The Joys of Glomming.
http://graceburrowes.com/
Glad I finally read Grace Burrowes. The Captive is another well written romance by Grace
Burrowes and I wish I had discovered her when she was beginning. I am slowly going to delve into her other books, though, starting with this series..and her last one book in another series...I need to look at that pedigree chart...and...OMG, I need a raise! It's so exciting finding a new great author.I have to crown Ms. Burrowes with laurels because she took one of my least favorite plot-lines; revenge - and turned it into something compelling. Was this a perfect book? No, but close enough to make me do a happy dance.
The person seeking revenge in this story is, of course, our hero, Christian Severn, Duke of Mercia. He has been captured by the French and for four months has endured torture. So, he is not in the best of humors when he is finally released and makes his way back to England. He especially remembers one captor, Girard. Girard is the one Christian is really itching to get his hands on. But before he can do that he must recover, but he's not really doing that very fast. In fact, he's hiding himself away in his home in London. Enter Gillian.
Gillian, the Countess of Greendale, is a widow. She is also the cousin of Christian's late wife Helene. This is also another reason for Christian to be mad. while he was in captivity his wife and son died. His daughter Lucy is still alive, though she is being totally ignored by her father. And, that is why Gillian arrives on Christian's doorstep in the mood to berate him for his parental neglect. It isn't long before it dawns on her just how ill he is and being a gentle soul, she decides to help him on the road to recovery, then she'll badger him into going to his daughter. When he is well enough to travel, Gillian goes with him. A friendship develops, then love, but Gillian is not so happy with the revenge idea of Christian's.
Gillian and Christian were both very strong characters and it was hard not to feel sympathetic for them, although I will have to admit that Christian occasionally pushed the envelope for me with his need for revenge. The secondary characters were also well-developed. Lucy was charming and, unlike many fictional children, she was age appropriate. There were also two adorable dogs who go a long way in comforting a silent child and irritating a grumpy but loving father. Parents have to learn that dogs are supposed to sleep on beds. But the really really fascinating person was the villain, Girard. We get to see glimpses of his anguish, which is a good thing considering Ms. Burrowes has made him a hero of his own book. And, I'm looking forward to that read to see how she saves him.
Quibbles. The first quibble I had with this book was Gillian's lack of chaperone, which was a small one. But, there was a voice in the back of my head mumbling about her being in his household without benefit of a chaperone. And, we all know that servants don't count. The other quibble I had was the duel, Gillian's violent reaction to the duel and the rush to the end. But that was also a minor quibble. Overall, I loved this book and am really excited that I found another author to put on my auto-list.
Time/Place: Regency England
Sensuality: Hot
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