A Novel with Thoughts and Ponderings

SHE TEMPTS THE DUKE

Author: Lorraine Heath ISBN: 9780062022462 2/2012 HISTORICAL Publisher: AVON
Time Period: Victorian 1844, 1856

She Tempts the Duke by Lorraine Heath
Three young heirs, imprisoned by an unscrupulous uncle, escaped—to the sea, to the streets, to faraway battle—awaiting the day when they would return to reclaim their birthright.

Sebastian Easton always vowed he would avenge his stolen youth and title. Now back in London, the rightful Duke of Keswick—returning from battle a wounded, hardened, changed man—cannot forget the brave girl who once rescued him and his brothers from certain death.

Lady Mary Wynne-Jones paid dearly for helping the imprisoned young Lords of Pembrook, and she remembers well the promise she made to Sebastian all those years ago: to meet him once more in the abbey ruins where they shared a bold, forbidden kiss. While Mary is now betrothed to another, a friendship forged with dark secrets cannot be ignored. Unexpected passion soon burns dangerously between them, tempting Sebastian to abandon his quest for retribution and fight for a love that could once again set him free.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS: 4 Rose Read

SHE TEMPTS THE DUKE is the first book in the new Lost Lords of Pembrook series featuring three brothers—twins Sebastian and Tristan, and younger sibling Rafe. Having lost their inheritance by means of a devious plot executed by their uncle when they were children, the three have returned to reclaim what's rightfully theirs, and in Sebastian's case, exact revenge. The series leads off with Sebastian's story, the rightful Duke of Keswick.

Coming from someone else's pen, this could have been just another romance novel featuring a physically and emotionally scarred hero and a heroine determined to save and love him. But if you put those characters and storyline under the creative writing strokes of the right author—in this case, Lorraine Heath—what starts out seeming as a "been there, read that before" type scenario becomes much, much more.

Ms. Heath delves into the special bond between Sebastian and Mary as children and then later in their adulthood, when the two reconnect after a long period of time during which Sebastian and his brothers have disappeared and everyone assumes they're dead—including Mary. This is where Heath's mastery of character development and the emotional whirls and eddies that drive them come into play, turning SHE TEMPTS THE DUKE into a real page turner.

However, even though I enjoyed this book, there are a few things that keep it from being more than a 4 Rose Read for me, the major item being the plot surrounding the villainous uncle. I felt it could have been more suspenseful, nor was I thrilled with the character's portrayal and actions in the overall scheme of things.

Despite that, SHE TEMPTS THE DUKE gets this trilogy off to a very good start, and I look forward to reading the next book in what looks to be a very enjoyable series.

Nancy Davis

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