Review: Loved it!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 05 4, 2014
A well-written novella is like a happy sigh...and Lily Maxton's historical novella The Affair is a very, very happy sigh indeed.Other than the fact that I'd love to hear more, more, more about Elizabeth and Cale--because I absolutely adored them both--I have not a single complaint about this book. Unlike with some shorter works, I don't feel as if I need to know more about them. Their characters are well developed and sympathetic. The progression of their relationship feels realistic and not at all rushed--much is left to the imagination, due to the abbreviated format of the novella (GR says 81 pages; will Amazon ever give us Kindle page numbers?) but it's still well-fleshed out and has a timetable that feels real. There's just the right blend of sexual chemistry, foreplay, and romance--with a nice dollop of steam for flavor.Even though there's probably a million books out there featuring a young widow who finds real love for the first time with a so-called rake, this story made it seem like a fresh and new plot idea instead of a rehashed and tired one.There's a crazy amount of bookmarks in my Kindle for such a short piece--here's just one of my many "I had to highlight that" scenes:His gaze met hers. “Who were you dancing with before you left the ballroom?”“The new Earl of Thornhill, my husband’s cousin.”“I see.”Her back stiffened. She turned to gaze in front of her. “I can already tell he’s much kinder than my husband. And I’m not young and foolish anymore.”“Your parents would be in favor of the match, I assume.” The careful neutrality of his voice made her feel like she was being accused of something.“Yes.”“But what do you want?”“I want to please my parents and further my sisters’ chances at good marriages,” she said. As an aristocratic daughter, her duty in life was to marry well. Useless desires didn’t signify; it was who she was.“You never wish for something different?”“Such as a bookseller?” she asked lightly.She saw his smile in the dim light. “Contrary to common perception, booksellers are rather exciting people.”“I have no doubt of it.” At least when it came to one very specific bookseller. She was sure she could walk with him until the sun crested the horizon without experiencing a second of boredom.Honestly, every time Cade and Elizabeth's banter includes a reference to his being a bookseller, my bibliophile heart did a little extra flutter. There's just something about book characters who appreciate books, isn't there? Seriously, it made me love him even more--and trust me, he's very lovable. Plus, he has Clark Kent-like glasses. Swoon! ;)I was thrilled to note that this book is the first in the Sisters of Scandal series--I'm sincerely hoping that the sisters in question are Elizabeth's younger sisters Olivia and Anne. The handful of scenes they're in in this novella are enough to convince me that their books should be just as entertaining. (The scene where the three sisters make a wager at a ball about their mother's social prowess is just too funny. I can just imagine what havoc they could each wreak with their own storyline--can't wait!)Rating: 5 stars/ AI received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review...and ended up buying my own copy before I'd even finished it!