HIS EVERY KISS

Author: Laura Lee Guhrke ISBN: 006054175X 10/2004 HISTORICAL Publisher: AVON
Time Period: Post Regency - 1832

Notorious man ... Everyone knows about Dylan Moore -- his brilliant talent and his pleasure-seeking ways -- but no one knows the torment that lies beneath his reckless veneer. Only one woman gets a glimpse of the forces that drive Dylan's soul, a woman who haunts his dreams and evokes his passions as no other woman ever has before. Disgraced and destitute, Grace Cheval wantsnothing to do with the seductive man who desires her. When Dylan offers her a position as governess to his newfound daughter, she knows his true intentions are dishonorable. Yet she finds this charismatic man hard to resist, and she returns his passionate kisses with a fire that matches his own. Can Dylan dare hope that this proud, spirited beauty will melt the ice around his heart?

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

This is one book I seriously enjoyed. I picked it up, and before I knew it, I was on the last page. I've sat here thinking back on the story, trying to find something wrong with it, but I can't. It's about as close to perfect as Ms. Guhrke could come for the story. If I had any complaint, it would be that it was over too soon even though it runs close to 400 pages.

The story is about Dylan Moore, a brilliant composer who has not been able to write a single score since a riding accident left him with the excruciating affliction of tinnitus, which is a constant ringing in the ears. You can only imagine how dibilitating this is for a musical composer. Ms. Guhrke brings this through loud and clear with her character.

Grace Cheval is a violinist, the widow of a great French painter with whom she eloped at the young age of 17. Eight years later, she finds herself disowned by her family, penniless, disillusioned and struggling to make ends meet.

Knowing she would be a fool to pass it up, she accepts Dylan's offer to be his newly discovered 8 year-old daughter's governess—even though Grace knows he believes her to be his muse and desires her as his mistress. Grace fights to remember lessons learned about loving an artist as Dylan tempts her endlessly.

As I mentioned, this was a fantastic book. Laura Lee Guhrke has gained my interest as an author. If everything she writes is as well done, well rounded, and just different enough from all of the other books out there, I will have another author to add to my short list of favorites.

Sue Cloud