Meredith Duran writes character driven historical romance. She’s sometimes a little more serious* than I prefer, but her latest release, Fool Me Twice, strikes a fantastic balance. I suspect it’s her best yet, but I am too busy working through her back catalogue at the moment to make any kind of judgement. It is very, very good. I highly recommend this book and will be adding Duran to my autobuy list forthwith.
Alastair de Grey, Duke of Marwick is nothing to write home about as the story begins. The villain of Duran’s last novel, That Scandalous Summer, Marwick was a fiercely intelligent polymath and active political figure when at his best and before his monumental pride was reduced to ashes. Having learned that his almost beloved wife manipulated and betrayed him, Marwick has completely withdrawn into himself. Enter Olivia Holladay who has problems of her own. On the run, she uses a trumped-up reference letter under an assumed name to get hired on as Marwick’s housekeeper. Olivia knows he has the material she needs to blackmail her pursuers into submission. The only problem is that, having made a survey of the house, she knows the incriminating information is in Marwick’s own bedroom. The bedroom he refuses to leave, or have cleaned, or let anyone near, much like the man himself.
Marwick was quite the autocratic bastard in the last book and his road to redemption is long. If he hasn’t been in a clinical depression, it’s damn close. Olivia falls for both the wounded man he is and the formidable man she knows is lurking under all of his unkempt surliness. She appears to have arrived at the right time to draw Marwick out and support him as he gets back on his feet. It’s an interesting pairing with a hero recovering from betrayal through the help and ministrations of someone else seeking to betray him. Olivia’s efforts don’t cure him, Duran is too sophisticated and talented a writer for such facile plotting, as much as she goads him into action. Marwick’s withdrawal has had a negative effect on virtually every aspect of his life. It’s a painful and necessarily humbling journey back to himself.
The complexities of Olivia and Marwick’s personalities make for compelling reading. Fool Me Twice stumbles in tone, in a very minor way, around some of the downstairs household politics and with a blessedly brief twee incident, but overall it is superlative. That it’s not a neat and tidy romance is the novel’s greatest strength. Moreso than in many romances, and in keeping with the great ones, Olivia and Marwick feel like people doing their best to make their way in the world and discovering a counterbalance in each other along the way.
*If you like serious romances, try Sherry Thomas.
Links to reviews and my full reading list can be found on The (Shameful) Tally 2014.
I’m intrigued. I’d like to read a romance with a (probably) depressed character who isn’t *magically cured by love* but is treated with the respect the condition deserves. This sounds like it may be that.
He’s depressed AND in a bone shaking rage. I actually wondered about his long term prognosis at one point. Talk about projecting modern sensibilities on a novel based around escaping reality.
I like a surly protagonist far more than the dapper dandy who is all the rage in the ton. As long as they don’t get too dreary (when you start talking about requiring medication for chronic depression I get nervous). Still this sounds promising so I’ll definitely add it to the list.
Note: Another $5 added to the Mrs. Julien book bill ;)
I actually thought, “I need to recommend this to Alexis,” while reading this book as I know how much you enjoy an irascible hero.
I would like to point out that I reviewed this book several DAYS before Mrs. Julien did, and I gave it 5 stars. I’d liked to be blamed for your book bill too, please. ;)
This book is a very nice example of the skillful way a good romance author can turn a very unpleasant and deeply troubled character into a convincing hero on the road to recovery, without it feeling like a cheat or a complete reversal.
…and you wrote a better review of the book, too.
Tomato…tomatoh. You always say I write better reviews than you, I almost always think you manage to be so much more succinct and to the point than me.
My book bill is quite substantial and so, for the continued ability of you both to feed your families, it would probably be best if you split it equally. Although technically the more expensive books (Saga anyone?) are entirely attributable to Malin so I’ll put a few extra $$ on her tab.
Alexis, do you read e-books, and if so, on what device? Cause I may be able to send you books. I have done to Mrs. J in the past, and I do so for a number of friends with tight book buying budgets. If you feel bad about taking money from the authors, you can send me the file back when you’re done, as if it were a loan, and buy the book from the author when it comes on sale.
Can’t really do that with Saga, unfortunately.
You are too sweet :) No my book budget is not limited in fact compared to most everybody on the planet my book budget KNOWS NO BOUNDS. Don’t be fooled by the fact that I don’t write reviews I read SCADS of books and have never once said, “I probably shouldn’t buy this book because I’ve spent a stupid amount of money on books and eventually my kids will need me to pay college tuition.”
So you should save your digital sharing files for people who need them. I’m just a book wierdo with an obsessive book-shopping habit :)