Review: A classic whodunit wrapped up all pretty in a romance.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 04 15, 2014
Originally reviewed for Bodice Rippers, Femme Fatales and FantasyIn Book Two of Author Bronwen Evans' Disgraced Lords Series, things are just getting started. There is something going on and the Libertine Scholars are trying to figure out just who wants to destroy not just them but their families. Who could possibly hate them that much?It's not enough to learn that someone wants you dead.. but is it only one person? Or is someone capitalizing on the Libertine's distress? A Promise of More is in someways a classic whodunit wrapped up all pretty in a romance. Except to title it thus would be deceiving and entirely inaccurate. This book has so much to offer!!Beatrice Hennessey has done all she can to hold her family together. Both her father and brother have managed to run their fortune into the ground, gambling it away. Now her brother has been killed in a dual and there seems to be no way out. She's not what anyone would call a beauty and has been given the oh so lovely moniker of "Henpeck Hennessey". But there is one person who would marry her.. and that option is too vile to accept. So Beatrice goes to the one person who might help her. The man who accidently shot and killed her brother. He might feel guilty enough to do something drastic..Sebastian Hawkestone, Lord Coldhurst loves women, he just doesn't trust them. He will eventually marry but it will be some plain little nobody who is so grateful to him that she accepts him for who and what he is, who will provide him that heir and spare that a man of his rank needs and will otherwise stay out of his life. When first he meets Beatrice Hennessey he thinks she just might qualify. And when he learns of her desperation he thinks, win/win. A perfect bride who hates him is NOT going to fall in love with him because we all know, a good marriage is NOT based on love. That will only destroy it. *snort*As these two strong individuals clash sparks fly!! Beatrice can be that meek and mile person Sebastian has dreamed of but seriously.. she came to the docks to discuss it with him and blackmail him into marrying her.. how meek is that? Sebastian also discovers that Beatrice has a quiet beauty that begins to shine the more a person knows her. An elegance of heart. Of course he can't quite handle that so tends to be something of a jerk to her whenever things get too emotionally. There were times when that boy needed a good smack upside the head.Beatrice on the other hand, slowly comes into her own. If only she could completely trust Sebastian. She has a secret that needs sharing and no way of telling him about it. With his distrust of women, she is afraid to tell him.. and when her rejected suitor and his discarded mistress join forces it's sure to come out.And that's just the personal drama.. how it's connected to the mysterious villain who has it in for the lords is told with a fine hand. Intertwining their story with the overall arc was brilliantly done! Great job! I am really looking forward to the next installment.ShauniThis review is based on the ARC of A Promise of More, provided by netgalley