review of To Taste Temptation by Elizabeth Hoyt
Historical romance released by Forever 1 May 08

I’m not ashamed of the fact that I read, loved and reviewed the three Prince books by Hoyt. She’s a talented writer with a gift for story and characterization. She had an interesting twist with how fairy tales were interwoven with the rest of the book. Starting a new series about soldiers from the French and Indian War has an interesting setting and time period, and I was anticipating this start to a new series from Hoyt. And what I found was. . .

. . . something that in ways was a repeat of what Hoyt has given before. Sure, there is good descriptions, tone, and characterization. There’s also fairy tales. Perhaps I’d hoped for some sort of different extra something to Hoyt’s new series, instead of going with another theme of using a fairy tale to help tell the story.

The soldier in the story is Samuel Hartley, a veteran of the 28th that was a hero in the French and Indian war. Some people say otherwise, however, but Sam doesn’t care for what people think. In fact he wears moccasins everywhere and doesn’t follow all the rules of polite society. He’s not in England for those sorts of things. He suspects his regiment was betrayed into a massacre and is searching for the traitor. Sam moves in next door to Lady Emeline Gordon, whose brother was killed at the massacre.

Emeline is a paid chaperone for untried ladies who need social polish to help them in social events. She is considered to be the epitome of English womanhood, always unassuming, quiet, stylish and nearly perfect. When Sam moves in, she’s not happy, though she enjoys the connection to the brother she lost. Her son takes to Sam quickly, but Emeline disapproves of his manners, his dress and his behavior. Sam tries to charm her, but she is always sniping at him. When Sam’s search for the traitor involves her fiancee, Lord Vale, things start to get complicated. But then the course of true love never did run smooth.

What Sam sees in Emeline is a mystery. Even what Vale could see in Emeline is not clearly seen. She’s judgmental, exacting, at times demeaning and narrow-minded. Though she does care for her brother in the need to know how he died, in every other way Emeline is not likable. Even at the end she’s thinking about her comfort, her needs and her social standing more than how much she loves Sam.

Sam seems to take Emeline in stride but it’s hard to see why he would even care for someone so selfish and unwavering in her belief in the benefits of London, society and the British way of life. What sparks are there between the two leads are fed more by the friction of their different personalities rather than any affection or perhaps caring on either side.

Lord Vale was a good character, a solid man who was dealing with his own issues but able to cope with Sam reappearing in his life. Sam’s sister Rebecca and her potential love story could make for a more interesting story than this one as she seems to be a more open, accepting and warm person than Emeline. Since this is the Legend of the Four Soldiers, are there to be four books in this series? If so, who would be the fourth?

Hoyt’s writing and characterizations are good as always, but Emeline was such a cold person it turned me off to other aspects of the story. Maybe I was spoiled by The Serpent Prince, but I’d hoped for a different tack than the fairy tales in the next series by Hoyt, and something else that matched the passion and emotion that Hoyt showed through Simon Iddelsleigh.

Grade: C

For a different view, read ShannonC’s review.

     Blurb: 

     The ton loves nothing more than a good scandal, and they’re giddy with the appearance of wealthy Samuel Hartley. Not only is he self-made, American, and in the habit of wearing moccasins, but he is also notorious for fleeing a battle in which several English gentlemen lost their lives. What the ton doesn’t know, though, is that Samuel is in Londonbecause of this massacre. He believes his regiment was given up to the enemy and won’t rest until he finds the traitor.

     Lady Emeline Gordon is captivated with Samuel. Not only does he defy convention with his unusual dress, his sensual smile, and his forthright manner, but he survived the battle that killed her beloved brother. Samuel suspects that the person responsible for her brother’s death is Jasper Renshaw, Viscount Vale, a family friend since childhood–and Emeline’s fiancé. Despite Emeline’s belief in Vale’s innocence and her refusal to break off her betrothal, she and Samuel begin a passionate affair. But can their relationship survive the fallout from Samuel’s investigation?

     Read an excerpt.

Shannon C.’s review of To Taste Temptation by Elizabeth Hoyt
Historical romance released by Grand Central 1 May 08

Somehow, despite the fact that everyone in the blogosphere absolutely adored Elizabeth Hoyt’s Prince trilogy, I had never read her until now. I’m so glad I chose to start here, because the story in To Taste Temptation is wonderful, with interesting, nuanced characters, a captivating plot, and a great love story.

I was mentioning in a discussion on a yahoo group I am on that one of the books I couldn’t finish recently was one involving an American heiress and an English rake. For some reason, that plot device struck me as totally cliched, even though I can’t recall actually having read any books with that premise. And yet I loved the idea of our hero, Samuel Hartley, being an American. Emeline Gordon, our heroine, on the other hand, does not. She finds him extremely gauche, what with his insistence on wearing moccasins and his tendency to flout the rules of polite society whenever he feels like it. And yet, she is intrigued enough to accept his request that she help introduce his sister, Rebecca, into society.

Sam is in England for other reasons entirely from that of introducing his sister to society. He is haunted by memories of the French and Indian war, when his regiment was attacked and slaughtered by Wyandott Indians. He ran from the battle, which has caused many people to consider him a coward and a deserter. He hasn’t answered those allegations until now, and now he wants to find the person he has reason to believe betrayed the regiment and bring them to justice so that he can put his own demons to rest.

