Opposites attract when the unconventional daughter of a Georgian duke strikes an unlikely bargain with a straight-laced family friend.
Lady Joan Wilde has been raised as the beloved daughter of the Duke of Lindow in spite of the fact that she is known to be illegitimate and no daughter of Lindow’s. The whispers about her parentage, juxtaposed with a loving and loyal family, have made her a bit wild. Her shenanigans have been harshly judged by the rigidly proper heir to the Duke of Eversley—Thaddeus, Viscount Greywick. Joan has grown up acting in theater productions with a traveling troupe that visits Lindow Castle every year but dreams of acting on a real stage before a public audience. Against his better judgment, Thaddeus, who's visiting Lindow Castle with his mother, agrees to help her perform in disguise as Hamlet in a nearby town. This plot brings them closer together, but Thaddeus needs to marry an unimpeachable lady to repair the reputation of his family and his title since his father has been living scandalously with his mistress and their children for decades. Joan’s illegitimacy and wild ways make her ineligible, especially if Thaddeus’ father carries out his threat to publicly challenge his marriage to Thaddeus’ mother so his son with his mistress can inherit the dukedom. James displays her signature humor, describing a society matron (named, delightfully, Lady Bumtrinket) as “the kind of well-upholstered English lady who glistens with rectitude.” In another laugh-out-loud scene, the dramatically dying Duke of Eversley is borne into the Lindow dining room on an ermine-draped litter. The Duke of Lindow goes on with his meal, the ultimate snub.
A story as wild as the heroine's family name and one that will reward romance fans who want a funny book about an unusual heroine.Pub Date: March 30, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-06-287807-6
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Avon/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 13, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
Categories: ROMANCE | HISTORICAL ROMANCE | GENERAL ROMANCE
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Packed with riveting drama and painful truths, this book powerfully illustrates the devastation of abuse—and the strength of...
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Hoover’s (November 9, 2015, etc.) latest tackles the difficult subject of domestic violence with romantic tenderness and emotional heft.
At first glance, the couple is edgy but cute: Lily Bloom runs a flower shop for people who hate flowers; Ryle Kincaid is a surgeon who says he never wants to get married or have kids. They meet on a rooftop in Boston on the night Ryle loses a patient and Lily attends her abusive father’s funeral. The provocative opening takes a dark turn when Lily receives a warning about Ryle’s intentions from his sister, who becomes Lily’s employee and close friend. Lily swears she’ll never end up in another abusive home, but when Ryle starts to show all the same warning signs that her mother ignored, Lily learns just how hard it is to say goodbye. When Ryle is not in the throes of a jealous rage, his redeeming qualities return, and Lily can justify his behavior: “I think we needed what happened on the stairwell to happen so that I would know his past and we’d be able to work on it together,” she tells herself. Lily marries Ryle hoping the good will outweigh the bad, and the mother-daughter dynamics evolve beautifully as Lily reflects on her childhood with fresh eyes. Diary entries fancifully addressed to TV host Ellen DeGeneres serve as flashbacks to Lily’s teenage years, when she met her first love, Atlas Corrigan, a homeless boy she found squatting in a neighbor’s house. When Atlas turns up in Boston, now a successful chef, he begs Lily to leave Ryle. Despite the better option right in front of her, an unexpected complication forces Lily to cut ties with Atlas, confront Ryle, and try to end the cycle of abuse before it’s too late. The relationships are portrayed with compassion and honesty, and the author’s note at the end that explains Hoover’s personal connection to the subject matter is a must-read.
Packed with riveting drama and painful truths, this book powerfully illustrates the devastation of abuse—and the strength of the survivors.Pub Date: Aug. 2, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-5011-1036-8
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2016
Categories: GENERAL ROMANCE | ROMANCE | CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE
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SEEN & HEARD
With captivating dialogue, angst-y characters, and a couple of steamy sex scenes, Hoover has done it again.
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After being released from prison, a young woman tries to reconnect with her 5-year-old daughter despite having killed the girl’s father.
Kenna didn’t even know she was pregnant until after she was sent to prison for murdering her boyfriend, Scotty. When her baby girl, Diem, was born, she was forced to give custody to Scotty’s parents. Now that she’s been released, Kenna is intent on getting to know her daughter, but Scotty’s parents won’t give her a chance to tell them what really happened the night their son died. Instead, they file a restraining order preventing Kenna from so much as introducing herself to Diem. Handsome, self-assured Ledger, who was Scotty’s best friend, is another key adult in Diem’s life. He’s helping her grandparents raise her, and he too blames Kenna for Scotty’s death. Even so, there’s something about her that haunts him. Kenna feels the pull, too, and seems to be seeking Ledger out despite his judgmental behavior. As Ledger gets to know Kenna and acknowledges his attraction to her, he begins to wonder if maybe he and Scotty’s parents have judged her unfairly. Even so, Ledger is afraid that if he surrenders to his feelings, Scotty’s parents will kick him out of Diem’s life. As Kenna and Ledger continue to mourn for Scotty, they also grieve the future they cannot have with each other. Told alternatively from Kenna’s and Ledger’s perspectives, the story explores the myriad ways in which snap judgments based on partial information can derail people’s lives. Built on a foundation of death and grief, this story has an undercurrent of sadness. As usual, however, the author has created compelling characters who are magnetic and sympathetic enough to pull readers in. In addition to grief, the novel also deftly explores complex issues such as guilt, self-doubt, redemption, and forgiveness.
With captivating dialogue, angst-y characters, and a couple of steamy sex scenes, Hoover has done it again.Pub Date: Jan. 18, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-5420-2560-7
Page Count: 335
Publisher: Montlake Romance
Review Posted Online: Oct. 13, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2021
Categories: ROMANCE | FAMILY LIFE & FRIENDSHIP | CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE | GENERAL ROMANCE | GENERAL FICTION
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