"On the night of the Parkhurst ball, someone had a scandalous tryst in the library."Was it Lord Canby, with the maid, on the divan? Or Miss Fairchild, with a rake, against the wall? Perhaps the butler did it.
"All Charlotte Highwood knows is this: it wasn't her. But rumors to the contrary are buzzing. Unless she can discover the lovers' true identity, she'll be forced to marry Piers Brandon, Lord Granville--the coldest, most arrogantly handsome gentleman she's ever had the misfortune to embrace. When it comes to emotion, the man hasn't got a clue.
"But as they set about finding the mystery lovers, Piers reveals a few secrets of his own. The oh-so-proper marquess can pick locks, land punches, tease with sly wit...and melt a woman's knees with a single kiss. The only thing he guards more fiercely than Charlotte's safety is the truth about his dark past.
"Their passion is intense. The danger is real. Soon Charlotte's feeling torn. Will she risk all to prove her innocence? Or surrender to a man who's sworn never to love?"
One word to describe this book: fun. I was thrilled to see Piers have his own story (I'd been keeping my fingers crossed for as much when I read the story of his former betrothed and his younger brother), as much as I was excited to see the merger of Dare's highly-creative Spindle Cove and Castles Ever After series. I absolutely adored being able to see the characters and plots coming together. Charlotte had been a consistent character in many of the Spindle Cove books and Piers had made such an impact in "Say Yes to the Marquess" so I found it thrilling when these seemingly self-sufficient worlds Dare created, collided. The book was fun, well-paced, and more light-hearted than I expected to find a story with Piers as the male lead. He was so cool and calculated that I loved seeing the realistic shift in his character as he learned and grew.
Charlotte was a ball of energy; all over the place, messy, disorganized, yet intelligent and endearing. I liked her a great deal and she was a very believable character. Sweet, caring, and determined and reckless to a fault, I found her to be an excellent foil to the staid seriousness of Piers. They were wonderful counterparts to one another. Piers, on the other hand, was remarkably well-written. I will say that I found marked "James Bond" influences in his speech and some of his mannerisms -- especially in the latter part of the book, "darling." However, this didn't deter my enjoyment. I found the book fun and took it for what it was: A giant game of "Clue" set in Dare's eloquent, imaginative world with lively characters, amusing situations, and passionate lovers. The premise of the book, itself, is pretty straightforward, but the complexity and entertainment comes in with the characters she crafts. As I mentioned, I really enjoyed Charlotte...though I truly believe Piers made this book the success that it was. Dare managed to craft him in such a way that he 1) stayed true to the Piers I knew from her other book, 2) was allowed to grow and change in a plausible way, and 3) was still supremely sexy and attractive as a male lead, with far more complexity than I was expecting from a Bond-esque character. The plot is a little bit silly and a couple of the characters are slightly over-the-top, but (remember) it's supposed to be an enjoyable read. Take it for what it is and you'll love it.
By far, one of my favorite parts of the book was getting to relive anecdotes and revisit characters from both of the series of which this book is a part. It's no secret how much I enjoy this little "Easter eggs" and I get all giddy excitement whenever an author successfully incorporate such information (by successfully, I mean stays true to the characters I know and love from previous installments in the series. Another author particularly good at this is Sherrilyn Keyon - she has a vastly-different writing style and a completely different setting/time-period than Tessa Dare, but I wanted to mention her because she's another author noteworthy for writing complex series (see her Dark-Hunter series for an example).
I absolutely recommend this book, but with the disclaimer that you ABSOLUTELY, POSITIVELY MUST be current on BOTH the Spindle Cove and Castles Ever After series or you will not be able to appreciate or understand this installment. It seems silly to say this of a book in this genre, but Dare puts a lot of time and effort in writing her books, weaving a story that is rich and multifaceted, that you really need to follow the reading order in order to do it justice.
Happy reading!
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