I absolutely loved both Emeline and Sam. Sam in particular is the stronger character here, and Hoyt does a good job of portraying the horrors he goes through with his memories of war and what he does to combat his demons. My heart broke for him several times, and at the same time I was relieved that his angst didn’t cripple him.

Emeline is a good character, too, although I confess she didn’t quite work so well for me. I loved that she loved her son, (yet another happy, fulfilled widow YAY!), and when her own issues come out, they were completely understandable, but for a while there I really honestly didn’t get what Sam saw in her. She really had a stick up her arse through a large part of the book. But in the end, when Sam and Emeline come together, their passion is intense and explosive. Further, I believed in their HEA, because their dark moment before the end was fairly bleak and full of emotion.

I also liked the secondary characters. In particular, I loved the glimpses of Sam’s sister, Rebecca, and hope something comes of the crush she develops on a second character. I also really liked Emeline’s fiance. In most books he would have been a complete jackass, but here he was a great character, one I hope we see more of as the series progresses.

The story moves quickly, and I was engaged from first to last, and rooting for them all the way. I’m not entirely sure I was satisfied with the ending, because I wanted a full confession from the villain and not just an assurance that justice would be dealt with, but I suppose that’s where the next books in the series can pick up.

I am glad I decided to give Ms. Hoyt a try. This is definitely a series I will be following.

Grade: B+

     Summary: 

     EVEN THE MOST REFINED LADY
     Lady Emeline Gordon is the model of sophistication in London’s elite social circles, always fashionable and flawlessly appropriate. As such, she is the perfect chaperone for Rebecca, the young sister of a successful Boston businessman and former Colonial soldier.

     CRAVES AN UNTAMED MAN
     Samuel Hartley may be wealthy, but his manners are as uncivilized as the American wilderness he was raised in. Who wears moccasins to a grand ball? His arrogant disregard for propriety infuriates Emeline, even as his boldness excites her.

     TO RELEASE HER PASSION…
     But beneath Samuel’s rakish manner, he is haunted by tragedy. He has come to London to settle a score, not to fall in love. And as desperately as Emeline longs to feel this shameless man’s hands upon her, to taste those same lips he uses to tease her, she must restrain herself. She is not free. But some things are beyond a lady’s control…

      You can read an excerpt here.

Gwen’s review of The Serpent Prince by Elizabeth Hoyt
Historical romance released by Forever on 1 Sep 07

This book surprised me.  I read the excerpt and thought, “Oh look.  Nice, predictable historical.  Simple lass nurses wounded aristocrat, they fall in love and live HEA.”  So, I wasn’t in a big tearing hurry to read it.  Figured I’d get around to it eventually.  Well, I finally picked it up.  Holy crap.  Was I ever WRONG. 

This book was surprisingly unpredictable for me.  I read it in a day (thank goodness for Spring Break or I’d be looking for a job now).

We have talked about Hoyt’s Prince trilogy quite a lot on TGTBTU.  So much so, I only recently remembered I hadn’t yet read The Serpent Prince.  So yesterday, once I realized I was getting a bit burned-out on paranormals and contemporaries, I picked The Serpent Prince out of the TBR pile/mountain for a nice change of pace. 

Am I glad I did!  If you haven’t read this book yet, do not let anyone stop you on the way to the bookstore.  You must go buy it and read it.  Right now.  I’ll still be here when you’re done and you can share my gushing praise of this book.  G’head.  I’ll wait…

Are you back?   Finished reading it yet?  DIDN’T YOU LOVE IT?!

I don’t often get gushy over, well, anything.  I like to think I’m too pragmatic for “gush.”  You know – worldly older woman and all that.  But this book blew me away.

For those of you who didn’t heed my purchasing advice, imagine a formulaic historical turned almost completely on its ear.  What you thought would happen, doesn’t.  How you thought a character should act, won’t.  And the writing!  Oh my goodness, the writing!  I am soooo an author’s bitch if her/his writing is good. 

Let me share a favorite passage with you.  This is not long after the hero and heroine “meet” and they’re at dinner during Simon’s convelescence at Lucy’s house.  At the table are Lucy, Simon, Simon’s young friend Christian Fletcher (who I hope we get to see in his own book soon), and Lucy’s father Captain Craddock-Hayes.  The scene is being told from Simon’s POV, after Fletcher almost spilled some salacious beans about Simon:

     Good God.  “Surely that tale isn’t for a lady’s ears,” Simon hissed.

     Christian flushed, his eyes widening. “I only–”

     “But I enjoy hearing things not meant for my delicate ears,” Miss Craddock-Hayes said softly.  Her gaze challenged him until he could almost hear her seductive siren’s call:  Tell me. Tell me.  Tell me who you truly are.  “Will you not let Mr. Fletcher continue?”

     But the protective papa stirred, saving him from further folly.  “I think not, poppet.  Leave the poor fellow be.”

     His angel flushed, but her gaze did not waver, and Simon knew if he stayed here much longer, he would drown in those topaz eyes and bless the gods for his fortune even as he went down for the third time.

