The Romantic
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- $8.99
Publisher Description
A passionate new historical romance in Madeline Hunter's nationally bestselling Seducer series. This one features a fifth member of the London Dueling Society, the reserved, enigmatic lawyer to the Laclere family: Julian Hampton. All his life, it seemed, Julian had been in love with Penelope, now Countess of Glasbury. And when he learned the horrors she had endured at the hands of her vicious husband, Julian was instrumental in arranging for her escape to Italy. But he has never forgotten the love of his childhood, the woman he had rescued first as a "damsel in distress" when she was a girl, and then for real once she had blossomed into woman. When Penelope returns secretly to London, Julian is the one she turns to, even though her trust in him puts both their reputations, and ultimately their lives, in peril.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The title belies the darkness at the core of Hunter's Regency romance cum legal thriller, the fifth in a series that started with The Seducer. Penelope, countess of Glasbury, has been separated for years from her abusive husband, who has yet to sire an heir and now demands the return of his wayward wife. Penelope seeks help from Julian Hampton, family friend and solicitor, who has long hidden his own passion for Penelope. Her appeal forces them into an irresistible proximity. As the earl's demands grow more insistent and violent Julian and Penelope must uncover her estranged husband's deepest secrets if she is ever to be free of him. The two principals both have charm, but in the book's second half, every character seems determined to sacrifice himself or herself for others without telling anyone, until the frustrated reader longs for someone to break a confidence or two. Also, because Julian is a "romantic" in the courtly sense, the love scenes aren't as frequent as some might like. Hunter's fans will be content with this offering, but the underdeveloped romance and suspense suggest that the series may be suffering from fatigue.
