Veena’s review of Dangerous (Outcasts, Book 1) by Minerva Spencer
Historical Romance published by Zebra 26 Jun 18
Tales of Barbary pirates, concubines, harems, and visions of disobedient concubines stuffed into cloth bags and dropped into the golden horn fired my imagination when I visited the Topkapi palace in Istanbul. Ms. Spencer’s debut novel does a masterful job of blending the rigid expectations of a woman in regency England with the bright, colorful, and sometime dangerous life of a concubine in a sultan’s harem.
I would urge readers to check out the author’s website. I loved the picture of the regency ball that is her home page.
Seventeen years ago, Mia was kidnapped and sold into slavery to a sultan with a penchant for young girls. Now so many years later, she’s returned to the bosom of her blue-blooded English family who are not exactly happy to have her back, since she’s somewhat of an embarrassment that is hard to explain to the ton. Adam De Courtney, aka the murdering marquess, is persona non grata with the ton, but an acceptable alternative for Mia’s father.
Adam is fascinated not only with Mia’s beauty but also her embroidered tales to explain her seventeen-year absence from society. Poor Mia is losing a lot of enamel as she grinds her teeth when Adam starts to unravel her carefully told tale. For Mia, who is dealing with old and lecherous suitors, Adam is like a breath of fresh air who sets all her lady parts quivering.
Mia is completely unselfconscious, particularly with her body and sexuality, which is a refreshing change to Adam. Their off-the-charts chemistry certainly seems to be a positive indicator for the future, but, as it turns out, they’re both keeping secrets. And in Mia’s case it’s a sixteen-year-old son, heir to the sultanate. I enjoyed the touch of adventure and the wonderful cast of characters that I look forward to seeing more of in the next book.
Grade: B
Summary:
What sort of lady doesn’t make her debut until the age of thirty-two? A timeless beauty with a mysterious past—and a future she intends to take into her own hands . . .
Lady Euphemia Marlington hasn’t been free in seventeen years—since she was captured by Corsairs and sold into a harem. Now the sultan is dead and Mia is back in London facing relentless newspapermen, an insatiably curious public, and her first Season. Worst of all is her ashamed father’s ultimatum: marry a man of his choosing or live out her life in seclusion. No doubt her potential groom is a demented octogenarian. Fortunately, Mia is no longer a girl, but a clever woman with a secret—and a plan of her own . . .
Adam de Courtney’s first two wives died under mysterious circumstances. Now there isn’t a peer in England willing to let his daughter marry the dangerously handsome man the ton calls The Murderous Marquess. Nobody except Mia’s father, the desperate Duke of Carlisle. Clearly Mia must resemble an aging matron, or worse. However, in need of an heir, Adam will use the arrangement to his advantage . . .
But when the two outcasts finally meet, assumptions will be replaced by surprises, deceit by desire—and a meeting of minds between two schemers may lead to a meeting of hearts—if the secrets of their pasts don’t tear them apart . . .
No excerpt available.
