Book Review: The Enticement of an Earl by Chasity Bowlin
Series: Book 3 in the 'Dark Regency'.
"Seeking answers others do not wish you to find can have dreadful consequences." ~~ Chasity Bowlin (Book: The Redemption of a Rogue)
So far I'm enjoying reading books in the 'Dark Regency' series. Let's find out a bit about the third book 'The Enticement of an Earl'….
Genre: Dark Regency, Historical Romance.
Main Characters: Larissa Walters, Lord Gervase Hamilton Spencer Earl of Kinraven.
'The Enticement of an Earl by Chasity Bowlin' ~~ Synopsis:
Larissa & Spencer are in love with each other, since the day Spencer saved her from her abuser. But they are unaware of other's affections. Spencer wants to give Larissa as much time as she needs to heal from her abusive past.
And Larissa's sure he does not want her because of her past. One forbidden encounter at least manages to change Larissa's opinion.
Since she has the gift of sensing people's intention, she knows Spencer desires her. But Spencer remains oblivious to her feelings and leaves.
For a long while, Larissa didn't know what to do about her situation with Spencer. But one day she decides to read a letter sent by Spencer to her brother-in-law.
She's happy to know he hasn't forgotten about her. But according to him, there's something strange going on his new estate and it seems he is losing his mind.
Larissa sees it as her chance to visit Spencer, even when she knows her actions would be considered inappropriate by the society. But she does not care. Gossips spread by her abuser has almost ruined whatever was left of her reputation.
She's sure no one would marry her, but that does not mean she couldn't have what she wants. She takes advantage of the absence of her sister & brother-in-law and runs away with a hired companion to Scotland.
With only two goals – seducing Spencer and helping him with whatever it is that's bothering him. When she reaches the estate, it turns out the situation is grimmer than she'd anticipated.
It does seem that the man she loves is going crazy. And all of a sudden her gifts have deserted her amongst people, who seem to not care much about their relative or the employer.
Spencer ran away from London to tend to his hurt feelings in the solitude. When out of the blue he got earldom of Kinraven, he leaves for Scotland.
But ever since he has arrived, something strange is happening around him. Every day it seems he is losing touch with reality. So one day he decides to ask his friends to come to Scotland and help him.
He's pleased to see Larissa there as long as he thought she's part of his hallucinations.
But the moment it becomes clear that she's there instead of his friend, he wants her to leave.
His new house isn't a safe place. He cannot save her from whatever is going on or his own madness. He's not sure if it's safe for her to be around him.
Larissa tells him that she's not going anywhere until she finds out what's happening to him. She's suspicious of everyone in his house, especially the female relatives, whom he allowed to stay in the castle.
There's something sinister going on in the castle that much Larissa is sure about but without her gifts, she cannot investigate as fast as possible.
So she begins her investigation with the help of her companion and few people who seem to be on Spencer's side and start the work to unravel a mysterious curse put on anyone who becomes Earl of Kinraven before it takes Spencer's life too like previous earls.
The plot of 'The Enticement of an Earl' is exciting. Sometimes while reading the last two installments, I got the feeling that something is missing.
Last time it was the no show mystery of finding the villain. And this one lacks the chemistry between main characters. It was there in the beginning. But then it went away.
I found the story interesting enough to not bother much. The paranormal angel is again disappointing.
Anyway, I still enjoyed reading all three stories. If I have to pick one, then it's 'The Haunting of a Duke' that I think is better in almost every aspect.
"Independence once attained, should be closely guarded." ~~ Chasity Bowlin (Book: The Redemption of a Rogue)
Book Review: The Redemption of a Rogue by Chasity Bowlin
"There is no man more dangerous than one staring death in the face." ~~ Chasity Bowlin (Book: The Redemption of a Rogue)
What luck! I found the series box-set enrolled in the Kindle Unlimited. So I downloaded it, after all I did enjoy reading 'The Haunting of a Duke'.
And Michael's seemed like an interesting character in 'The Haunting of a Duke'. I hope his story turns out as I'm expecting it to.
Let's see how 'The Redemption of a Rogue' is….
Genre: Paranormal Historical Romance.
Main Characters: Abigail Barrows, Lord Michael Sutherland, Viscount Ellersleigh.
'The Haunting of a Duke by Chasity Bowlin' ~~ Synopsis:
Michael flees to the country when his recent lover refuses to understand that they have no future together. Not the permanent kind as he does not wish to get married ever.
His new plan also gives him the opportunity to inspect the new property he won in the card game.
When Michael reaches the castle, tired from the journey, he wonders if the old castle is inhabitable. The castle seems to be falling apart and is in desperate need of repair and maintenance.
But that he'd think about after resting.
Soon Michael finds that the castle not just needs repair. It also needs new servants, who are not past their retiring age and do like him a bit.
Another discovery, he makes is that of Abigail, a young unmarried relative of his card companion. His card companion conveniently forgot to warn Michael of her presence in the castle.
