Kate Moore (1)

Jane Fawkener's father is missing and she is back in England after years in the Middle East with her father who worked for the crown in intelligence. All she really has is a small income and a book, "The Husband Hunter's Guide to London" to offer advice to finding a husband. She also has a protocol officer, Edmond Dalby, who hit rock bottom, was disowned and now works as a covert operative.
She doesn't know who to trust and when family tries to connect she wants them to be real, but at first they refused to help her. However accidents keep happening to her.
The romance was fun with characters that I cared about. I thought she was a bit too much fish out of water for the length of time she was in the Middle East still it was fun and I'd be interested in the sequels.… (lisätietoja)

*** 3.5 stars ***
This was my first book by this author and I was really looking forward to a steamy romance and confounding mystery. What I found was no steam, but a nice slow build of a romance – and I liked that. I liked that the characters didn’t jump into insta-lust, but they were definitely attracted to each other. I love the way Lynley came to respect Emily’s intelligence and cleverness before he really realized that he also loved her. The mystery was a good one as well with multiple villains and missing secrets that could plunge England into war.

Speaking of villains – there is one I just never figured out. I could not see his purpose nor could I see what he was trying to gain. Yes, he provided a misdirection for the plot, but he could still have had some ulterior motives in mind instead of just being . . . I can’t explain more without telling you who he is and what he does, but I think his motives should have been plainer – otherwise, there is no reason for him to have done what he did or even to be in the story at all. Maybe he'll play some villanous role in a future book.

Sir Ajax Lynley (I love that name) has agreed to work for a spymaster for one year. So far his assignments have been exciting, but fairly minor. Now, he has a task that affects the fate of England. If he cannot retrieve certain documents, England will be forced into war with Russia. Lynley has lived in Spain since he was a teenager and now that he has returned to be a spy, he needs to reenter society. He’s been trying to think of the best way to do that when the perfect opportunity drops right into his lap.

Lady Emily Radstock is fast approaching her twenty-ninth birthday and she is still unmarried and sees no particular reason to change that. However, her mother has other ideas and presents Emily with a book ‘The Husband Hunter’s Guide To London’. Since her mother was on her way to care for Emily’s grandmother, Emily couldn’t rail at her, so she heads over to her younger sister’s house to rant. As she says that she ought to marry the first imbecile she meets, she hears this masculine voice say, “I accept”.

She is dumbstruck – surely he can’t mean it and surely can’t intend to hold her to that. Yet he does. She knows he has to be up to something and she fully intends to find out what it is. As they spend time together she comes to like him – and she starts to figure out what is going on. Then, suddenly it hits her – he is a SPY. Yum, adventure – and she sorely wants to have an adventure so she happily joins him in his mission. She is, however, annoyed that she is only a quasi-partner – he doesn’t share everything with her. Yet, the one time he takes off on his own because he wants to protect her, it doesn’t end well for him.

I enjoyed this book even though I thought that it could have been a bit longer and better fleshed out in both the mystery and the romance aspects of the story. I'll look forward to the next one in the series - The Christmas Husband Hunt.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.… (lisätietoja)

“Blackstone’s Bride” by Kate Moore is a wonderful historical romance novel. Set in England in 1825, this novel has it all. I loved the hero, who was dashing, debonair, devilish, and determined. Lyle Massing, the Baron Blackstone had been captured by a Greek warlord, held for ransom, and finally let go. He was returning to England to try to retrieve his birthright, bring his mother and sisters back to their rightful place in society. He was enlisted as a spy for England by Goldsworthy who promised him money in return for one year and a day of service to the crown.

Violet Hammersly, who had been betrothed to Lyle before his Greek escapade, had broken their engagement when a salacious rumor was tattled all over London. Violet was not of the aristocracy, but her father was a well thought of banker. The two were thrown together again when Violet’s brother Frank went missing. Goldsworthy was sure that he was being held captive and Lyle was the secret agent who was sent to find him. Violet and Lyle began a false engagement again to be able to go about in society and learn of anything that would help find Frank. Violet was not shy and retiring. She was as bold and determined to help find her brother as was Lyle. I dare not say more because to do so would give away the plot…and it does thicken as you read on.

This story had no end of suspense. I was hooked by the first few pages. It was well written and deserves to be in my library. I heartily recommend this book.

I received a free Kindle copy of this book for my honest review from the publisher. The opinions expressed here are my own.

You can find my review on my blog:
http://wp.me/p2pjIt-2v
… (lisätietoja)