REVIEW: THE SCANDALOUS DUKE TAKES A BRIDE BY TIFFANY CLARE

(Dangerous Rogues, #3)

Genre: Historical Romance (Victorian)

Cover Blurb

In this dazzling Dangerous Rogues novel, a daring and dangerously handsome duke will do anything for the woman he loves—even if it sparks a scandal.

FRIENDS AND LOVERS…

As a wealthy young widow, Lady Jessica Heyer must endure the closest of scrutiny and most wicked of rumors from society gossips. Their whispers would be utterly unbearable if it weren’t for her oldest friend, the Duke of Alsborough. Jessica knows she can always count on Hayden. What she never could have expected, however, is that he is deeply, madly in love with her…

TO HAVE AND TO HOLD

For years, Hayden has kept his longing for his beautiful friend Jessica a secret. But now that she’s finally free to remarry, will she be willing to take their relationship to a more intimate level? He’ll get his answer soon—at a glittering masquerade, where identities are hidden, hearts are open, and true love is unmasked…in a single, shameless act of passion.

♥♥♥♥♥♥

I have been waiting for Hayden and Jessica’s story and Ms Clare brings her Scandalous Rogues series to a close with this lovely friends-to-lovers story.

Hayden is such a wonderful hero. Beneath that very proper exterior beats the heart of a very passionate man. He has been in love with his friend Jessica for ten years but was too honourable to have told her of his feelings while she was married. Now her husband is dead, Hayden has every intention of claiming her for his own. I love how he respects, adores, cherishes and protects Jessica and will do anything to ensure her happiness.

Jessica spent eight years married to man who was cruel, abusive and humiliated her at every opportunity but she has still retained an inner strength. Even under the most tragic of circumstances, she refuses to give society the satisfaction of seeing any weakness. With everything she is coping with following her husband’s death, I can understand that she needs time to adjust to the knowledge that Hayden has harbored feelings for her for so long. I also understood her reluctance to accept hi marriage proposal. She fears that, if her darkest secrets are revealed, Hayden’s reputation would be irrevocably damaged and she couldn’t do that to him. I admired her for that unselfishness.

There are a variety of secondary characters who contribute to the action and drama… Lord Fallon’s treacherous valet, Miller, who may hold dark secrets about Jessica’s past, Mr Warren, heir to the Fallon estate, who clearly dislikes Jessica, the mysterious person who is writing malicious gossip in the Mayfair Chronicles and Lady Randall, Jessica’s unlikely champion.

Leo and Genny (Wicked Nights With a Proper Lady) and Tristan and Charlotte (Midnight Temptations With a Forbidden Lord) all make an appearance in this book because this story runs concurrently with events happening in the first two books. I think anyone who hasn’t read those books might find certain aspects of The Scandalous Duke Takes a Bride confusing and, therefore, I would recommend reading the series in order.

Memorable Moments

He and Jez had known each other for nearly a decade, and looking at her now, he didn’t see one ounce of the vibrant woman she once was. What he saw in her gaze was eight years of a miserable marriage weighing down on her soul.

♥♥♥♥

And there was the crux of it: in her eyes he would always be just a friend. She really did make him believe that opposites attracted, for there was nothing similar in their characters, yet he wanted her to himself. She’d always been brazen and daring, him steadfast and cautious. Yet he still wanted to protect and cherish her as his own. And he would.

♥♥♥♥

He put his jacket around her shoulders and wrapped her tight in the safety of his arms as he dropped to his knees behind her. She fought him with tears on her face and nothing more than sorrow and sobs in her voice. Her fists pounded at his arms, his hands.
But he didn’t let her go.
He couldn’t.
“Hush. It’s all right. I’m here for you.” His voice was jagged, raw with emotion.

♥♥♥♥

She felt like a wild bird stuck in captivity and under the scrutiny of too many eyes.

♥♥♥♥

“What do you want from me, Hayden?” “Nothing,” he whispered. “Everything. You make me question my every action and my every move. What I do know is that I want you and only you. I’ve always felt this way.”

♥♥♥♥

This was an engaging, poignant and sensual love story and a satisfying finish to this series.

REVIEW RATING:  4/5 STARS

SENSUALITY RATING:  HOT

Read June 2014

Dangerous Rogues series (click on the covers for more details):

  

 

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REVIEW OF THE PERKS OF BEING A BEAUTY BY MANDA COLLINS

(Ugly Ducklings #3.5)

Genre: Regency Historical Romance

Official Blurb 

The beautiful Miss Amelia Snow is not accustomed to being snubbed by the gentlemen of the ton. But when her mother dies unexpectedly, forcing Amelia to take employment as companion to a wealthy cit’s daughter, she quickly learns to play down her looks or risk losing her position. When her employers, the Smithsons, decide to throw a country house party, she is determined to fade into the background. But how can she when the Smithson’s guest of honor is Lord Quentin Fortescue, the childhood friend who stole her heart?

Younger son, Lord Quentin Fortescue, is far more interested in his host’s cotton mills in the north than he is in courting the man’s dim-witted daughter. But it’s the girl’s companion who makes him look twice. Years ago, Miss Amelia Snowe rejected his proposal without a backward glance. Quentin has molded himself into just the sort of man she’d have wanted back then, but is Amelia still the smug beauty who broke his heart? And can either of them risk their newfound positions to indulge the fiery attraction that burns between them?

★✩★✩★✩★

THE PERKS OF BEING A BEAUTY is a sweet and heartwarming story of redemption, forgiveness and second chances.

When I finished reading How to Entice an Earl, I was surprised that Manda Collins obviously intended to redeem the Ugly Ducklings’ arch nemesis, Amelia Snow. Amelia had been so despicable, I doubted Ms Collins could make me see her as a sympathetic heroine. Well, not only did I like and sympathise with Amelia but I truly wanted her to have her Happy Ever After!

All Amelia’s actions reveal a very different person…someone who has the courage to openly admit to Quentin the extent of her cruel, conniving behaviour. I could see her determination to be a better person in the way she cares about and guides Harriet and champions the cause of the mistreated maid, Mary.

I adore Quentin! I thought his initial reaction to seeing Amelia humbled was a very human one. Amelia had refused his proposal of marriage in favour of someone more important than a second son and so he enjoyed seeing her brought down a peg or two. Then he begins to see just how much effort she had made to atone for her sins and can’t help but admire her. He also comes to understand how much her behaviour was the result of her mother’s ambitions and why Amelia was so desperate to please her mother even at the expense of her own happiness. These revelations only serve to make Amelia more sympathetic and likeable.

Thrown together for the scavenger hunt, I enjoyed watching Amelia and Quentin regain that easy friendship they had once shared and the rekindling of their love seems such a natural progression.

I love the waltz scene where everyone thinks Quentin and Amelia are talking about horticulture but Quentin is talking about something quite different altogether!!

I also like the inclusion of two characters from Ms Collins’ new Wicked Widows series but blink and you might miss them!

This novella is a such a charming ending to the Ugly Ducklings series. I’m certainly looking forward to Manda Collins’ new series and already have WHY DUKES SAY I DO downloaded on my Kindle.

REVIEW RATING: 4/5 Stars

SENSUALITY RATING: HOT

Read August 2013

Ugly Ducklings series (click on book covers for more details):

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