Holy crap.  I could read that scene over and over.  Especially now, knowing why he’s so tortured and, trust me, he’s legitimately tortured due to some really horrendous events and rumors.  I especially love that last sentence.  The book is chockablock with passages like that.  Hoyt really outdid herself with TSP.

Simon is urbane, smooth, sophisticated, vulnerable, tortured, and driven by devils of his own making.  He’s such a complex character that he’s perfectly paired with Lucy.  Lucy is Simon’s opposite when it comes to the negative side of his nature.   She’s intelligent, centered, calm, and pragmatic.  Everything he needs to find and keep his soul again.

The ending made me cry, smile, cry again, sigh, smile some more, and sigh again.  I loved this book.  I might even have to read it again and I NEVER read books twice in a row.  Just ask Syb.  But the writing was just so damn good.

Do not miss this book!  This and the other two Prince books, The Raven Prince and The Leopard Prince, are loosely related to each other thru some common chracters, but they’re all three standalone books.  And TSP is the best of the lot.  Best writing.  Most truly drawn characters who stay true to their motivation throughout the book. If you follow the earlier link to the TGTBTU posts, there’s an old post from Hoyt explaining the fairytale Prince theme – it was the perfect touch in this book.

Damn.  I’m gushing again.

Grade: A+

From the back cover:

     WHEN THE DEVIL MEETS AN ANGEL
     Country bred Lucy Craddock-Hayes is content with her quiet life. Until the day she trips over an unconscious man-a naked unconscious an-and loses her innocence forever.

     HE CAN TAKE HER TO HEAVEN
     Viscount Simon Iddesleigh was nearly beaten to death by his enemies. Now he’s hell-bent on vengeance. But as Lucy nurses him back to health, her honesty startles his jaded sensibilities-even as it ignites a desire that threatens to consume them both.

     OR TO HELL
     Charmed by Simon’s sly wit, urbane manners, and even his red-heeled shoes, Lucy falls hard and fast for him. Yet as his honor keeps him from ravishing her, his revenge sends his attackers to her door. As Simon wages war on his foes, Lucy wages her own war for his soul using the only weapon she has-her love…

     Read an excerpt.

I can’t even begin to tell you how much I loved The Serpent Prince by Elizabeth Hoyt. Well I can and I do have more than a few posts talking about it. It is the type of book I want everyone to read! So I have good news, Grand Central Publishing sent us FIVE, count ‘em, 5 copies to give away!!

You can read an excerpt here and another here. Elizabeth Hoyt talks about her hero, Simon Iddesleigh here. And you can find our reviews for all of her books at these links: The Serpent Prince, The Leopard Prince, and The Raven Prince.

So how do you enter the contest you ask? Comment on any of the posts in the paragraph above, or comment here and tell us your favorite Hoyt hero, heroine, book, cover art, scene, or line.  All comments submitted today, 9/11/07, thru midnight tomorrow (using comment time stamps), 9/12/07, are eligible.  Older comments will not be entered.

See how easy that is? One winner per household but you can enter as many times as you want.  Five winners will be chosen.

Elizabeth Hoyt, the wonderful and gracious author of The Serpent Prince, The Leopard Prince, and The Raven Prince, has written this Guest Post for The Good, The Bad, & The Unread.

We will also post a Hoyt contest later today, so check back with us. And now, without further ado, allow me introduce Elizabeth Hoyt!

—

Writing Simon Iddesleigh
by Elizabeth Hoyt

It’s the writer’s job to reveal her characters to the reader. Ideally, by the end of a book, the reader should be able to recognize a line of dialogue, a movement, a thought as coming from a particular character and no other. That really shouldn’t be all that hard, right?

The problem is that in order to reveal the character, the writer first needs to know that character.

At this point, the non-writers reading this are probably thinking that I’ve wandered off the path of reason and gotten tangled in the shrubbery of artistic idiocy. How can a writer not know the character she creates? Well, believe me, she can. Some characters hide behind foggy veils. The hero of my May [2008] release, To Taste Temptation, is Samuel Hartley and he’s one of those characters. He’d smile at me as I wrote (very cordially – he’s an easy going guy. Mostly) and say, “Am I really feeling sorrow here? Or is it anger-mixed-with-sorrow? Or maybe I’m just horny. I am a guy after all.”

Sam gave me fits.

Not so Simon Iddesleigh, the hero of my third book, The Serpent Prince. The moment Simon walked onstage in The Raven Prince as a secondary character I knew who he was. I knew how he portrayed himself on the surface and I knew that he was hiding three-fourths of himself from view, even from his best friends. Simon was a revelation. His language–his emotions–are so over the top at times that I would pause in my typing, stare at my computer screen, and wonder if I could really get away with a particular line.

Simon was – is – a writing gift. I hope you have as much fun reading about him as I did writing him.

Cheers!

Elizabeth Hoyt

—

Thank you, Elizabeth!!

Lawson’s review of The Serpent Prince by Elizabeth Hoyt
Historical Romance released by Forever on 1 Sep 07

I can’t help it so . . . SPOILERS! SPOILERS!! You have been warned.

