The third searing novel in the Rules for the Reckless series by Meredith Duran, the USA Today bestselling author of sexy and evocative Regency romances in the tradition of Sarah MacLean.
Catching the Lady Red-Handed
Born to a family of infamous criminals, Lilah Marshall has left behind her past and made herself into the perfect lady. Working as a hostess at Eveleigh's, London’s premier auction house, she leads a life full of art, culture, and virtue. All her dreams are within reach—until a gorgeous and enigmatic viscount catches her in the act of one last, very reluctant theft.
Chasing One Red-Hot Passion
Christian “Kit” Stratton, Viscount Palmer, is society's most dashing war hero. But Kit’s easy smiles hide a dark secret: he is haunted by a madman’s vow to destroy anyone he loves. When his hunt for the enemy leads to Everleigh’s Auction Rooms, he compels Lilah to help him. But one tempting touch may be their undoing—for what Kit needs threatens all Lilah holds dear, and losing her may destroy Kit.
MY REVIEW:
Lady Be Good by Meredith DuranMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Lady Be Good by Meredith Duran is a 2015 Pocket Books publication. I was provided a copy of this book as an XOXpert- The official street team of XOXO After Dark.
How is it that I have not read anything by this author previously? Well, now that she is on my radar, I will be adding more of her books to my TBR list.
Lilah comes from a family of thieves, but it is her greatest wish to live a decent, honest life. That goal means ever so much more to her now, since she wishes to honor her sister's memory. But, her uncle is still holding onto her, trying to keep her down. So, after finally breaking free of him, she finds she must perform one last job to keep anyone from finding out who she really is.
Enter Viscount Palmer, Christian Stratton, who catches Lilah in a compromising position and uses it to his advantage. In order to get what she needs, Lilah must spy on the woman Christian wishes to marry, in hopes of winning her over.
As many who follow my reviews can attest to, I have been struggling with historical romance novels as of late, and actually stopped reading them so often as a result. So, it was very refreshing to have been introduced to this series.
This story is a fun read, but it's not filled with fluffy silliness about poor rakish rogues and Dukes and arranged marriages. This story has well defined and developed characters with some meaty issues to attend to.
The chemistry between Lilah and Christian sparkled from their very first interactions with each other. The author teases us with their flirtation building the tension between them with sharp witty dialog and by putting them an unusual situation, with Lilah trapped by Christian's blackmail.
Christian is a conflicted man trying to avenge the death of his brother and protect his family. He's riddled with guilt and often feels unworthy of this reputation as a war hero. He can be gruff and unyielding at times, but is was so fun watching Lilah wrap him around her little finger.
The secondary characters were also a well defined and I found Catherine to be quite an interesting character. I hope to see a book dedicated to her because I think there is still a lot to know about her and it would be fun to see someone try to win her over romantically. I would also like to see an update regarding Christian's sister someday.
Naturally, I must complain about a few modern terms and phrases slipping through the cracks, but it only happened a couple of times. The first part of the story was a little sluggish at times, but once the characters and the various threads began to take shape, the story became quite absorbing, filled with action, intrigue and of course some steamy romance.
Overall, this is a charming and delightful historical romance, quite refreshing and original. 4 stars
