Veena’s review of The Bourbon Kings by J.R.Ward
Contemporary Romance published by NAL 28 July 15

It’s time to air my guilty secret and confess that I have not read Ms. Ward’s paranormal romance series, but for some reason this new series sparked my interest, for which I am grateful as I do definitely enjoy an excellent book wherever I can find one. Reminiscent of the ’90s TV serial Dynasty, the Bradfords/Baldwines appear to be as dysfunctional as the television Carrington family, along with, in my opinion, a nice touch of Gone With The Wind.  Wow!

Scion of the very rich and powerful billionaire family, Tulane should never have met and fallen in love with the head gardener Lizzie, but he did and it did not end well when Lane married a woman of his class to be the mother of his children. Having stayed away for two years from the massive family property, Lane is finally back just in time for the Kentucky Derby, the highlight of the year in the local area and a host of strange events that seem to point toward a massive financial cover-up.

As the story unfolds you, will be breathless at the pain and the treachery that comes to the surface, even as the rich and famous celebrate, dressed to the nines, drinking champagne, and playing musical beds.  Fortunately there are still genuine relationships that might survive after the storm has blown everything clean.  As the author introduces the cast of characters – the siblings Lane, Edward, Gin, Max; their significant others Lizzie, Sutton, Samuel T; and a host of supporting characters, I’m so looking forward to seeing more of them as the story continues to unfold.

Running like a golden river throughout the story are the various flavors of bourbon that gave the family their fame and fortune. This is a dark and smoldering book set against the backdrop of high society in the deep south.  I’m excited at the vast potential and can hardly wait for the saga to continue.

Grade: A

Summary:

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Black Dagger Brotherhood delivers the first novel in an enthralling new series set amid the shifting dynamics of a Southern family defined by wealth and privilege—and compromised by secrets, deceit, and scandal….

For generations, the Bradford family has worn the mantle of kings of the bourbon capital of the world. Their sustained wealth has afforded them prestige and privilege—as well as a hard-won division of class on their sprawling estate, Easterly. Upstairs, a dynasty that by all appearances plays by the rules of good fortune and good taste. Downstairs, the staff who work tirelessly to maintain the impeccable Bradford facade. And never the twain shall meet.

For Lizzie King, Easterly’s head gardener, crossing that divide nearly ruined her life. Falling in love with Tulane, the prodigal son of the bourbon dynasty, was nothing that she intended or wanted—and their bitter breakup only served to prove her instincts were right. Now, after two years of staying away, Tulane is finally coming home again, and he is bringing the past with him. No one will be left unmarked: not Tulane’s beautiful and ruthless wife; not his older brother, whose bitterness and bad blood know no bounds; and especially not the ironfisted Bradford patriarch, a man with few morals, fewer scruples, and many, many terrible secrets.

As family tensions—professional and intimately private—ignite, Easterly and all its inhabitants are thrown into the grips of an irrevocable transformation, and only the cunning will survive.

No excerpt available.