Very original, both in writing style and plot! Ivory's writing is so lush and rich in description. This is not a book you want to rush through, but savor every paragraph. She spends at least a page describing the hero's winter fur coat, and by the end of it not only will you be craving the coat, but somehow she's also revealed a lot about the character of the man wearing it.
The heroine, Emma, is a widowed Yorkshire sheep farmer, but once upon a time her and her first husband ran confidence games. Although she's long been reformed, Emma still has that little quirk in her character that can't resist trouble. So when she can't get legally compensated for the loss of a sheep that was run over my Stuart's coach, she decides to run a little confidence game on the hero. Stuart, Viscount Mount Villiars, has just become Viscount upon the death of his father. He hated his father so much that he's spent years in Turkey, Russia, and anywhere as far away from him as he could get. He's now returned to settle the estate, which is in a huge financial tangle, thanks to an uncle who tried to steal his inheritance.
When these two meet, they seem like an unlikely couple, but the fireworks start almost immediately. Stuart is gorgeous, exotic and strong-willed, and he unexpectedly finds himself attracted to the twists and turns of Emma's mind, as well as her body. Both of them are extremely tricky and clever, so they are evenly matched, and throughout the book they take turns getting the better of each other. Stuart pretty quickly figures out what Emma's game is, and he recruits her to run a little confidence game of his own.
The love scenes are intense, sometimes a little bit kinky, and funny all at the same time. At the end, it was touching the way they both put their hearts on the line, and risk everything for love.
Another bonus was I learned a lot about Victorian era confidence games. I can't believe this author never came across my path before. Her writing has so much feeling, humor, and great character development. I will definitely read more by her!
The heroine, Emma, is a widowed Yorkshire sheep farmer, but once upon a time her and her first husband ran confidence games. Although she's long been reformed, Emma still has that little quirk in her character that can't resist trouble. So when she can't get legally compensated for the loss of a sheep that was run over my Stuart's coach, she decides to run a little confidence game on the hero. Stuart, Viscount Mount Villiars, has just become Viscount upon the death of his father. He hated his father so much that he's spent years in Turkey, Russia, and anywhere as far away from him as he could get. He's now returned to settle the estate, which is in a huge financial tangle, thanks to an uncle who tried to steal his inheritance.
When these two meet, they seem like an unlikely couple, but the fireworks start almost immediately. Stuart is gorgeous, exotic and strong-willed, and he unexpectedly finds himself attracted to the twists and turns of Emma's mind, as well as her body. Both of them are extremely tricky and clever, so they are evenly matched, and throughout the book they take turns getting the better of each other. Stuart pretty quickly figures out what Emma's game is, and he recruits her to run a little confidence game of his own.
The love scenes are intense, sometimes a little bit kinky, and funny all at the same time. At the end, it was touching the way they both put their hearts on the line, and risk everything for love.
Another bonus was I learned a lot about Victorian era confidence games. I can't believe this author never came across my path before. Her writing has so much feeling, humor, and great character development. I will definitely read more by her!
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