Lucy Craddock-Hayes had accepted she’d have a quiet, country life most likely married to the local vicar. Her life and future change when she finds a naked man in her village. On the verge of death, she takes him home in hopes she can save his life, though she doesn’t know who he is.

Simon Iddesleigh, Viscount Iddesleigh, has been doing some bad, bad things and he’s gotten himself nearly beaten to death for his trouble. He’s been on a quest for revenge against a conspiracy, but it’s nearly cost him his life. Recovery in a quiet village with Lucy to watch over him is something Simon realizes he needs.

Simon is soon too much for country-bred Lucy to handle, with his city manners and dandyish fashion sense (red heeled shoes, my goodness!). Lucy falls hard for Simon, but when his attackers seek him out he returns to London to spare her life, but soon realizes he can’t live without her. Lucy’s love becomes something that he realizes he could lose if he continues on his quest for vengeance, but it’s something he’s come to depend on, far too much.

There is a definite dark, brooding tone to this book, even more so than The Leopard Prince. Where Harry Pye was out to prove he was better than his father in his idea of revenge, Simon is going out and doing the worst thing possible: he’s dueling and killing his opponents. And he’s doing it for the memory of a brother he didn’t even really like.

When Lucy enters his life, Simon doesn’t really know how to react. She’s innocent, caring and someone he knows that he can corrupt, but he’s drawn to her goodness and light in a way to banish his demons. For Lucy, Simon is sophisticated, urbane, charming, and everything she’s ever wished for, without knowing it. After meeting Simon, she knows that her quiet, simple country life isn’t enough and marrying the local vicar won’t make her happy.

What is best about this book is the contrasts and complements that Lucy and Simon bring out in each other. And their love and love scenes are something worth wishing for. The love scenes are steamy, erotic and amazingly caring. Because no matter how Simon feels about Lucy, his personal mission to kill those who killed his brother eventually is too much for her to bear. And he doesn’t blame her.

There’s this great scene at the end of the book, that I just can’t talk about because it would be too spoilery of me, and I just can’t do that. But it’s just so. . .heartbreaking, and breathtaking, and wonderful.

Though there are Hoyt’s traditional well drawn secondary characters, including Harry Pye and The Raven Prince’s Earl of Swartingham, it’s the Simon and Lucy story and they carry the plot so well, I didn’t want it to end. Though Simon’s young friend, who turns out to be the villain’s son, makes a wonderful naive foil for Simon’s cynicism, Lucy is his perfect match and when Simon realizes that. . .again. . .best scene at the end of the book.

Go get this one now. Though dark for many tastes, it is worth the read for the sweeping love story, the secondary story of Simon’s revenge and the steamy love scenes.

Grade: A

[edit from Gwen:  Sorry but "Harry Pye" still makes me giggle like an adolescent boy.  But I am GETTING THIS BOOK!  Like, yesterday!]

The Serpent Prince by Elizabeth Hoyt

WHEN THE DEVIL MEETS AN ANGEL

Country bred Lucy Craddock-Hayes is content with her quiet life. Until the day she trips over an unconscious man – a naked unconscious man – and loses her innocence forever.

HE CAN TAKE HER TO HEAVEN

Viscount Simon Iddesleigh was nearly beaten to death by his enemies. Now he’s hell-bent on vengeance. But as Lucy nurses him back to health, her honesty startles his jaded sensibilities – even as it ignites a desire that threatens to consume them both.

OR TO HELL

Charmed by Simon’s sly wit, urbane manners, and even his red-heeled shoes, Lucy falls hard and fast for him. Yet as his honor keeps him from ravishing her, his revenge sends his attackers to her door. As Simon wages war on his foes, Lucy wages her own war for his soul using the only weapon she has – her love…

I am sure it is very wrong of me, in oh so many ways to say this, but…

If you haven’t already, put this down on your TO BE BOUGHT AS SOON AS POSSIBLE list.

This is a flat out amazing read. The Serpent Prince is a darkly beautiful, morally questionable and erotically charged must be read novel. Simon and Lucy have a love that seems so hauntingly raw, you won’t know if you are envious or if you want to kiss it and make it better.

A few people will have a very hard time reading this maybe even more than a few. It is as violent as it is passionate, with two characters I did not want to leave. I am on a complete book high right now and the only complaint I would say I had was it ended.

Well there were a few other minor things but I will tell you about that later. But trust me. You want this book.

The ever delightful Elizabeth Hoyt has given us another excerpt to share with you! This follows the first excerpt, you can find here.

E * X * C * E * R *P *T

“I’ll not have him in my house,” Captain Craddock-Hayes pronounced, arms crossed over his barrel chest, feet braced as if on a rolling deck. His bewigged head was held high, sea-blue eyes pinned on a distant horizon.

He stood in the entrance hall to Craddock-Hayes house. Usually the hall was quite large enough for their needs. Right now, though, the hall seemed to have shrunk in proportion to the amount of people it held, Lucy thought ruefully, and the captain was right in the center of it.

“Yes, Papa.” She dodged around him and waved the men carrying her stranger further in. “Upstairs in my brother’s bedroom, I think. Don’t you agree, Mrs. Brodie?”

