Review: In the Dark With the Duke (Lost Lords of London Book 2) by Christi Caldwell

In the Dark With the Duke is the second book in Christi Caldwell's Lost Lords of London series. This wonderfully woven tale pairs Lady Lila March, who suffered greatly during the tragedy at Peterloo, and street fighter/Lost Lord, Hugh Savage. 

Both characters, deeply scarred, attempt to heal each other in unconventional ways. Both Hugh and Lila transform each other's lives in ways that only can be imagined by delving into this dark to light tale. 

In the Dark With the Duke by Christi Caldwell, is yet another triumph to her credit. A fan of darker romance, this story sated my appetite for the dark along with the build up to an perfect HEA. 

~KIMBERLY~

To Hold a Lady’s Secret by Christi Caldwell

The mistake that Lady Gillian Farendale made by attending a notorious masquerade, has finally caught up with her. Now her unfeeling parents want her to make things right, but doing that would destroy her spirit.

Gillian seeks out her childhood best friend, Colin Lockhart, one if the numerous  bastard sons of the Duke of Ravenscourt, for help. She is praying that the promise they made as children would finally be able to be fulfilled. When Colin, now a struggling private investigator in London is reunited with Gillian, things don’t exactly work out how Gillian thought they would and she is disheartened as well as desperate. 

As soon as Colin sends Gillian away, he regrets it. His past with her comes rushing back and he realizes that she still means more to him than is prudent for a Lady and a bastard.  Her desperation brings him to action and neither of their lives will ever be the same. 

Lady Gillian Farendale is one of my favorite of author Christi Caldwell’s heroines. She is matter of fact, she doesn’t blame anyone for her actions and take complete responsibility for decisions she has made, good or bad.  Despite the crime that was committed against her, she is strong and resilient and deserving of a bright future with a caring man. The one man she has been on her mind since she was a young girl getting into mischief, Colin Lockhart 

Colin Lockhart has been on his own since his banishment from the Farendale lands, caring for his sister and mother. Discovered on the streets by a brother, another bastard son, Colin picks himself up and sets out to create a new life for himself as a private investigator. He is consumed with his business and until Gillian reappears in his life, he is rather solitary in his existence, keeping a small circle of a few of the brothers and his beloved sister. He is considered to be common if not below that for being a bastard, but has more integrity, compassion and honor than any man in the ton. 

To Hold a Lady’s Secret is one of my favorite Christi Caldwell books to date. While some of the subject matter is not an easy one, the story is superb and getting to that prefect ending is just a marvel. This story is meaningful and compassionate and will stay with me for quite a while. Bravo Ms. Caldwell…

~KIMBERLY~

EARLY REVIEW: A Dark and Stormy Knight by Kerrigan Byrne

I want to begin this review by saying that Kerrigan Byrne is a talented genius and her writing fills my heart. I have honestly been waiting for Carlton Morley’s story for years and now it’s finally here and I am just so darn happy about it. I also have to say that Kerrigan Byrne’s publisher has really dropped the ball on this particular book being directly in their Victorian Rebels series. Sir Carlton Morley has always deserved his own story. He has been an integral part of the menagerie with the dark secrets that needed to come to light.    So I say a big bravo to Kerrigan Byrne for going ahead with A Dark and Stormy Knight, Morley’s story. Thank you for making me a happy reader!

The right proper and upstanding Chief Inspector Carlton Morley is after the killer of male prostitutes plaguing London. All of his spare time I spent in the roaming the dark and dangerous streets seeking clues in his task. A loner, Morley stalks those streets with an urgency only a few could possibly understand. 

 After the emotional let down of discovering that her fiancé is an unfaithful rogue, Penelope Goode decides to take one night of passion for herself before being thrown into the constraints of marriage to the unscrupulous lout. She wants to give her virginity to a man of her own choosing. To achieve this, she finds herself at Miss Henrietta's School for Cultured Young Ladies, where she was given a password to gain entrance into the garden of pleasures that awaits her.

Chief Inspector Morley, in disguise, is lead to Miss Henrietta's School for Cultured Young Ladies with his own agenda of crime stopping, but when a  stunning young woman literally stumbles over him, sparks fly and both of their worlds will be forever changed.

I prefer to stop here with my details of this story. This tale must be experienced individually and I strongly insist that you do. The anticipation of Carlton Morley finally meeting his match is pure exhilaration. Kerrigan Byrne uses her masterful understanding of the English language to spellbind her readers, and the reader is only too happy to be put under her spell. A Dark and Stormy Knight by Kerrigan Byrne is so worth the wait! 

