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3.69 AVERAGE
3.69 AVERAGE
I've kind of already forgotten this book, which is probably not a good sign. But it was a good read, and the characters are grown-ups, which I like. There are lots of Secrets! but some of them make sense.
Have you ever read a book teetering on the edge of DNF? Little things bother you, such as choppy writing, too many side charcters because in a family series we must get to know each member of the family in every single book? Yet, you keep going because you like certain aspects of it (hey, who doesn’t love a red-headed heroine who’s a financial wizard) and you keep thinking it has got to get better. And then you get to the end and not only do you want to throw the book against the wall, you want to demand not only a refund but compensation for the time spent reading? If so – you can relate to how I felt about this book.
I’m not going to spend too much time recounting everything that bothered me, but it comes down to this – any book whose main message is “Let a man protect you because it will solve all your problems" is not for me.
Our heroine, the beautiful redheaded Lady Maggie, is the by-blow of a Duke who raised her as if she’d been born legitimate. Something has gone wrong in her life and despite the fact that she’s wealthy and drop dead gorgeous, has never married. She hides herself away at her estate. As the story begins, her purse, containing something very important,is stolen. She hires Lord Hazlit, an aristrocrat who hides that he’s actually an aristocrat for reasons that don’t make a lot of sense to me and who’s also a private investigator, to look into it.
He investigates and gets a bit stalkerish. Oh let’s not kid ourselves – a lot stalkerish. But they’re both fabulous people and of course amazingly attractive so clothing is removed and badonga donga ensues. That is not what made me want to smash my Nook.
As the story unfolds, we learn Lady Maggie has been assisting a young woman, whom we know is her sister even though the book stalls on telling us that. Maggie knows she needs to do something but refuses to reach out to anyone else for help because it will impact her family negatively and she trusts no one.
It is only when she trusts Hazlit that she is able to solve this problem. And that’s when the story goes off the rails.
I have no issue with her needing the assistance of another person to help her. In fact, if she’d been willing to seek others’ assistance life for her and her sister would have been a heck of a lot better much earlier. It’s the notion the author puts forth that Maggie simply needed to accept the protection of a man and all would be right with the world. Wow. Seriously.
Let me quote: “Men such as ours need to protect the women they ove, and we need to allow them this.”
So we have this fiercely independent, intelligent and savvy woman – who’s been doing it all wrong. She needs to let her man protect her.
Ugh. Yeah, I need to stop. What an awful mess.
I’m not going to spend too much time recounting everything that bothered me, but it comes down to this – any book whose main message is “Let a man protect you because it will solve all your problems" is not for me.
Our heroine, the beautiful redheaded Lady Maggie, is the by-blow of a Duke who raised her as if she’d been born legitimate. Something has gone wrong in her life and despite the fact that she’s wealthy and drop dead gorgeous, has never married. She hides herself away at her estate. As the story begins, her purse, containing something very important,is stolen. She hires Lord Hazlit, an aristrocrat who hides that he’s actually an aristocrat for reasons that don’t make a lot of sense to me and who’s also a private investigator, to look into it.
He investigates and gets a bit stalkerish. Oh let’s not kid ourselves – a lot stalkerish. But they’re both fabulous people and of course amazingly attractive so clothing is removed and badonga donga ensues. That is not what made me want to smash my Nook.
As the story unfolds, we learn Lady Maggie has been assisting a young woman, whom we know is her sister even though the book stalls on telling us that. Maggie knows she needs to do something but refuses to reach out to anyone else for help because it will impact her family negatively and she trusts no one.
It is only when she trusts Hazlit that she is able to solve this problem. And that’s when the story goes off the rails.
I have no issue with her needing the assistance of another person to help her. In fact, if she’d been willing to seek others’ assistance life for her and her sister would have been a heck of a lot better much earlier. It’s the notion the author puts forth that Maggie simply needed to accept the protection of a man and all would be right with the world. Wow. Seriously.
Let me quote: “Men such as ours need to protect the women they ove, and we need to allow them this.”
So we have this fiercely independent, intelligent and savvy woman – who’s been doing it all wrong. She needs to let her man protect her.
Ugh. Yeah, I need to stop. What an awful mess.
I am going to preface my thoughts about this book by saying that I did actually like it. I just want to get that out there because there may be times when it might sound differently.
Maggie Windham is an illegitimate daughter of the Duke of Moreland, however she has been formally adopted by the Duke and Duchess and so has grown up as part of the large extended Windham family. She has, however, always known that she is different from her brothers and sisters. She is both part of the family and set apart from it by the circumstances of her birth. She knows that, for her, there will be no brilliant marriage match and so she has instead sought to make herself completely independent. In doing so Maggie has shown good intuition when it comes to the making of money and so is independently wealthy.