“Of course, miss.” The Craddock-Hayes housekeeper nodded. The frill of her mobcap, framing red cheeks, bobbed in time with the movement. “The bed’s already made and I can have the fire started in a tick.”

“Good.” Lucy smiled in approval. “Thank you, Mrs. Brodie.”

The housekeeper hurried up the stairs, her ample bottom swaying with each step.

“Don’t even know who the blighter is,” her father continued. “Might be some tramp or murderer. Hedge said he was stabbed in the back. I ask you, what sort of a chap gets himself stabbed? Eh? Eh?”

“I don’t know, I’m sure,” Lucy answered automatically. “Would you mind moving to the side so the men can carry him past?”

Papa shuffled obediently nearer the wall.

The laborers panted as they wrestled the wounded stranger inside. He lay so terribly still, his face pale as death. Lucy bit her lip and tried not to let her anxiety show. She didn’t know him, didn’t even know the color of this man’s eyes, he was a stranger to her, and yet it was vitally important that he live. He’d been placed on a door to make it easier, but it was obvious that his weight and height still made the maneuver difficult. One of the men swore.

“Won’t have such language in my house.” The captain glared at the offender.

The man flushed and mumbled an apology.

Papa nodded. “What kind of a father would I be if I allowed any sort of gypsy or layabout into my home? With an unmarried gel in residence? Eh? A damned rotten one, that’s what.”

“Yes, Papa.” Lucy held her breath as the men negotiated the stairs.

“That’s why the blighter must be taken somewhere else–Fremont’s house, he’s the doctor. Or the poorhouse. Maybe the vicarage–Penweeble can have a chance to show some Christian kindness. Ha.”

“You’re quite right, but he’s already here,” Lucy said soothingly. “It would be a shame to have to move him again.”

One of the men on the stairs gave her a wild-eyed look.

Lucy smiled back reassuringly.

“Probably won’t live long in any case.” Papa scowled. “No point ruining good sheets.”

“I’ll make sure the sheets survive.” Lucy started up the stairs.

“And what about my supper?” her father grumbled behind her. “Eh? Is anyone seeing to that while they rush about making room for scoundrels?”

Lucy leaned over the rail. “We’ll have supper on the table just as soon as I can see him settled.”

Papa grunted. “Fine thing when the master of the house waits on the comfort of ruffians.”

“You’re being most understanding.” Lucy smiled at her father.

“Humph.”

She turned to go up the stairs.

“Poppet?”

Lucy stuck her head back over the rail.

Her father was frowning up at her, bushy white eyebrows drawn together over the bridge of his bulbous red nose. “Be careful with that fellow.”

“Yes, Papa.”

“Humph,” her father muttered again behind her.

But Lucy hurried up the stairs and into the blue bedroom. The men had already transferred the stranger to the bed. They tramped back out of the room as Lucy entered, leaving a trail of mud.

“You shouldn’t be in here, Miss Lucy,” Brodie gasped and pulled the sheet over the man’s chest. “Not with him like this.”

“I saw him in far less just an hour ago, Mrs. Brodie, I assure you. At least now he’s bandaged.”

Brodie snorted. “Not the important parts.”

“Well, maybe not,” Lucy conceded. “But I hardly think he poses any risk, the condition he’s in.”

“Aye, poor gentleman.” Brodie patted the sheet covering the man’s chest. “He’s that lucky you found him when you did. He’d've been frozen by morn for sure, left out there on the road. Who could’ve done such a wicked thing?”

“I don’t know.”

“Nobody from Maiden Hill, I’m thinking.” The housekeeper shook her head. “Must be riff-raff down from London.”

Lucy didn’t point out that riff-raff could be found even in Maiden Hill. “Doctor Fremont said he’d be around again in the morning to check his bandages.”

“Aye.” Mrs. Brodie looked doubtfully at the patient, as if assessing his odds of living to the next day.

Lucy took a deep breath. “Until then I suppose we can only make him comfortable. We’ll leave the door ajar in case he wakes.”

“I’d best be seeing to the captain’s supper. You know how he gets if it’s late. As soon as it’s on the table I’ll send Betsy up to watch him.”

Lucy nodded. They only had the one maid, Betsy, but between the three women, they should be able to nurse the stranger. “You go. I’ll be down in a minute.”

“Very well, Miss.” Brodie gave her an old-fashioned look. “But don’t be too long. Your father will be wanting to talk to you.”

Lucy wrinkled her nose and nodded. Brodie smiled in sympathy and left.

Lucy looked down at the stranger in her brother, David’s, bed and wondered again, who was he? He was so motionless that she had to concentrate to see the slight rise and fall of his chest. The bandages about his head only emphasized his infirmity and highlighted the bruising on his brow. He looked so terribly alone. Was anyone worried about him, perhaps anxiously awaiting his return?

One of his arms lay outside the covers. She touched it.

His hand flashed up and struck at her wrist, capturing and holding it. Lucy was so startled she only had time for a frightened squeak. Then she was staring into the palest eyes she’d ever seen. They were the color of ice.

“I’m going to kill you,” he spoke distinctly.

