Perhaps the soapiest Regency I've ever read. Was able to suspend some disbelief through the first 2/3, then the hot Duke with amnesia was introduced to his lover's long lost identical twin by her father who wasn't dead after all. Not recommended.

I picked up this bundle on Kindle sale this week and started it pretty quickly, having read another book by the author and enjoying it. The setting is a standard Regency one, with a few twists thrown in where the hero is half-Indian by birth yet is a duke, the heroine is the daughter of a gambler who won them an estate in a game of cards, and there is amnesia - for the hero, a nice change.

There was a fair amount of miscommunication along the way, which is not my favorite trope, but there were plenty of plot twists to make up for it including one I did not see coming. I thoroughly enjoyed the story and moved right on to book two.

This is the first Mary Jo Putney book I've read (or more accurately, listened to) and I was very surprised and impressed at the complexity of the story. I'm used to story being a distant second to the sex and does he/she love me? stuff, but this was a nice balance. I enjoyed both main characters and am very much looking forward to finding out how the rest of the 'lost lords' and the various women introduced in this book get together or don't. I'd like to get to know Lady Agnes a bit better, and I think there's definitely the chance of that since there are 5 more books already published.

In all, a fun summer read/listen.

DNF at 20%

Oh I just loved this book! Sure there's a bit of a well that's convenient vibe about some of the coincidences in this story, but they only make for a happier happily ever after so I was totally satisfied. The characters in this story are wonderful and I really loved all of them.

Mariah has spent most of her life without a permanent place to call her own as her father made his living as a gamble within the ton. While never destitute they were never solid enough to settle down anywhere either. Now he's recently one a lovely manor in a hand of cards with enough money for them to settle down and begin a life for themselves reliant on no one. While he is off tidying up some loose ends Mariah finds herself with an unwanted suitor in the guise of the previous landowner and only a fictitious husband is enough to get him to lay off at least temporarily. When she discovers a half drowned man the ocean tosses up on her beach though Mariah takes the opportunity and runs with it.

Adam has no memory of what happened to cause him to be carried to shore by the tide. But he's more than happy to believe that the angel taking care of him is his wife. He may not remember his past, but he knows that everything with her feels right. The return of his memory might not be the blessing they all want though if Mariah's white lie comes to light.

I loved these two together. Adam was so open when he could remember nothing of his life. I liked watching him rediscover himself and his reliance on the one person he trusted around him. Of course the details would all come to light and the mystery of his circumstances must all be solved. There were layers upon layers to the solving which I did also enjoy.

The story of how the boys all met, and Adam being the impetus for the creation of school for bad boys that he and his friends attended was cute and very sweet. I liked Adam's half Indian background and his refusal, no matter the dictates of those trying to raise him to be a proper Duke for the duchy, to completely abandon that other side of his heritage.

This is one of those really sweet stories where everything is really just a little too perfect and a little too coincidental but for whatever reason it just hit me as so much fun at this moment. The twists were entertaining and I can ignore the "hey look who else is behind door #2 you never thought you'd see again." Like I said this is a case of let's make the most perfect HEA ever. If you're in the mood for it, it's wonderful.

Convincing an amnesiac that you're his wife and then sleeping with him didn't get me hot, but it did make me spend several hours contemplating the nature of consent. Which is an interesting outcome, but maybe not the one intended by the author.

Also, as is all-too-typical for this genre, the romance was largely "omg hormones" and all I could think the entire time was how that would eventually fade and they'd be left with very little between them other than regrets.

This is why I'm single.™

Your quote of the book:
[He said:] "I'm sure you can figure out how to ravish me."
And she did, finding sweet new variations on lovemaking.

The twist at the end was maddening.

love an amnesia storyline, the ending was a bit too twee for me though. *everyone* has a secret family? ok