Review: The Best of the Series - Unusual Premise of a Bargain with the Devil
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 02 24, 2013
This book is definately the best of Jade Lee's "Regency Rags to Riches Series" but that's like saying that a lukewarm Coke is better than tapwater and stale coffee.  It earns a 4-star rating from me, however, because it is a wholly unusual and most original story and is well-written, despite the it's lack of real substance.Overall, the story is disturbing.  It's difficult to root for the hero and heroine to get to their happily ever after, because the situation the young beauty finds herself in is unsavory at best.  The characters all seem so unredeemable that it's difficult to see them as anything more.Lynette, a penniless parson's daughter, finds herself in a desperate situation.  After her father's death, her only option seems to be to follow the rest of her family to her uncle's estate, where they will undoubtedly be unwelcome and Lynette married off to some disgusting ally of her uncle.  A member of her father's congregation discretely gives her the name of a Baroness who can help her meet and snare a wealthy husband.  Resigned that anything is better than living with her uncle, Lynette sets off to London to meet with the Baroness.But instead of being under the Baroness's wing, she discovers the one really calling the shots is a devil of a man, the Viscount Marlock.  He takes control of Lynette's life, training her in all the ways to attract a wealthy, older husband.  In exchange for his expertise and introductions, he will keep a portion of her bridal price.  Basically, he is running a wife-for-sale operation catering to London's powerful elite.  This is the man we are supposed to cheer on as he wins Lynette's heart.  Right.Lynette's "training" includes some rather racy, highly steamy, and unusual scenes, well outside the usual Regency era fare.  I didn't know whether to cringe or keep reading.In the end, I cared enough for Lynette that I kept reading so that I could get to the part where she would be happy.  Eventually, she is.  It's just the getting there that wasn't so great.