For a moment, she thought the grim words were for her and her heart seemed to stop in her breast.

His gaze shifted past her. “Ethan?” The man frowned as if puzzled and then he shut his weird eyes. In a minute more, the grip on her wrist grew slack and his arm fell back to the bed.

Lucy drew a breath. From the ache in her chest, it was the first since the man had seized her. She stepped back from the bed and rubbed her tender wrist. The man’s hand had been brutal, she’d have bruises in the morning.

Whom had he spoken to?

Lucy shuddered. Whomever it was, she did not envy them. The man’s voice held not a trace of indecision. In his own mind there was no doubt but that he would kill his enemy. She glanced again at the bed. The stranger was breathing slowly and deeply now. He looked like he was slumbering peacefully. If not for the pain in her wrist, she might have thought the whole incident a dream.

“Lucy!” The bellow from down below could only be her father.

Gathering her skirts, she left the room and ran down the stairs.

Papa was already seated at the head of the dinner table, a cloth tucked in at his neck. “Don’t like a late supper. Puts my digestion off. Can’t sleep half the night because of the gurgling. Is it too much to ask for a dinner on time in my own home? Is it? Eh?”

“No, of course not.” Lucy sat in her chair at the right of her father. “I’m sorry.”

Brodie brought in a steaming roast beef crowded with potatoes, leeks and turnips.

“Ha. That’s what a man likes to see on his dinner table.” Papa positively beamed as he picked up his knife and fork in preparation for carving. “A good English beef. Smells most delicious.”

“Thank you, sir.” The housekeeper winked at Lucy as she turned back to the kitchen.

Lucy smiled back. Thank goodness for Brodie.

“Now then, have a bite of that.” Papa handed her a plate heaped with food. “Mrs. Brodie knows how to make a fine roast beef.”

“Thank you.”

“Tastiest in the county. Need a bit of sustenance after gallivantin’ all over the place this afternoon. Eh?”

“How have your memoirs gone today?” Lucy sipped her wine, trying not to think of the man laying upstairs.

“Excellent. Excellent.” Papa sawed enthusiastically at the roast beef. “Put down a scandalous tale from thirty years ago. About Captain Feather–he’s an Admiral now, damn him–and three native island women. D’you know these native gels don’t wear any– Ahurmph!” He suddenly coughed and looked at her in what seemed like embarrassment.

“Yes?” Lucy popped a forkful of potato into her mouth.

“Never mind. Never mind.” Papa finished filling his plate and pulled it to where his belly met the table. “Let’s just say it’ll light a fire under the old boy after all this time. Ha!”

“How delightful.” Lucy smiled. If Papa ever did finish his memoirs and published them, there would be a score of apoplectic fits in His Majesty’s navy.

“Quite. Quite.” Papa swallowed and took a sip of wine. “Now then. I don’t want you worrying over this scoundrel you’ve brought home.”

Lucy’s gaze dropped to the fork she held. It trembled slightly and she hoped her parent wouldn’t notice the movement. “No, Papa.”

“You’ve done a good deed, Samaritan, and all that. Just as your mother used to teach you from the Bible. She’d approve. But remember”–he forked up a turnip–”I’ve seen head wounds before. Some live. Some don’t. And there’s not a blessed thing you can do about it either way.”

She felt her heart sink in her chest. “You don’t think he’ll live?”

“Don’t know,” Papa barked impatiently. “That’s what I’m saying. He might. He might not.”

“I see.” Lucy poked at a turnip and tried not to let the tears start.

Her father slammed the flat of his hand down on the table. “This is just what I’m warning you about. Don’t get attached to the tramp.”

A corner of Lucy’s mouth twitched up. “But you can’t keep me from feeling,” she said gently. “I’ll do it no matter if I want to or not.”

Papa frowned ferociously. “Don’t want you to be sad if he pops off in the night.”

“I’ll do my very best not to be sad, Papa,” Lucy promised. But she knew it was too late for that. If the man died tonight, she would weep on the morrow, promises or no.

“Humph.” Her father returned to his plate. “Good enough for now. If he survives though, mark my words.” He looked up and pinned her with his azure eyes. “He even thinks about hurting one hair on your head and out he goes on his arse.”

Gwen’s review of The Leopard Prince by Elizabeth Hoyt
Historical romance published 1 Apr 2007 by Warner Forever

This historical romance is set in the 1760′s, primarily in Yorkshire, England and a wee bit in London. The hero is an everyman named Harry Pye. I know, I know… I died laughing, too, when I first read that name – and EVERY TIME I READ IT I snicker (sorry, Elizabeth – it is my inner Beavis & Butthead and not the “real” me).

The Leopard Prince is related to two other releases by Hoyt, The Raven Prince (released 1 Nov 06) and The Serpent Prince (release date 1 Sep 07)

Here’s the book blurb:

THE ONE THING A LADY MUST NEVER DO
Wealthy Lady Georgina Maitland doesn’t want a husband, though she could use a good steward to run her estates. One look at Harry Pye, and Georgina knows she’s not just dealing with a servant, but a man.

IS FALL IN LOVE…
Harry has known many aristocrats – ncluding one particular nobleman who is his sworn enemy. But Harry has never met a beautiful lady so independent, uninhibited, and eager to be in his arms.

