Eleanor Hardwick and Max Quinton shared one night of incredible passion…that was shattered the next day, when Eleanor learned of a bet placed by Max’s friends. Now, five years later, Max still can’t get Eleanor out of his head or his heart. He has a single chance to make a second impression—one that will last forever.
The Second Seduction of a Lady (The Wild Quartet 0.5) by Miranda Neville
Oh, I loved this novella, and for these reasons: #1 reunion story, #2 skilled author, #3 maturity in both characterisation and characters’ actions, #4 the author knows England, and it shows.
The Second Seduction of a Lady has been sitting on my to-read list for years, but I rarely have the time to read for fun when I’m so overwhelmed with review books.
Set in the late Georgian era (a generation before the Regency), this is apparently an introduction to a series, but it reads as a complete story in its own right, and you’d never know it was anything else.
There is something… I can’t explain why some historical romance authors are different; I wish I could. These smart, damaged, historically accurate characters are the reason I read this genre nonstop, even though these features are becoming harder and harder to find.
Some reviews have complained about the heroine’s anger, but I am GLAD the author went that way, and – honestly – it was hardly anything. Female leads are NEVER allowed their deserved anger, whereas we always seem to let male leads get away with almost anything they say or do.
Imagine even now, when virginity is not (at least where I live) the prized possession it was 2.5 centuries ago. Imagine finding out the man you thought you’d marry had seduced you on a bet. That everyone knew what was going on.
Yes, the hero took one look at her and decided he really wanted to marry her. However, he still betrayed her. She earned that anger.
I also really liked that the very young secondary female character wasn’t turned into a cliché. She was young, naïve, desperate to be in love no matter what, and screwed up pretty badly (as did her young lover). But they were good people nevertheless.
What I REALLY disliked were the multiple comments that the heroine – at thirty – was somehow on her way out, with a falling apart body. References to her droopy boobs and her flabby stomach, for example.
She must have some pretty terrible genes, because I don’t know anyone who’s sagging and on her way out at thirty!
Anyway – and apart from that – I loved this story.
Despite being a novella, it reads as a complete book. And I am glad I was bored on the weekend and decided to mine by 600-book to-be-read list for something I’d skipped over in the past.
**(At $5 in Australia for a novella, I never want to see overseas readers complaining about book pricing ever again!)**
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