Review and Giveaway: Lord Rakehell

Lord Rakehell by Virginia Henley

Publication Date: 11/05/2013
Publisher: Penguin Group
Imprint: Signet Eclipse
Genre: Historical Romance
Pages: 432
ISBN-10: 0451415027
ISBN-13: 978-0451415028

(Received for an honest review from Signet Eclipse)

Purchase: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, IndieBound

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Excerpt from Lord Rakehell, courtesy of Amazon's Look Inside feature.

Synopsis:

Some men thrive on scandal.

Lord James Hamilton, heir to the Duke of Abercorn and newly appointed attendant to the young Prince of Wales, is in no rush to find a wife and take on a more responsible life. A lover of all things pleasurable, James has earned his reputation as a rakehell of London. But when a feisty beauty piques his interest, James finds himself obsessed with learning more about her, and even contemplates making her his own.

Lady Anne Curzon-Howe has long been besotted with her dear friends’ handsome elder brother, James—ever since the moment he compared her to a wild Irish rose. While Anne has many suitors, the elusive James is the only man who draws her fancy. But Lord Hamilton’s rakish ways are notorious for a reason, and convincing him to love only her will be an incredible—albeit rewarding—challenge....

Thoughts:

Virginia Henley has written many historical romance novels that have pleased fans for years. Her latest novel, Lord Rakehell is no exception. It is a romance filled with lush imagery, details of life at court, and a poignant romance. Henley's ability to transport the reader back in time is amazing, as well as, her well thought out plot points and her knack for character development. Readers who are looking for a good romance by a well known author need look no further, Lord Rakehell is just what they are looking for!

This is actually the first novel I have read by Virginia Henley, so I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Henley has sold a lot of romances and readers have great praise for her writing. The beginning of the novel was somewhat tedious and it took awhile to get down to the romance, but once you got there, Henley did an amazing job of bringing the characters to life and giving the reader a reason to be interested in them. 

Henley's writing style is very descriptive and she brings the court of Queen Victoria to vibrant life. Her characters are very well written in the fact that readers will feel like they are a part of the story, experiencing the feelings of Anne and James right along with the characters. That is not an easy feat and Henley pulls it off with style.

Lord Rakehell has a good but somewhat predictable plot. However, Henley puts and unexpected spin on it that readers will find engaging and worth their time to read. James Hamilton is heir to the dukedom of Abercorn and attendant to the Prince of Wales. He notorious for his womanizing ways and has no intentions of settling down. But a kind word from his past has drawn the attention of Lady Anne Curzon-Howe. When Anne and James meet a misunderstanding occurs that completely changes the direction of their relationship. James mistakenly believes she is the mistress of a friend and see's no exception to his rakish ways in trying to garner her favor. 

Anne lets James continue to wrongly believe that she is a mistress and not a lady for some time. When it is finally revealed to him that Anne is really a lady and an attendant of the Princess of Wales, he is so far taken with her that he is willing to give up his worldly ways to woo her. I thought Henley did a fantastic job of turning the story on it's end by using a bit of psychology on the hero. Anne was offering him what he wanted in a sense, an uncomplicated arrangement. But it was anything but what he believed it would be. This was a wonderful plot point that will win over fans in a heartbeat. 

Lord Rakehell may take a bit to get to the good part, but when it does readers will be glad they stuck it out and waited to see what happened. I loved Henley's descriptions of Queen Victoria's court and all of the behind the scenes facts that the reader learns about court life and the goings on in the public eye, as well as, behind closed doors. It was informative as well as entertaining and added a lot to the overall plot. There were a few instances when the heroine spoke in a more modern way than I expected, but that was a minor thing in comparison to the overall story. I thought the romance was tender and romantic and I am looking forward to reading other books by the author.

Lord Rakehell is available NOW from your favorite bookseller.

I'm giving this one 4 out of 5 apples from my book bag! 

About the Author:

New York Times best-seller Virginia Henley is the author of 30 lush and lusty historical romances and 5 short stories. Her books are published in 16 languages around the world. She is the recipient of a dozen awards including a Lifetime Achievement Award from Romantic Times, A Maggie Award for Excellence from the Georgia Romance Writers, and a Waldenbook Award for top-selling long historical for 1994.

Giveaway Details:

The publisher is sponsoring a giveaway for one copy of Lord Rakehell by Virginia Henley.

~ You must be an email subscriber to participate.
~ US Addresses only.
~ The deadline to enter this giveaway is Midnight EST, December 5th.

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