pretty good, loved the early automobile aspect of the romance and the race at the end, good characters ( )

I really enjoyed this book. The characters are so funny, and I really loved reading about the automobile. Alexandra cracked me up! She and Finn were just amazing together; the chemistry between them sparkled. I can't wait to read about everyone else. ( )

Won on Goodreads First Reads. Review to come.

Lady Alexandra Morley has fallen on hard times. After her nephew invests all the fortune into a single steam engine company that is faltering, Alexandra realizes she must take matters into her own hands to get back to her comfortable pampered life style. She decides on a year abroad in Italy.
Phineas Burke (“Finn”) is self-made wealthy inventor and bastard son of a courtesan and a noble man. He is disciplined, focused and science driven. Looking for a quiet escape where he can work on his new automobile without distraction he decides to take a year abroad in Italy. There he hopes that nothing will distract him from his work. Little does he know that a renters mix up will put him in close quarters with the one thing he cannot resist – the beautiful and stubborn Alexandra. When she takes interest in his automobile, Finn quickly falls for the bewitching lady. She becomes his fast assistant although her motives may not be entirely pure. Finn’s attractiveness and scientific nature is unlike any other man Alexandra has ever known. Although her main goal was to devise a plan to win back her fortunes, her heart keeps pushing her in another direction and into the arms of a man she knows she can never have.
With the race to develop a fast automobile at full throttle and millions on the line will Alexandra and Finn be able to work in close proximity in a haunted Italian castle without letting their hearts run away with them? Will Alexandra’s plan come back to haunt her?
This was an enjoyable romance with likable characters. The story is full of long days in the shop learning the details of automobile development and even longer nights of passion between the leading characters.
I think the story lost something in the narration – the fake Italian accents were hard to listen to at points. Some of the mistranslations were meant to be funny but just didn’t work as well in the audio version. The dialogue between Finn and Alexandra was done well as was the general reading, but the Italian accents proved challenging in this audio book.
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A turn of the century romance set in Italy. This was fun enough but fell flat in a couple of places. Just not something for me. ( )