Liz Carlyle: Beauty Like the Night

Beauty Like the Night: A-
Helene de Severs & Camden Rutledge, Earl of Treyhern
Historical -British Regency

The daughter of London's wickedest widow, Helene de Severs left England in disgrace and has struggled to overcome her heritage. Renowned within Europe's emerging psychiatric field for her gift for healing children, she returns to England confident she has learned to govern her reckless emotions. A disastrous marriage left notoriously ruthless Camden Rutledge, Earl of Treyhern, with a traumatized child and he decides to hire a governess so that he can concentrate on other family fires. Yet the moment Helene arrives, Treyhern's cold reserve is melted by desire he long thought dead. With her elegant clothing and mountain of luggage, the woman is not who he expected. Or is she? Sometimes the workings of the mind are as dangerous as those of the heart. And soon, danger is truly everywhere... (back cover)


I like Ms. Carlyle. I feel that she stays true to the dialogue and the nuances of eighteenth and early nineteenth century Britain.

I also happen to love reunion stories. You know, the cheesy first-love, you're-the-only-one-for-me stories where years have passed and yet, the hero and heroine are still in love with each other. What is more romantic than that? (answer: nothing!)

As a novel with the two above-mentioned aspects, I devoured this rather lengthy (419 pgs) story in a matter of hours.

Helene and Cam grew up with each other due to the affair between Helene's mother and Cam's father. Both adult figures were less than stellar parents. Cam's father was inebriated most of the time, flitting from woman to woman while Helene's mother - well, she was a demimondaine.

They fell in love in the wild, unrestrained way that seventeen/eighteen year olds do. But it was more than mere teenage histrionics; lo behold, eleven long years have passed since Helene and Cam were separated and when they meet - Helene is hired as Cam's daughter's special governess - it is hard for them to control their emotions. Whatever happened in the past ...is the past... right? (Wrong!)

The angst that Helene and Cam face, I feel, is founded on realistic doubts and insecurities: both people work hard to avoid turning out like his/her respective parent, but at the same time, they struggle with the depths of their feelings they have for one another.

As I've stated in previous blog entries, I'm not fond of kids that play a vital part in the romance equation because the focus is then not on the hero and heroine, but on the child as well. And dammit, those children need a lot of attention! Though Beauty Like the Night featured Cam's little daughter, she played a cool and un-bratty character. I had no desire to, like, smack the child upside the head.

There is also a tiny little mystery-adventure at the end. It's as adventurous and thrilling as one might expect an adventure in a romance novel to be. (I mean, how can it be super duper mysterious if you know all's going to turn out well in the end?) I realize I'm being somewhat vague with the plot, but I can't help it. I dislike spoilers and so I will leave you with:

Read. Be happy. Ignore the giggle-inducing cover.
(Really, were gentlemen's breeches that tight? Because... uh... IthinkIseemalecoverartmodel'sbuttcrack. I can't ignore it, really - it's smack-dab front-center! See for yourselves!)

Liz Carlyle: Never Lie to a Lady

Never Lie to a Lady: B
Xanthia Neville & Stefan, Marquess of Nash

Xanthia Neville knows exactly how to run a successful worldwide shipping business, but navigating the social waters of the ton is another matter entirely. At a London soiree, the mystery man with whom Xanthia shares a kiss turns out to be notorious rake and gamester Stefan Northampton, the Marquess of Nash. Xanthia knows that any romantic liaison with Stefan is social suicide, but she can't forget the dark and dangerous lord. Xanthia gets a second chance with Stefan when the British government asks her to use her business connections to look into Stefan's possible connections to gun-smuggling in Greece, and Xanthia soon finds herself ensnared in a dangerous game of seduction and intrigue with the sublimely sexy Stefan... (amazon)

One thing that I really appreciate about Ms. Carlyle’s writing is that she knows how to incorporate witty dialogue and smart characters in her stories. This is my second read of Ms. Carlyle and I’m thoroughly intrigued by her writing – I feel that she has a level of depth to her characters (and you know how much I love characterization) that is foreign to some writers.

At thirty years of age, Xanthia is a spinster – and a social outcast at that. She refuses to obey the laws and norms of the ton and manages her family’s shipping business. Intelligent and witty, she attracts the attention of Stefan at a ball. They share a passionate kiss. She tries to pretend it never happened.

Nash, on the other hand, is completely attracted to her and decides he wants her. How surprised he is when Xanthia practically thrusts herself in his path. He is unaware of the speculations and suspicions that the British government has towards him in regards to a smuggling ring that they are trying to crack.

Xanthia, concerned about her business, agrees to be a pawn in spying on Nash, and the unthinkable happens – love!

Though Xanthia and Nash aren’t my favorite characters (it’s pretty damn hard for any hero to beat Matt Farrell – Judith McNaught fans, you know what I’m talking about) and even though this isn’t the best novel I’ve ever read, I was able to feel for the characters and enjoy them as they enjoyed each other’s company, both emotionally and uh… physically (lol, *blush*). The sex was pretty hot and there is a “kinky” scene that is not so bad (compared to Ms. Ward’s Lover Unbound featuring Jane and Vishous).

In all, I’d say that it was a pretty satisfactory read. I want to read more of her stories because, well, I really enjoy her style of writing.