Review: Love the purple dress
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 01 21, 2014
I wasn't signed up to review for this tour, only to host, but the covers on these books really captured my attention. I happened to have have THE MISBEHAVING MARQUESS for the Kindle already, most likely the result of a free day on Amazon. (Maybe this is perma-free? I don't know.)Anyway, I opened the book up to take a peek and wound up reading the entire story in one sitting. It's a short but satisfying read. I really liked the heroine, Cat, who is intelligent and strong willed in addition to being charitable and compassionate. She has endured the five year absence of her husband, Jamie with remarkable fortitude. Their separation winds up being the product of a misunderstanding and stupid male vanity.  Allegedly, he cites needing an heir as the reason for returning to his marital home but it soon becomes clear that he has finally gotten over his wounded pride.My issue with Regencies is that the heroes are invariably arrogant asses. Jamie, the prodigal husband, starts out no different, but at least he is contrite and apologetic by story's end. I enjoyed the humorous elements of the story involving goats stealing clothing.The majority of conflict is internal, the product of the five year old fight between the married couple, and revolves around their efforts to forgive one another. There's a bit of external conflict thrown in toward the climax but I'd have liked more consistency throughout. (The fire felt thrown in.) Love scenes are sensuous and heartfelt. The author accomplished a lot in a very short page count. The writing is well above average and I'm confident fans of the genre will adore this novella.