Benjamin Hazlit is an investigator who has been hired to perform various tasks for Maggie's family. He too knows what it is like to be both part of and apart from his family and in this aspect, he and Maggie are a good match! Another reason for this is because Benjamin is a man with big secrets of his own, and Maggie has been hiding a very big secret from her family for years.
For further thoughts in relation to this book head to my full review at
http://www.theintrepidreader.com/2012/05/lady-maggies-secret-scandal-by-grace.html
Maggie Windham is an illegitimate daughter of the Duke of Moreland, however she has been formally adopted by the Duke and Duchess and so has grown up as part of the large extended Windham family. She has, however, always known that she is different from her brothers and sisters. She is both part of the family and set apart from it by the circumstances of her birth. She knows that, for her, there will be no brilliant marriage match and so she has instead sought to make herself completely independent. In doing so Maggie has shown good intuition when it comes to the making of money and so is independently wealthy.
Benjamin Hazlit is an investigator who has been hired to perform various tasks for Maggie's family. He too knows what it is like to be both part of and apart from his family and in this aspect, he and Maggie are a good match! Another reason for this is because Benjamin is a man with big secrets of his own, and Maggie has been hiding a very big secret from her family for years.
For further thoughts in relation to this book head to my full review at
http://www.theintrepidreader.com/2012/05/lady-maggies-secret-scandal-by-grace.html
Maggie was annoying stubborn, but Benjamin was rather adorable (and thankfully, persistent). Wasn't a fan of not getting Maggie's secrets until the middle-ish of the book -- made the book seem to drag and not easy to connect to her fear.
This was the free Nook book last week and it was a fun, well-developed romance with likable characters, a strong female lead, and a hero you could fall for.
It was way too long and unfolded really slowly. Conversely, the ending seemed very rushed. I have read a few books by this author. I think I have only really liked one of them. Time to find a new author to read.
A little confusing, character-wise, separated from the rest of its series, but still okay.
This book stressed me out. Maggie was an idiot.
The characters are complex and well wrought. I usually skip sex scenes, these I did not skip. The story was suspenseful with a gratifyingly sweet conclusion on multiple levels. I got this as a free Nook book selection a few weeks ago. After being kept up reading (something that seldom happens to me any more) I've bought the whole series.
Ms Grace knocks it out of the park again. On a dreary, aching cold spring day, with some desperately needed moisture spitting and pounding down, this story was exactly what I needed by the fire with hot cocoa and feline warming wrap (torso, shoulder, feet, repeat cycle).
Each Windham sibling is unique, each future spouse is also uniquely their match, and find their way to each other in fresh ways. Nary a cliché to be found.
Delightfully we get to learn more about their Graces; and there is just enough brotherly assistance (interference) to keep the heroine assured she's loved and readers glimpses of the brother's busy living their HEA.
Maggie is a Treat. Intelligent, independent, loyal, caring. Not once does she devolve into the combative blue-stocking role or into helpless damsel in distress. She risks, she trusts in thoughtful steps, considers how her statements will impact the hero, her family, herself even. Her evolution from determined solitude to happily affianced is believable.
The sex scenes are done with spare prose. No rampant, turgids, fluids, screaming or such. Besides refreshing to read they also communicate the actions and emotions are very intense and private between two people that value those traits.
St Just is still my fav, with Lord Val a hair's breadth behind in second place. Don't miss this Windham sister finding her HEA, or any of the Windham's. Being part of this family would make the lack of hot showers and burden of corsets worth it.
Each Windham sibling is unique, each future spouse is also uniquely their match, and find their way to each other in fresh ways. Nary a cliché to be found.
Delightfully we get to learn more about their Graces; and there is just enough brotherly assistance (interference) to keep the heroine assured she's loved and readers glimpses of the brother's busy living their HEA.
Maggie is a Treat. Intelligent, independent, loyal, caring. Not once does she devolve into the combative blue-stocking role or into helpless damsel in distress. She risks, she trusts in thoughtful steps, considers how her statements will impact the hero, her family, herself even. Her evolution from determined solitude to happily affianced is believable.
The sex scenes are done with spare prose. No rampant, turgids, fluids, screaming or such. Besides refreshing to read they also communicate the actions and emotions are very intense and private between two people that value those traits.
St Just is still my fav, with Lord Val a hair's breadth behind in second place. Don't miss this Windham sister finding her HEA, or any of the Windham's. Being part of this family would make the lack of hot showers and burden of corsets worth it.