A caveat ... my review is completely biased. I live daily with this "madness" in my own home.

I can't tell you how uplifting and just downright fantastic it was to stumble across a hero living successfully despite obvious challenges. Ian is most certainly dealing with Asperger's - a form of high-functioning autism. My youngest son faces the same challenges as Ian and is blessed with that incredible gift of memory. He can't abide overly warm water or hair cuts (they hurt), can be overwhelmed by crowds, yet has been instantly memorizing maps and dates from history books from toddlerhood.

And Beth. What strength of character to not only live with the quirks but to understand them! I adore Beth. I hope my son is able to someday find someone as strong & understanding as she to share his life with.

Get around all of the particulars and you still find an engaging story that was quite good in itself and ever-so-well-written. It could have easily been such a disaster via misread signals and overthinking. The directness was refreshing. Well done!

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A wonderful & moving story, but the secondary mystery plot pretty much dominated the last quarter of the book, and as far as mysteries go, this one is not all that interesting. Still a VERY good love story, which I can definitely recommend, and very hot, but the last few chapters are just a bit of a letdown. The heroine does the typical nitwit putting herself in danger to solve the mystery thing, which is beyond annoying to me. It's ultimately plausible though, because the hero is so vulnerable, and given who he thinks actually committed the murders, it makes sense that his chief concern would be in keeping the heroine safe & well away from trouble - making him uncooperative with her efforts in solving the mystery - while she would feel compelled to remove suspicion from him. I gave it an A- for a slightly less than perfect resolution, but it's still right on the edge of keeper territory. I think it sets the stage for the upcoming sequels exceedingly well and I'm looking forward to reading them.
Grade: A-
Sensuality Rating: R

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I can't remember ever reading anything by this author before, but I will definitely put her on my "watch" list. This was a hauntingly beautiful story that kept my attention from the very beginning. I adored the main characters for being so straight-forward in their feelings almost immediately. (Unlike so many heroes/heroines who can't seem to figure out what they want.)

This book was on someone else's wish list so I have already mailed it to another member. I'm beginning to think it might should have stayed with me...

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Wow. A sensual and emotional book laced with mystery and thoughtful prose.

Jennifer Ashley writes of Ian MacKenzie, the youngest of the MacKenzie brothers who was institutionalized in childhood due to his "madness". Today we would say he has Asperger's Syndrome. He's unable to look people in the eye, he doesn't like crowds, he's almost an idiot savant with photographic memory and brilliance with numbers.

His counterpart is Beth, a woman widowed just a year into her marriage, who has known no man in nine years. She's a fantastic, strong female lead in a category of romances where women seldom have a personality outside of their relationship with the men.

Jennifer Ashley brings these very different people together and makes the pages sizzle. The point of view of Ian, his inability to deal with emotion, groups of people talking, noise, his intense focus - it is so well thought out and imaginative.

A truly wonderful historical romance that I'll read over and over.

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I liked the characters. The plot and story line were interesting and had some refreshing new twists. It had some good steamy sex woven in but I thought the story started to drag a bit in the middle of the book. It picked up towards the end and overall was an enjoyable read.

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Ian spent part of his childhood in an insane asylum. He is very intelligent (he remembers everything, among other things), but very socially awkward (he has Asperger's). Ian helps his brother, a Duke, when it comes to reading documents, etc. Beth was happily married before her husband died. After his death she was a companion to an older lady. She becomes a heiress when the companion died.
I really enjoyed this book. Ian and Beth are so perfect together. I thought she really "got" him. I also liked this family. I'm intrigued by the MacKenzies. There's Hart (a duke), Cameron (he was married and his wife tried to kill him and newborn son- he has a scar on his face from her. Son is Daniel), Mac (married to Isabella- they are separated and have been for 3 years or so- hinted that Mac had a drinking problem and that is why Isabella left him-most likely more to story).

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What a fantastic book all the way around! The author did such a great job, I don't know where to begin. Read it!

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I loved this book it's one of my favorites. It has a little of everything in it sad funny but not over the top. And you can't help but like the hero and the heroine. I have read very few books where I liked them both.

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Put in an asylum as a child and given inhuman treatments for his "madness", people now whisper that Lord Ian MacKenzie is a murderer. Beth Ackerley doesn't believe he would hurt anyone. Yes, he is very anti-social, lacks eye contact and sometimes shows no emotions. But Beth sees another side of Ian and defends him against his critics. Soon she is investigating the murders of two prostitutes, hoping to keep Ian from hanging for murders he did not commit.

I put off reading this book because it just didn't sound like something I would like. Now I wish I had read it sooner. Ian has Aspergers Syndrom, a form of high-functioning autism. Beth is a woman who grew up in the slums, but has made something of herself. As Ian and Beth's relationship grows, we see that they are perfect for each other.

I found the mystery in this book to be interesting, if not really a surprise. And, I enjoyed the other members of the MacKenzie family. I'll definitely be reading the next book in the series. My rating: 4.5 Stars.

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I definitely enjoyed this novel! It is refreshing to find a hero who is not traditionally "perfect". The mystery element was so-so...I could have done without that in favor of developing Beth and Ian's relationship more, and that of Beth's relationship with Ian's family. All-in-all, a great read!

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