eyes.2c Reviews

Scandalous Ever After  (Romance of the Turf #2) by Theresa Romain Certainly this Romance of the Turf story took a different direction. Old yearnings, death and mysteries play out between Wales and Ireland. Lady Kate Whelan  was widowed when her husband was killed in a steeplechase race. She's the daughter of a Welsh racing baronet, Sir William Chandler. Kate had been married to an Irish Lord,  Conall Ritchie Durham, the late fifth Earl of Whelan. Con's  best friend was a Welshman, the laconic, humorous Evan Rhys, a noted antiquities expert. I loved Romain's turn of phrase, such as when she described how Evan and Con first met and the pranks they got up to.   As Con states, it was from a ' trellis of such events ... did their friendship cling and grow.' Evan has been in love with Kate since he first met her. They had been the best of friends. Evan however has not seen Kate since Conall died, two years ago. He blames himself for Con's death....

Passion Favors the Bold (Royal Rewards #2)   by  Theresa Romain     Georgette Frost is a delightful force of nature.   Lord Hugo Starling thinks he's rescuing her from a hare brained plot to try to find the gold sovereigns stolen from the Royal Mint. What he's doing is miring himself even more deeply in her scheme. Georgette's world turns upside down when she reaches twenty-one, which is very soon. She plans to find her brother Benedict and the gold and start a new and glorious life. Benedict we met in Fortune Favors the Wicked.  Boarding a coach disguised as a boy is quite in order.  As an avid reader Georgette knows that, ' Many the blue-blooded heroine of a conte de fée had disguised herself to escape the cruel predations of a wicked relative'. Not that Georgette had wicked relatives, perhaps more unthinking. And now here is  Hugo annoyingly overturning her plans. However, never daunted, Georgette leads the way, despite the Bow ...

Fortune Favors the Wicked by   Theresa Romain Retired naval lieutenant Benjamin Frost encounters the gorgeous courtesan, Charlotte Perry in a village inn. Charlotte is running from her last paramour and towards her greatest secret by way of village of her childhood and her ruin. Newly minted golden guineas were stolen from the crown and rumour of the appearance of one has surfaced in Charlotte's old stamping ground. She has joined the search for a stolen treasure and the reward offered will turn her life around and fulfill her dreams. Benjamin is of the same mind. He has responsibilities and the reward money will make all the difference. But murder is abroad. There is danger from unknowns and and for Charlotte from her pursuing protector whom she has left to make a new beginning. Benjamin and Charlotte find a common meeting ground of passion and purpose. However there are twists that bar their happiness. Adventure and danger finds Charlotte and Benjamin as they contin...

A Gentleman's Game ( Romance of the Turf #1)  by Theresa Romain I had such high hopes for the romance between Nathaniel Chandler and his father's secretary,  Rosalind Agate. The beginning started well with Nathaniel and Rosalie working together, helping to cure the sickness developed by some of the thoroughbreds trained by the stables of Nathaniel's father. Nathaniel  knows that his father doesn't trust him. It's obvious. It takes us some time and a heap of hints for us to discover the cause.  And it takes a long time for the story of Rosalie to come to the fore. Rosalie is trapped in a web of deceit not of her own making, but to which she is beholden. Nathaniel is a rather wonderful man, who has grown beyond his childish actions yet is hampered by his father's outdated view of him. Hence the rather inane reference to 'milkmaids', Nathaniel's code for problems he comes across as he travels England and beyond on missives for his father. I gr...

Secrets of a Scandalous Heiress (Matchmaker Trilogy #3) by Theresa Romain Heiress Augusta Meredith has taken to Bath with her friend Emily, the Countess of Tallant. Emily is distressed by her miscarriage late in her pregnancy and is seeking solace. Augusta is escaping the confines of the doting trustees she feels hedged in by. Determining a new path Augusta masquerades as Mrs Flowers, the carefree widow. Augusta has in her mind to take a discreet lover.  The handsome Josiah Everett recognizes her charade and the die is cast. Waiting for Augusta to realize she is worthwhile and for Joss to realize he is worth so much more are quite painful moments, all part of this engrossing story. When Joss tells Augusta that she is worthy, that is a precious moment! It is a reality that cuts both ways. Lord Sutcliffe, Joss's cousin and employer is a buffoon, a thoughtless creature who operates in selfish vacuum of indulgence and self gratification. Joss seems trapped in the cycle of rescu...

Season For Desire (Holiday Pleasure #3) by Theresa Romain Japanese puzzle boxes, a treasure hunt, an abducted lady, a darstardly villain, an American in a search of his heritage and all at Christmas time. Brimming with unforgettable people, Lady Audrina Bradleigh is thrown into the maelstrom when her abduction goes wrong, she's rescued, and then forbidden by her harsh father to return to London for her dearest sister's wedding, in case the scandal threatening to surround her puts an end to the upcoming nuptials and her father's chance for a Duke in the family.    Audrina is a rather marvellous character, searching for understanding and acceptance, in a male dominated world where woman are expected to know their place. Audrina wants none of that. She wants to forge her own way. Giles Rutherford, is an American helping his father follow his dream, his 'adventure.' A totally unexpected read with a cast of very amusing and diverse characters. Indeed, Romaine p...

To Charm a Naughty Countess (Matchmaker Trilogy #2 ) by Theresa Romain The Mad Duke,  Michael John Wythe Layward, Duke of Wyverne, Marquess of  Vaughan, Earl of Beaumont, Baron Lunley, and responsible for the well-being of thousands, was in need of a wealthy bride. His finances are in disarray and the weight of his responsibilities match the weight of his titles.  The problem is that Wyverne has a reputation as being crazy. How to catch a wealthy bride with that millstone around his social neck? Wyverne has few social graces and is better suited to digging canals in the depths of Lancashire than carrying on polite conversation. Hence his attempts in social interaction ended in failure. Witness the taking apart of his hosts Carcel Lamp instead of paying suit to the available heiress. Wyverne is addicted to scientific inventions, from lanterns to canals and railways, all of it. He likes to understand how things work, how to mend things, how scientific discoveries mig...