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3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
3.5 stars
A little ridiculous in some places but it was still a nice read.
A little ridiculous in some places but it was still a nice read.
I enjoyed this one, but the only thing keeping it from being a 4 star is that I don't feel it's really going to stand out for me in the long run. Outside the heroine being blind, I don't think any of the characters felt unique or really special. I didn't dislike really anyone either, no one was so stupid/awful/badly written that I hated them. SO, no time waisted, I enjoyed the book, and I will very likely read more of this author. :)
I liked this one a lot! The heroine, Lady Phoebe Batten, is the younger sister of the Duke of Wakefield and Lady Hero Reading, both of whom had their own books earlier in the series. All along, we've seen as Phoebe gradually lost her eyesight, and by the time of this book she's completely blind. Her overprotective brother has assigned a former dragoon captain, James Travillion, to be her bodyguard. Travillion was also a minor character in previous books, having led the hunt for the Ghost of St. Giles until an injury crippled his leg and forced him to retire from the army.
Phoebe is a sweet girl and gets along with everyone -- everyone except her ever-present guard, that is. He seems like the embodiment of all her frustrations with the circumscribed life forced on her by her blindness and by her brother's reaction it. To her Travillion seems humorless, dour, stuffy, and controlling, and she finds him irritating.
In truth, beneath his serious, world-weary and cynical exterior, Travillion has fallen for the pretty charge twelve years his junior, and his stiff, controlled manner hides both his affection for her and his passion to keep her safe from harm no matter what. He's smitten with her, but she literally can't see what's on his face when he's with her. His voice and his manner certainly seem to be nothing but curt and businesslike.
When Phoebe becomes the victim of a kidnapping plot, Travillion takes matters into his own hands and spirits her away to safety at his family's horse breeding farm in Cornwall, in spite of the fact that he hasn't been there in many years and has reasons for having stayed away. As they travel together and then settle for a short time at the farm, Phoebe gets to know the man beneath the gruff exterior, and Travillion finds he can't keep a professional distance from her after all.
I really enjoyed the whole premise of this story. Travillion is one of my favorite of the Maiden Lane heroes. He's honorable and stoic with hidden emotional depths. I love how dedicated he is to keeping Phoebe safe, and yet he's one of the few people who treats her as an adult woman with a mind of her own, instead of an invalid who needs to be taken care of like a child. And he's the one who finally understands Phoebe's need to have some freedom and autonomy, even if it means she might sometimes stumble and be hurt - physically or emotionally.
Phoebe herself has been such an endearing character all through the Maiden Lane series, and I grew to like her even more in this book. She's kind, intelligent, and deals with her disability pretty matter-of-factly. She's not a figure of pathos at all. Yes, it's a shame that she can't see and sometimes she regrets that, but she doesn't feel sorry for herself and she doesn't want other people to do so either.
I enjoyed the part of the story set in Cornwall and getting to know Travillion's family background. Hoyt is really good at making even small characters very real and worth caring about.
The villain of this book is Valentine Napier of [b:Duke of Sin|26804433|Duke of Sin (Maiden Lane, #10)|Elizabeth Hoyt|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1464745704s/26804433.jpg|46829059] fame, and he was definitely more villainous -- and seemingly nuts -- in this book than he was in [b:Darling Beast|19271097|Darling Beast (Maiden Lane, #7)|Elizabeth Hoyt|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1392183319s/19271097.jpg|27318281]. Val's sister Eve also played a part in the story and I enjoyed her introduction into the series.
All in all, one of my favorite Maiden Lane novels! It all worked for me.
Phoebe is a sweet girl and gets along with everyone -- everyone except her ever-present guard, that is. He seems like the embodiment of all her frustrations with the circumscribed life forced on her by her blindness and by her brother's reaction it. To her Travillion seems humorless, dour, stuffy, and controlling, and she finds him irritating.
In truth, beneath his serious, world-weary and cynical exterior, Travillion has fallen for the pretty charge twelve years his junior, and his stiff, controlled manner hides both his affection for her and his passion to keep her safe from harm no matter what. He's smitten with her, but she literally can't see what's on his face when he's with her. His voice and his manner certainly seem to be nothing but curt and businesslike.
When Phoebe becomes the victim of a kidnapping plot, Travillion takes matters into his own hands and spirits her away to safety at his family's horse breeding farm in Cornwall, in spite of the fact that he hasn't been there in many years and has reasons for having stayed away. As they travel together and then settle for a short time at the farm, Phoebe gets to know the man beneath the gruff exterior, and Travillion finds he can't keep a professional distance from her after all.
