Review: A Sweet Romance between two deserving characters
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 06 5, 2013
I'm definitely putting Alyssa Everett on my watchlist because it's been a long time since I've read a romance novel in which I felt the angst was just right!  I so enjoyed Lord of Secrets that I bought another of her novels, Ruined by Rumor, the next night!Rosalie Whitwell's father is an avid traveler and has taken her across the world.  She has felt the lack of a stable home, social polish and grace, and fine clothing, but she greatly enjoys the time she shares with her father, as well as her cousin Charles, who often accompanies them.  Unfortunately, on their transatlantic cruise from New York to London, Rosalie's father passes away and Rosalie must deal with both her grief and her fears about her future and very likely, uncertain, life.  There are few options available to her, as she cannot live with her unmarried cousin Charles  and the Uncle with whom she would mostly likely reside has a reputation as a drunk and a lecher.Fortunately, Lord Deal is also on the cruise.  Despite his reclusive and unfriendly manner throughout the cruise, he comes to Rosalie's aid when she discovers her father's body and begins to speak to her occasionally thereafter. Though he seems to run hot and cold, Rosalie is attracted to him and her instinct is that he is a good man:  when he gives her an offer of marriage before they disembark she accepts in the hopes of a good marriage, a stable home, and possibly, love.  All of this continues to be possible despite Lord Deal's desperate request that she end the engagement because he is a bad person.  Rosalie ignores him, but she becomes extremely concerned about Lord Deal's seeming unwillingness to consummate the marriage.  While she knows he has inadvertently suffered as a consequence of his father's suicide, she doesn't know about a much darker and disturbing aspect of his childhood that has irrevocably shaped him.Rosalie is a very nice heroine.  I didn't find her overwhelmingly nave, as other reviewers have suggested, but just really in the dark about her husband's tormented past.  Lord Deal doesn't tell her too much about his life whereas the reader has far more information than she about potential causes of Lord Deal's reclusiveness and unwillingness to consummate the marriage. I liked Rosalie as a character because she was kind and loving, but also intelligent and willing to speak up for herself.  I could understand, based on her motherless and travel vagabond upbringing, why she might be self-conscious.  Her behavior was always reasonable and I think her need to be useful made sense within the context of the marriage:  it was reasonable for her to believe that Lord Deal partially made his offer out of pity and it seemed to me she was just doing her best to make the bargain good for him as well.As for Lord Deal - Everett did a really good job with this tortured hero - some tortured heroes are over-the-top, boring, unrealistic, or pathetic.  Lord Deal was none of these, but rather an intelligent and sensitive man who experienced great pain, especially in his childhood and teen years, and loneliness as an adult. I liked, too, how Everett was consistent about how Lord Deal was actually depicted - I've read romances where the "lonely" hero has like seventy friends.  Lord Deal doesn't have any friends, his dog just died, and I felt like the path he took as a young adult made sense within the context in which his past was described.  It made sense why he would have been immediately captivated by Rosalie's gracious, kind, and funny manner.Lastly, I really liked that that a significant amount of the novel's narrative was given to the hero's perspective.  Even though Rosalie suffered from doubt's about her husband's feelings, the reader doesn't have to!The length was perfect (there were actually a few issues that needed to be resolved within the story so from my perspective, it was not unduly drawn out), the writing was very good, and I experienced no formatting issues.  Definitely recommend for a nice, angsty read with sweet characters!  You will enjoy:)