"Impressive Historical Romance Debut"
A hardened rake, Sebastian Laidley, the sixth Earl of
Carleton has been summoned to his beloved godfather's dying
bedside where he is coerced into making a promise. If
Sebastian cannot find a suitable husband for the baronet's
beautiful granddaughter Gemma, within three months, he
promises to marry her himself. Gemma, his childhood friend and daughter of a notorious
seductress has grown into a remarkably beautiful young
woman, but bears the stigma of her mother's sins. Knowing
how badly society would snub her, Gemma has devoted herself
to the matter of running her grandfather's estate. All
thoughts of marriage are something she has never thought of
until her old childhood friend re-enters her life and makes
her feel alive and queasy, especially after one kiss. *** With SCANDAL'S DAUGHTER new author Christine Wells has
written a very impressive debut! The writing is fresh and
lyrical with some very charming dialogs and a nicely
thought out plot that provided a bit of a twisty surprise
ending -- an ending I may say I didn't see coming! Both protagonists were well drawn, and immensely likeable.
Gemma, carrying the stigma of her mother's notorious past,
was shown to be strong of character and resolved in proving
to her grandfather that if given the chance she would keep
their beloved estate Ware running in a top-notch fashion.
Having been snubbed by society Gemma no longer had dreams
of falling in love knowing that no respectable man would
ever overlook the sins of her mother. Sebastian was a bit
more complicated and has fought harder and harder to deny
his real feelings for Gemma. This author kept the pull of the sensual romance between
the two at a nice pace and turned the heat up nicely as
both recognized that their childhood love and friendship
had entered a new level. The story is built a bit around
redemption here, forgiveness, and discovery of what is
really important in one's life. Wells' colorful and vivid imagery was wonderful and her
secondary characters, along with another side romance
between Sebastian's sister and friend, and the return of
Gemma's scandalous mother combined to keep the action on an
even keel. I would definitely say that, with this debut,
Christine Wells is someone to keep an eye on in the future.
Reviewed by Marilyn Rondeau
Posted January 19, 2008
|