WITH HER SERVANT.
Still, it’s impossible to conduct a discreet liaison when poisoned sheep, murdered villagers, and an enraged magistrate have the county in an uproar. The locals blame Harry for everything. Soon it’s all Georgina can do to keep her head above water and Harry’s out of the noose…without missing another night of love.

Read an excerpt.

This book was reviewed 17 April 2007 by Lawson. I picked it up recently and thought I’d add my voice to the fray.

The book’s premise is fun – independent and intelligent but a little scattered-brained spinster, Georgina (a.k.a. George), Lady Maitland, falls for her Yorkshire property’s land steward, Harry Pye (snicker). Harry, despite his best intentions, falls for George. Harry is well connected, and well educated, contrary to most outward indications and contrary to the way he is treated by nearly everyone but George. I felt for Harry Pye (giggle), I did.

By the way, Harry feels “Georgina” is too long, “George” is too masculine, and “Gina” is too common; so he decides to call her “my lady” in a very yummy, possessive kind of way. The scene where he decides this is very sensual and very intimate.

I want a Harry Pye for myself. (bwahahahahaha!!! sorry, sorry. I didn’t mean it. Sorry.)

What I didn’t like so much was the book’s length – just a couple of scenes too long, I think. And I was troubled by all of George’s dithering back and forth to London. She is too strong of a character to run away, and since she was already pursuing what she wanted (Harry), why on earth would she go to London just when things were looking up for her? It didn’t work for me and it felt like the author had to get the two characters to London to do the church scene. It felt too contrived.

All in all, however, this was a fun, sexy historical. I enjoyed George immensely and was tremendously gratified that she and Harry got their HEA. There’s a good villain(s) and some very good action. The end-of-book excerpt for The Serpent Prince has really whetted my appetite. I’m looking forward to its release in September.

Grade: B

As good as Elizabeth Hoyt’s first two books were, this is her best book yet. SEPTEMBER 2007! Mark it down. You can thank me later.

I’m the kind of person who packs three books when I go away for the weekend. There’s the book I want to read, there’s the back-up book (in case the first book fizzles) and there’s the book I should be reading. I also usually bring a PEOPLE magazine, but that’s a different story. (And don’t look at me that way. I’m merely reading the PEOPLE for the news, although recently I picked up a STAR and was shocked – shocked – by the trashiness of the articles. I may have to switch.) 

Ahem. Where was I?

Oh, yes, reading. I like to read. I think most authors do (I can’t imagine wanting to write if you don’t like reading.) I’m one of those horrible people who often have more than one book going at a time. At the moment I’m reading a vintage A.A. Fair paperback, Beware the Curves, which I found at my parents’ house and Karen Rose‘s latest, Count to Ten (in my own defense, I’d started Karen’s book a couple of weeks ago and then misplaced it. V. frustrating.) Other books I’ve read recently are:

Claiming the Courtesan by Anna Campbell

And Then He Kissed Her by Laura Lee Guhrke

Storm Front by Jim Butcher

Dark Lover by J.R. Ward

If This Bed Could Talk, an Avon Red anthology by Liz Maverick, Kimberly Dean, & Lynn LaFleur

Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay, followed immediately by

Dearly Devoted Dexter, by same

The Passion by Lisa Valdez

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw! by Agatha Christie

The last I probably read for the millionth time. Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers, and P.G. Wodehouse tend to be comfort reads for me.

The Leopard Prince by Elizabeth Hoyt

Oh, what about Harry? Harry Pye that is. Harry Pye made a brief apperance in The Raven Prince as a friend of the Earl of Swartingham. Harry is the land steward to Lady Georgina Maitland, at her estate in Yorkshire. Her estate also neighbors his most hated childhood enemy, Sir Silas Grenville.

As the story opens, George and Harry are stranded on a road since their carriage overturned and find shelter in an abandonded cottage. Their attraction starts here since this is the first time in the six months she has employed Harry that George has seen her steward as a man and not just a servant. When they make to George’s estate the next day the problem of sheep being poisoned on the neighboring estate becomes a problem, since Granville blames Harry.

George though, being a spinster of twenty-eight, has finally found a man that she wants in her life in more ways than one and makes a choice to spend the night with Harry, despite his fears.

Harry and George are such real characters and they drove the whole story. Harry is always concious of his social class. It’s one of the main things that Harry overcomes throughout the story. Harry and George’s relationship isn’t a secret and the townsfolk do what they can to protect Harry from the “aristo woman”.

George is not your normal aristocrat though. She’s single, she owns her own lands and she’s master of her own fate. Her male family members really have no say in her actions because she’s that independent. I know that’s not really historically accurate, but Hoyt makes it work. Both Harry and George have wonderful personalities and compliement each other, it’s no wonder when George makes some decisions at the end that could make the reader think “She’s TSTL”, it’s just a Georgian woman making due with her circumstances in 1760.
The writing style, the tone of the Leopard Prince show the growth of Hoyt from the Raven Prince and also show the greater depth of emotion that this story requires. Harry definitly had a harder childhood than George (and it’s slightly worse than Edward de Raaf of Raven Prince), but he’s a self made man with his own demons to fight.

