A spectacular read that takes the reader on a thrilling journey into the past. This author's incredible skill is evident in the fact that I was completely enthralled by the building of a staircase :)
When American heiress, Piety Grey, flees from her money-grasping mother and step-brothers, she runs as far away as she can - all the way to London. There she buys a house in desperate need of renovation and, discovering her handsome neighbor, Trevor Rheese, Earl of Falcondale, has experience as an architect, she does everything in her power to enlist his help, while he does everything in his power to push her away. So it comes as quite the surprise when Piety realizes she not only likes the grumpy man, but that she might in fact be falling in love with him.
Falcondale has one purpose: sell his home and leave England far behind. But when the beautiful Piety Grey comes crashing into his life, all his plans for the future are swiftly upended. No matter how much he wants to avoid getting involved in her life, he finds himself neck deep in her problems. Especially when her greedy relatives come to pester her. Falling for her was certainly not on his agenda. So when his own past becomes an immediate threat, she becomes a liability, forcing him to examine his heart and what he really wants for the future.
I thoroughly enjoyed this story. It was fun and engaging right from the start with compelling characters who spoke with their own distinct voices. Absolutely loved it!!!
Megan Frampton knows how to keep the pages turning and this new installment in her Duke's Daughters series is no exception.
Lady Olivia is hopelessly in love with Lord Carson and she is convinced he loves her in return. So when she proposes to him and he turns her down, she doesn't quite know what to do, besides persevere. She concludes that all she has to do is to prove herself worthy and he'll come around. Which means she needs a project - some way in which to help Lord Carson - and what better way is there than to make a respectable gentleman out of his illegitimate best friend by getting said friend engaged to a lady? Tenacious and optimistic, Lady Olivia is certain she'll succeed, even if it will require resisting a man whose kisses are oh so tempting.
Edward Wolcott knows Society only tolerates him because of his father's wealth. He is keenly aware that he will never be 'one of them'. But when his ailing father asks him to find a bride and Lady Olivia offers to help him do so, he decides to go along with it. For his father's sake, of course. Not because he wants to spend more time with a woman as lovely and tempting as Lady Olivia. She is after all in love with his best friend and would never consider marrying a bastard, which becomes a bit of a problem with Edward must acknowledge that he's done what he never intended to do and fallen in love with the lady himself.
This was a fun read with an incredibly kind-hearted hero who's trying to find his place in a world he doesn't fit into, and a heroine whose tenacity prompts her to fight for what she believes in, including the right to marry the illegitimate man of her dreams.