~KIMBERLY~

Time to Blog... Time to Read

It has been some time since I have posted anything of substance on this blog. In this tumultuous time, I feel the need to share the direction that my brain has gone.

Most of you know that Book Obsessed Chicks is also my much loved book club as well as the blog and pages on social media. While my book club had been active before Covid-19, it’s been at a stand-still as much of everyone’s lives.

For me, the decline in my reading regimen began two years ago when I began working in a hospital affiliated Geriatric/Palliative office. At first, I was just completely exhausted when I got home and life got in the way. I used to read a book a day and now I read on a week or every other, if I am lucky. I also have retinopathy and reading print became a thing of the past as my Ipad and Kindle have become my primary source of reading as well as a new appreciation for audio books. While I missed the written word, I missed sleep more.

I began to watch television again, to my dismay, and hours were wasted on mindless entertainment. Since this quarantine and social distancing has begun, I am completely done with watching the news and all of these shows. I turned off the television about two weeks ago and returned to reading. It was a task at first, but with the help of my super talented and favorite authors, I am back into full swing and don’t want this reading binge to end. Instead of loneliness and separation, I feel fulfilled and relieved. At the end of a trying day in the office hearing about sick patients,  reaching  for my eReader is my salvation. Reading a good book, I can block out the insanity for a time. We al definitely need a respite from the current climate and I am so happy that I love books.

I am very lucky to have three adult children who understand my need to read and respect my space when I do delve into a tale. So stay home, stay healthy and read books!

The books that got me back to reading! It's been one exciting week! 

#BOC Must Reads: Every Bit a Rogue (The Ellinghams) by Adrienne Basso

When a young lady sacrifices her reputation to save a viscount, it’s the beginning of an extraordinary adventure in Adrienne Basso’s captivating Regency tale . . .
 
Jon Burwell, Viscount Kendall, knows what the gossips say about him. They claim he’s been a dejected, half-mad recluse ever since he was jilted at the altar. The simple truth is that Jon has thrown all the passion he once had for his fiancée into his latest mechanical invention. But his single-minded existence has lately been shattered by repeated encounters with Miss Emma Ellingham, his neighbor’s intriguing sister-in-law . . .
 
Painting and sketching have been Emma’s consolation since her own secret heartbreak. When she stumbles upon the viscount’s workshop, his machine revives her artistic imagination. The gentleman himself is even more fascinating—and deeply seductive. When Jon is accused of a crime, Emma risks her good name for his sake. But though the threat of scandal compels them to wed, only courage can overcome their pasts, and allow desire to transform into love . . .

Find out more about Adrienne Basso

GUEST REVIEW BY ELODIE NICOLI

When circumstances bring together two broken-hearted persons, do they get a second chance at love ...

I know, I often say this, Mrs Adrienne Basso is a new-author-to-me, so it is the blurb that caught my eyes. I love stories set outside ballrooms and people driven by pursuits far away the conventional ones.
I adored this book!
The story begins with Jon’s heartbreak rudely spread in front of everyone when he is left waiting at the altar by his selfish runaway bride.
After I might say lucky him as her character was portrayed as a spoiled brat, only thinking of herself and ready to deplete his coffers for her own enjoyment.
Still he didn’t saw her under this light so smitten by her colorful personality.
Why he retreated from society’s prying eyes to nurse his wounded heart and bury his mind in scientific fulfillment.
Emma suffered too from her own devastating heartache, the difference it was left a secret lingering only between herself and the man whom never returned her feelings. Still it affected her painting muse, shattering her will and need to express herself on paper and canvas.
So when unexpectedly it is reawakening when she stumbles upon Jon’s creation, whatever his rebuttal, she is drawn to him and his engineered machine.
I loved their straightforward personalities, they are honest and caring, thus their tale is one of a romance slowly filling their heart and mind, satisfying their bodies and without rush their need for more than what their firstly expected.
It was nice to see two people with a level head, they might make mistakes, still they give each other time to adjust, they rehearse before giving to doubt, they act maturely able to wait for the other to take the first step.

5 stars for this stirring lively romance of two people who never foresee love might just need a spark to ignite their heart and soul and it was awaiting them in corner.

I was granted an advance copy by the publisher Kensington, I preordered too my own.
Here is my true and unbiased opinion.