After reading the Leopard Prince, I am now ready for The Serpent Prince and ready for what Elizabeth Hoyt has in store for us next. Be sure to stop by on Tuesday April 17th for our Guest Author day with Elizabeth Hoyt!

Grade: A

By now you might’ve noticed that I have a thing for fairytales. Actually, it isn’t just fairytales. It’s myths, legends, fairytales, and fables – and I love them all. How much, do you ask? So much that I once spent a week when I was in high school making a genealogical chart for the Greek gods. So much that I took a course in college on the fairytale (me and almost the entire football team – they were taking it for the “easy” grade.) So much that when I went to write my very first book I had to include a fairytale.

That book – The Raven Prince - has a continuing fairytale that begins each chapter. The fairytale is one I wrote myself, but you’ll probably find that it seems familiar. That’s because it’s partially based on the myth of Psyche and Eros (or Cupid). Now the main story in TRP is about an arrogant earl (what other kind is there?) and a poor widow who decides to defy convention by applying for the job of secretary to the earl. On the surface, the fairytale and the book’s main story would seem to have nothing in common – and yet if you look beneath the surface they do have similarities. Both stories have lovers that disguise themselves from their partner. Both stories have heroines who must find a way to heal a hurt in the hero in order to make true love work. There are other, perhaps subtler similarities, but I’ll leave those for you to discover.

In my second book, The Leopard Prince, I took a slightly different approach. In TLP the fairytale becomes part of the main story as the heroine tells the story to the hero over the course of the book. The fairytale is based on one by Howard Pyle which he included in his book, The Wonder Clock. Pyle’s fairytale is about a faithful servant who serves a cowardly king. I loved this story as a child! Not only does it turn fairytale conventions upside down – the servant ends up with the beautiful princess – but in Pyle’s beautifully illustrated book the servant has the most handsome classical profile which I spend quite a lot of time examining as a pre-adolescent. I liked putting the fairytale directly in the main story in TLP because as it is told, the biases of both George (the heroine) and Harry (the hero) are revealed. Remember that George is telling a story about a hero servant to Harry, who is her servant.

I used the same idea in The Serpent Prince (September 2007) only this time the hero, Simon, is telling the fairytale to the heroine, Lucy. Since Simon is such a clever man (or so he thinks,) he’s pretty much making up the story as he goes along. This fairytale is a Cinderella-type story with a shape-shifting magician who, of course, is not the hero – at least in Simon’s version. Lucy ends up having very different ideas, much to Simon’s confusion – and delight.

Fairytales are spyholes into a culture’s collective unconsciousness. They reveal what we dream about and what we fear deep in the dark of night. They follow patterns and arcs that are so worn with time that they’re almost burned into our psyche. Ask a child to tell you a story and you’ll find that she’ll probably start following a fairytale pattern without thinking. Once upon a time – the magician or trickster luring the innocent into another world – trials that come in threes – the magical object obtainedthe –  return to the ordinary world – and they lived happily ever after…

I don’t know which came first, the fairytale or our innate human way of telling a story, but I’m convinced that they are intrinsically linked.

I am sure you have heard of Ms Hoyt by now. Right?

Everyone?

You have purchased your copies of The Raven Prince and raved about it. It was very much the little historical that could.

I recall first posting about it some time in June of 2006. I had ran across her site, I want to say a few months before on Alison Kent’s site.

It sounded grand. It was histroical. The excerpt rocked. The reviews were pretty good for a debut author. You can read Lawson’s review here. The book seemed to hit the ground running.

And then things got a lil quiet as things tend to do after books have been out a few weeks and everyone is after the next big thing.

Then a little thing called word of mouth seemed to happen, a book that had been out for a while started to place again on bookscan. I even want to say her number rose on USA Today. A book that seemed to do pretty well, was doing REALLY well.

Go. Team. Historical.

Elizabeth has a grand voice. A wonderful historical feel to her plots wrapped up in fairytales. Her second book, The Leopard Prince, has now hit the stands and Hoyt is doing the rounds. She is shaking babies and kissing hands but best of all… she is gonna be here.

Go. Team. Hoyt!

Please join us on April 17th and we will see what kind of trouble we can get Elizabeth Hoyt in… the possiblities are endless… *g*

THE ONE THING A LADY MUST NEVER DO
Wealthy Lady Georgina Maitland doesn’t want a husband, though she could use a good steward to run her estates. One look at Harry Pye, and Georgina knows she’s not just dealing with a servant, but a man.

IS FALL IN LOVE…
Harry has known many aristocrats—including one particular nobleman who is his sworn enemy. But Harry has never met a beautiful lady so independent, uninhibited, and eager to be in his arms.

WITH HER SERVANT.
Still, it’s impossible to conduct a discreet liaison when poisoned sheep, murdered villagers, and an enraged magistrate have the county in an uproar. The locals blame Harry for everything. Soon it’s all Georgina can do to keep her head above water and Harry’s out of the noose…without missing another night of love.

Maybe if we are really good we can get more info out of her on her next book: The Serpent Prince. Or find out what she did to get such great covers.