Wednesday, February 5, 2014

The Trouble with Honor by Julia London

Desperate times call for daring measures as Honor Cabot, the eldest stepdaughter of the wealthy Earl of Beckington, awaits her family's ruin. Upon the earl's death she and her sisters stand to lose the luxury of their grand home—and their place on the pedestal of society—to their stepbrother and his social-climbing fiancée. Forced to act quickly, Honor makes a devil's bargain with the only rogue in London who can seduce her stepbrother's fiancée out of the Cabots' lives for good.

An illegitimate son of a duke, George Easton was born of scandal and grows his fortune through dangerous risks. But now he and Honor are dabbling in a perilous dance of seduction that puts her reputation and his jaded heart on the line. And as unexpected desire threatens to change the rules of their secret game, the stakes may become too high even for a notorious gambler and a determined, free-spirited debutante to handle.


REVIEW:
This series debut about four sisters introduces a lovely set of characters focused solely on romantic pursuits- no supernatural or suspense subplots here. I enjoyed this well-written romance primarily because I enjoyed the hero and heroine. Honor is nowhere near as flighty as she seems in the beginning, and I feel her desperation as she tries to find a way to protect her mother and sisters from dramatic life changes. George is a complicated character- the unacknowledged illegitimate son of a duke, he is for all intents and purposes a self-made man battling to maintain the fortune he earned through hard work. I also enjoyed the various side characters who become fleshed out through the story- though I found Augustine's attempts to exert control rather surprising, Monica is slowly revealed to be a complex and goodhearted person.

There were some unanswered questions that led me to a four star rating rather than a five: who are the young bucks who take Honor and her friends to that gaming den? What happens to those young men and women- Honor seems to have no friends or interactions other than with her family. Given the Earl's immense wealth, why hasn't he made financial provisions for his wife and step-daughters? Despite these niggling questions, I enjoyed this series debut, and am looking forward to reading more about the Cabot daughters in the future.

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