Love, Untruths, and the Smuggler's Ruse
By Anne Shaw
Follow the gentlemen of the Tenet Club— an elusive group of noblemen that investigates crimes committed by the nobility—on a rousing journey of romance, suspense, and a guaranteed happily-ever-after.
Viscount Langdon is torn between duty and desire. After his father’s death, he has every intention of resigning from the Tenet club when he meets Mrs. Adare. The lively widow with a knack for trouble piques more than his curiosity, and he agrees to one last assignment.
Mrs. Elizabeth Adare is on a mission to bring a smuggler to justice, and nobody is going to get in her way, not even Lord Langdon. With the aid of the maddening, yet intriguing lord, she follows the clues to a troubling discovery; one that could expose her own secrets.
After the investigation takes an unexpected turn, Elizabeth must choose between revealing the truth of her past and losing Langdon or allowing a murderer to go free.
Genres: Regency Romance
Page Length: 276
MY THOUGHTS
Mrs. Elizabeth Adare is all too aware of the fact that Lord Randell runs a smuggling ring, but there is little she, herself, can do to put him to justice. With no intentions of sitting by and letting Randell and his men harass people any longer, she goes to the Tenet, a group of noblemen who investigate other noblemen’s crimes. And although she goes in search of Lord Stanton, she finds her help in a different Lord.
Lord Langdon planned on putting the Tenet behind him, that is, until Mrs. Adare, thinking he was Stanton, tries to convince him to help her in exposing the smuggling ring. He decides that one last mission isn’t too much of a hardship, especially when Mrs. Adare intrigues him so much. She is a widow with a mind of her own, and a mind she is not afraid to speak. She is stubborn and blunt, and he finds her alluring in a way he cannot deny.
But Elizabeth and Langdon struggle to work together. She is headstrong, knows what she needs to do, and will let nothing stand in her way. He tries his hardest to protect her, and constantly tells her what she should not do in attempts to keep her out of harms way. But Elizabeth refuses to be told what to do, and takes the lead in the investigation, whether Langdon likes her involvement or not.
Investigating the truth behind a smuggling ring and Lord Randell’s potential involvement ties in with life in London society during the Regency era. Langdon and Elizabeth attend balls, and communicate in the proper ways of a Lord and lady in public, while hiding their investigation, and their ever-developing feelings for each other. Langdon is the perfect headstrong, yet responsible, gentleman for a regency novel. He is the man that makes women swoon, whether in the fictional world, or while reading about him. It is more than likely that you won’t be able to stop yourself from falling in love with him. Elizabeth, on the other hand, is not the perfect woman to be living in the world of balls and following the rules of society. She would much rather be spending her time breaking into this office, or that room, and finding out whether the secrets held within the walls hold anything to help her in her investigation. They make an unlikely pair, and yet, the people around them can’t help but try and matchmake.
With such a hands-on investigation, and Elizabeth refusing to sit by and let the men sort things out, both Elizabeth and Langdon find themselves in some precarious situations, ones that make you shuffle forward on your seat as you read. There are multiple times that they are almost caught and found out, and, as a reader, you can do nothing but watch, wait, and hope that they go undetected and both make it out safely. But as more is uncovered, and Elizabeth and Langdon find themselves more intricately involved in the investigation than either of them could ever have foreseen, things grow more and more uneasy.
The relationship between Elizabeth and Langdon develops slowly, for both are scared to admit their true feelings for each other, both to themselves and to the other person. But even still, the smuggler isn’t the only one with secrets, both Elizabeth and Langdon have things that they are keeping to themselves, and as always, secrets that threaten to reveal themselves are the most dangerous kind.
This is a very easy book to lose yourself in. Once I started reading, I found it very difficult to stop, so much so that two nights in a row, I fell asleep while reading this book because I refused to stop reading and go to bed. While I was desperate to find out the truth behind the smuggling ring, and whether Randell would be brought to justice, I also didn’t want this book to end. I grew attached to the characters, especially Elizabeth, and the ending of the book only brought the loss of the characters I had come to love. That is the problem with such amazing books, you absolutely have to read them so that you know what happens, but you don’t want to finish reading them, because then the story will be over.
I absolutely adored reading this book. I will most definitely be checking out more books by this author, and I implore you to do the same.
EXCERPT
“Lord held me, you’re more foolish than I thought,” Langdon said under his breath, following her swaying hips as she moved to the table holding truffles. She was petite but curvaceous and his desire for her continued to grow to an uncomfortable state.
Light laughter floated on the air. “I may be foolish, but I am not deaf,” she said.
“No, I see you’re not.” Another couple got into line behind them, and he moved closer to Mrs. Adare. A stray lock of hair rested on her shoulder, and he curled his fingers to stop the need to push it aside. The skin of her neck was pale and tempting. Too tempting.
“I know if I could just see what accounts he has in town, I can piece where he is hiding the profits from the smuggling.”
Her adamant statement sent a grin to his lips. She was nothing if not persistent.
“You may not be deaf, but you don’t listen well, Mrs. Adare.” Nor did he listen well to his own common sense. She was supposed to be an assignment, but their dance had brought home an unexpected fact; he desired her more than he should. The lessen he’d thought he had learned with Maria had apparently not been harsh enough.
She lifted several truffles onto her plate, maneuvering the sweet to fit onto a crowded surface. Either she was hungry, or she had a weakness for chocolate. “I listen well enough. I wish you would give me the same courtesy.”
“That I don’t agree with you doesn’t mean I am not listening,” he said.
Anne Shaw is the author of both contemporary and historical romances. She lives in western Washington with her four-legged friend Larry, a quirky cat who stares at her for hours on end while she loses herself in a world where a sexy hero, and bold heroine face unsurmountable odds to reach the ultimate goal, a happily-ever-after. If you like rom-dramedies, then visit www.Anne-Shaw.com.
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