I really enjoyed the whole premise of this story. Travillion is one of my favorite of the Maiden Lane heroes. He's honorable and stoic with hidden emotional depths. I love how dedicated he is to keeping Phoebe safe, and yet he's one of the few people who treats her as an adult woman with a mind of her own, instead of an invalid who needs to be taken care of like a child. And he's the one who finally understands Phoebe's need to have some freedom and autonomy, even if it means she might sometimes stumble and be hurt - physically or emotionally.
Phoebe herself has been such an endearing character all through the Maiden Lane series, and I grew to like her even more in this book. She's kind, intelligent, and deals with her disability pretty matter-of-factly. She's not a figure of pathos at all. Yes, it's a shame that she can't see and sometimes she regrets that, but she doesn't feel sorry for herself and she doesn't want other people to do so either.
I enjoyed the part of the story set in Cornwall and getting to know Travillion's family background. Hoyt is really good at making even small characters very real and worth caring about.
The villain of this book is Valentine Napier of [b:Duke of Sin|26804433|Duke of Sin (Maiden Lane, #10)|Elizabeth Hoyt|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1464745704s/26804433.jpg|46829059] fame, and he was definitely more villainous -- and seemingly nuts -- in this book than he was in [b:Darling Beast|19271097|Darling Beast (Maiden Lane, #7)|Elizabeth Hoyt|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1392183319s/19271097.jpg|27318281]. Val's sister Eve also played a part in the story and I enjoyed her introduction into the series.
All in all, one of my favorite Maiden Lane novels! It all worked for me.
Mint az előző Hoyt regényeknél, érdemes tudni, hogy a történet az 1700-as évek közepén játszódik, méghozzá a negyvenes években, amikor még azért nem voltak annyira merevek a társadalmi rétegek közötti határok, éppen ezért megint külön élvezet, hogy nem csak az arisztokráciáról van szó, hiszen Trevillion is kisnemesi családból származik, aki kényszerűségből lett katona. Sőt a könyv egy részében pont egy ilyen vidéki lótenyésztéssel foglalkozó középkategóriás családot is megismerhetünk, ahol sokkal szabadabban lehet létezni. A másik dolog ami igazán jó Hoyt történetében a karakterek. Phoebe igazi harcos, aki tudja, hogy sose fog már látni, ugyanakkor utálja, hogy fogyatékosként bánnak vele és őrzik mint egy féltett porcelánt. Attól hogy vak még nem akar bezárva élni és feladni az élet olyan apró örömeit, amit még így is tudna élvezni, mint a séta, kertészkedés, tánc, lovaglás… de a bátyja mindentől óvja éppen ezért eleinte Trevilliont is az ő kinövésének tekinti és csak egy börtönőrnek, de hamarosan rájön, hogy a szilárd, állhatatos férfi ennél sokkal többet jelent neki. S innentől kezdve meg kimondottan meg akar még jobban ismerkedni vele, ezzel hihetetlenül zavarba hozva a testőrét. Közben Jamest már a kezdetektől elvarázsolja Phoebe lénye, de tisztában van azzal, hogy jóval felette áll, s amilyen becsületes alkat és amennyire kritikus magával szemben, amikor a nő igazi veszélybe kerül és nem ő menti meg, bizony a saját képességeiben is kételkedni kezd és visszalép a szolgálatból. Nagyon tetszett, hogy mennyire határozott nő volt Phoebe és az, hogy megrétette James talán az egyetlen a környezetében, aki elismeri, hogy ő vakon is teljes személyiség, szóval nem csoda, hogy egymásba szerettek 🙂 Külön élvezet volt nézni, ahogy ők ketten eleinte (meg az előző könyvekből már látva az alapállást) mennyire távolságtartóak voltak, aztán Phoebe kezdett rájönni, hogy James igazi kincs, érdemes megismerni, s utána már képtelen volt nem beleszeretni, közben meg a férfi ellenállt, pedig ő volt az, aki a kezdetektől vonzónak találta a lányt. Úgyhogy végül a Lady csábítja el a katonát, ami nagyon bájos volt.
Mint mondtam, a vidéki kiruccanás is jól illet a történetbe, egyedül a Phoebe-t fenyegető veszély lett nagyon felemásan lezárva, annyira belemelegedtünk a főhősök kapcsolatába, hogy a rejtély szál elsikkadt és a végén pikk-pakk meg lett oldva … ez levon egy kicsit a regény fényéből.
