Book Review: Temptation and Twilight

Author: Charlotte Featherstone
Title: Temptation and Twilight
Publisher: HQN
Publish Date:  June 19, 2012
Buy:Amazon
Review Copy Provided By: Net Galley
Book Blurb: Iain Sinclair, Marquis of Alynwick, is certain there is a special hell for him. An unrepentant rake, he holds nothing sacred-except for beautiful Elizabeth York. For years, Alynwick has tried to forget the woman he loved so well, and treated so badly. A woman who could hold nothing in her heart for him but hatred. All of society believes Elizabeth, the blind daughter of a duke, to be a proper young lady. But no one knows of her wanton affair with Alynwick. When Lizzy learns of her ancestor's ancient diary-filled with exotic tales-she longs to uncover the identity of the unnamed lover within and hesitantly agrees to allow Alynwick, who claims to have knowledge of the "veiled lady," to help her solve the mystery. Eager to be Lizzy's eyes, Alynwick brings the seductive text to life, and each night it takes greater effort for her to forget his betrayal. With each whispered word, her resolve gives way, without her knowing that a centuries-old secret will lead them to a present-day danger
Review: This is book 3 in the Brethren Guardian trilogy. I wasn't sure how I was going to feel about this book because of the tension between Iain and Elizabeth. It was a little too much to handle. Iain was entirely too overprotective for anyone, especially Elizabeth not to realize that he had feelings for her. There conflict takes up a little to much space in the book and the story plods along at the beginning. It is hard to decide if you like Iain or not, especially when Lizzie is being pursued by Lord Sheldon.

I loved Sheldon. For the most part, I thought Lizzie should end up with him and damn the story line. As the story line continued, I kept my fingers crossed that he was going to be a villain, because there are times when it is hard to tell. I'm glad in the end he was one of the good ones. It is a shame that he couldn't have found someone too.

Sheldon was what really kept this story going, even though Iain made sure Lizzie was going to have doubts about him. I also liked how Sheldon's character helped reveal more about the Templar Knights and Sinjin and The Veiled Lady.

The conclusion really came as a surprise to me. By mid story you knew who Orpheus and Georgiana were, but the connection to the Brethren was a real shock to me.

Overall, this was a satisfying read. Lizzie was not your typical heroine. She was blind and she isn't thin, which I liked. It is a shame the cover can't display a woman that looks like what readers would picture for Lizzie. Charlotte Featherstone is now one of my go to authors for regency era historical romance.

Rating:  4 flowers

Book Review: Seduction & Scandal

Author: Charlotte Featherstone
Title: Seduction & Scandal
Publisher: HQN
Publish Date: July 1, 2011
Buy: Amazon
Review Copy Provided By: Net Galley
Book Blurb: With the scandalous nature of her birth to live down, Isabella Fairmont dreams of a proper marriage—even if a passionless one. She saves her deepest desires for the novel she dares to pen, wherein a handsome lord with dark powers seduces her. But then her courtship with an appropriate suitor is threatened by the sudden attentions of the reclusive Earl of Black…whose pale blue eyes and brooding sensuality are exactly as she described in her book.

Isabella tries to resist the mysterious Earl of Black.

Yet as he pursues her, with inexplicable knowledge of her past and kisses that consume her, Isabella fears she will succumb.

If only the earl could tell Isabella the truth. With very real, and treacherous, thieves endangering her life, Black will need to protect Isabella from the very people she trusts the most….

Review: This book started out a little slow for me, but once the story really got going it was great. Charlotte Featherstone has created a set of characters that you'll enjoy getting to know over the course of three books.

The story within the story is what really makes this a fun read. Isabella wants to write women's fiction, and the story she's working on is really heating up the pages at least in her time period. It makes it more exciting that the story she is writing seems to be paralleling her life!

Lord Black is the kind of hero we all want to find in the pages of these dark/Gothic novels. I loved how the Brethren Guardians were tied in to the Templar's. I've always loved stories that revolve around relics. The mixture of mystery and romance was nicely done too, once the story took off.

The only problem I had with the story was how obvious the pairings would be in the books to come.  Lucy and Sussex were definitely destined to be together, and it is hard to believe there has to be a book devoted to them, when they really have feelings for each other in this one. The same can be said about Elizabeth and her marquis.

All this leaves for quite a bit of unfinished business at the end of the story, but it makes you want to read on to the next book, so Charlotte has definitely accomplished her goal. Plus the characters are really so interesting that you don't want them to leave your life too quickly.

Rating:  4 flowers