De amúgy így három könyv után is úgy gondolom, Elizabeth Hoytot érdemes olvasni a történelmi romantikát kedvelőknek, jómagam is várom a következő részeket, ahol még többet megtudhatunk majd Montgomery hercegről, aki továbbra is intrikusként mozog a háttérben.
Részletesen: http://olvasonaplo.net/olvasonaplo/2018/06/22/elizabeth-hoyt-szivembe-zarva/
Mint mondtam, a vidéki kiruccanás is jól illet a történetbe, egyedül a Phoebe-t fenyegető veszély lett nagyon felemásan lezárva, annyira belemelegedtünk a főhősök kapcsolatába, hogy a rejtély szál elsikkadt és a végén pikk-pakk meg lett oldva … ez levon egy kicsit a regény fényéből.
De amúgy így három könyv után is úgy gondolom, Elizabeth Hoytot érdemes olvasni a történelmi romantikát kedvelőknek, jómagam is várom a következő részeket, ahol még többet megtudhatunk majd Montgomery hercegről, aki továbbra is intrikusként mozog a háttérben.
Részletesen: http://olvasonaplo.net/olvasonaplo/2018/06/22/elizabeth-hoyt-szivembe-zarva/
As with all of Hoyt's books, I'm not sure which I liked more—the book itself or the little story told at the beginning of each chapter. Both were quite fascinating and I loved every minute! Looking forward to the next book quite eagerly. :)
Another in Ms. Hoyt’s Maiden Lane Series – the portion of the series that doesn’t focus much on the Lane itself. This is not one of those series that you need to read every book in order – though you might get a few characters confused.
This tale focuses on Phoebe, the younger sister of Maximus, a Duke and her body guard, Captain James Trevellion, a commoner from Wales. Due to an unknown affliction, Phoebe has been slowly losing her sight over the course of 4 years. Because he’s an overprotective nervous nelly, Maximus hires a bodyguard, Trevellion, to shadow her every move. Though Phoebe resents the coddling, she develops a flippant friendship with James, that slowly develops into more after several threats upon her life.
We were introduced to these two in an earlier book, and this one picks up about 6 months after Trevellion’s been watching her and the threats from unknown assailants increase. After a few too many attempted shootings and a kidnapping, James decides the only way to keep her safe is to take her away to his homeland Cornwall and lodge with his estranged family. While there we learn more about the many layers of James while we see Pheobe try to reclaim who she is as a person and to develop personal freedom.
It’s an enjoyable story – it’s great to see someone with a life challenge such as blindness demand to be treated as equal. Overall, it’s fine. Elizabeth Hoyt is an excellent writer, but this book doesn’t stand out among the series for me. Not the best, certainly not the worse. And yes, I’ll continue to read the series.
I did love the epic scene where she stands up against her brother “If I stumble, If I run into things and fall and hurt myself it’s because I can and I’m free to do so, Maximus.”
Finl note – really not sure why the title is “Dearest Rogue.” Nothing about our hero suggests he’s a rogue. Strange.
3.5/5 on the romance scale.
hi this series is still great just btw- Phoebe is a really charming heroine, and the Illini is a grunty dreamy hero who’s totally gone for her and I love it
The cover of this book is so cringy and I'm like embarrassed to have it on my blog but it really shows that you shouldn't judge a book by its cover! Or just that I make too many assumptions about these kinds of books, there really was a beautiful story-line aside from the romance. Phoebe Batten is blind and the sister of a duke, as such she has basically no freedom. Captain Trevillion is the man in charge of keeping her safe from everything to staircases to kidnappers- and she gets kidnapped quite a few times so be ready.
I like heroines who deal with tragedy and come out stronger because of it. Phoebe is blind and it's so sad but she honestly takes it so well. She's never really complaining, I mean she is in some ways but honestly who wouldn't complain more about her situation. She's pretty likable as a character because she doesn't really whine and she's so compassionate about others. Not to the point of stupidity though, I find that authors in this genre sometimes have a difficult time drawing the line, but Phoebe is honestly pretty ideal.
I took some stars off just because of the actually "evil" element of the plot. I understand why it was used as a motivator, Phoebe and Captain Trevillion would not have interacted as much as they did if it weren't for an imminent threat. But the actual danger part felt very weak and half-baked, it didn't feel all that sinister.
That being said, I feel like Phoebe finding her voice as the strong woman that she is what a good plot in itself. I didn't like all the extra stuff that was piled on top of that, but it doesn't change that I really do love her character. Would recommend for regency romance fans, it's cliche but with the added intrigue of her trials.
This review and all my others can be found at: https://aworldshapedbybooks.blogspot.com/
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is probably the quietest book in the Maiden Lane series, but it is delightful.