As much as Michael does not want to throw Abigail out of the only home she seems to have, but he has no other choice. He cannot allow Abigail to stay. It'd destroy her reputation.
Abigail did all she could do to keep herself from landing at the doorstep of her depraved step-sister Lavinia and her husband.
The arrival of Michael without any warning leaves Abigail with no option, but to move in with her step-sister.
She can tell Michael didn't know about her and feels guilty about sending her away from her home. But they both know that's the right thing to do.
Accepting whatever fate throws her way, is not new to Abigail and she's not the kind to fall apart and tries her best to adjust to her new situations.
Michael came to the country to forget about his worries for a short while and not get entangled in the newer ones. Ever since evicting Abigail, he can't stop thinking about how she's doing in her sister's house.
He's well aware of Abigail's step-sister and her husband depraved indulgences. They're not the kind of people Michael in general likes to mingle with.
But when the couple invites him to join a party in their home, Michael accepts the invitation.
Everything was going fine in the party and he had made up his mind to leave after seeing Abigail was safe, but soon something about the whole set-up in his neighbor's house begins to make him uncomfortable.
His troubles increase, when a dead body is found and everyone seems more than happy to lay the blame at Michael's feet.
Michael begins to suspect that the party was thrown with the sole purpose of trapping him. Even when he can easily provide the proof of his innocence, he does not want to put Abigail on the spot.
When Abigail sees her step-sister and her minions trying their best to implicate Michael for a murder he didn't commit, she comes out as his alibi. Her move seals their fate.
Michael declares to marry Abigail and takes her back to the castle after her step-sister attacks her. Soon Abigail & Michael are married to keep the appearances.
The more Michael thinks about the entire episode at Lavinia's house, the more he suspects that they want something from him. His life may even be in danger.
And it's not just him. It seems Abigail is in danger as well. Abigail's brother-in-law and his friend have their eyes set on her for a long time. But what do they want from Michael, he's yet to figure.
Not only Michael is bent on solving the new mystery, he is also determined to find a way to seduce his new wife, who seems immune to his charm.
Then there's also a matter of people practicing depraved rituals taking place in the nearby woods and the resident ghost.
As much as I enjoyed reading Michael & Abigail's story, I still kept thinking it'd have been better.
First, there's not much paranormal element in 'The Redemption of a Rogue'. It's actually probably less than 'The Haunting of a Duke'. Same goes for the mystery part in this story.
In the 'The Haunting of a Duke' it's not that easy to find the villain. I'd have loved some more paranormal element. The ghost this time is too tame and the other paranormal element vanishes into the thin air.
Despite all this I still could not stop reading 'The Redemption of a Rogue' as soon as possible.
I liked Abigail a lot and her pragmatism. She does not waste her time dwelling over negative side; instead try to find a solution to her problems.
"Be kept ignorant of pertinent facts was never in anyone's best interest." ~~ Chasity Bowlin (Book: The Redemption of a Rogue)
Book Review: The Haunting of a Duke by Chasity Bowlin
"I have learned we are all capable of horrible things with proper motivation." ~~ Chasity Bowlin (Book: The Haunting of a Duke)
"The Haunting of a Duke" was hiding somewhere in my Kindle for a while. One day, while riffling through titles I saw this. I can't say that loved the cover as all covers appear gray & dull in Kindle.
But something about it nagged me to start reading it.
Now let's find out how 'The Haunting Of A Duke By Chasity Bowlin' turned out….
Genre: Historical-Paranormal Romance.
Main Characters: Emmaline Walters; Lord Rhys Brammel.
'The Haunting Of A Duke Chasity Bowlin' ~~ Synopsis:
Emme has the gift of seeing and talking to spirits. Sometimes the spirits help her uncover truths people want to hide. She refrains from flaunting her ability. But after helping a few people in need, she becomes known as a medium/physic.
That's the reason why Lady Phyllis invites Emme. Lady Phyllis wants the confirmation that her son, as rumored, didn't kill his wife.
Emme doesn't mind her gifts much; not until she wakes up in strange places at night. Something if anyone finds out could ruin her reputation.
So getting lost in the tunnels in Lord Brammel's home at night isn't a pleasant surprise to wake up to. But Emme has no control over the spirits and how they want to direct her.
Rhys is surprised to find Emme roaming around in the tunnels at night and wondered what the alleged medium is up to.
He doesn't believe in charlatans, his mother likes to invite into their home. But he doesn't object either as that seems to keep his mother happy.
His mother's not the same since the murder of his younger sister and later the untimely death of his elder brother.
As if this many tragedies were no enough, when his crazy wife, Elise killed herself and everyone, including his mother, started suspecting Rhys.
Rhys never wanted to marry Elise after the death of his brother. He'd even warned his brother against marrying her. But no one listened to him and unfortunately he too fell into Elise's trap.
Now his mother, yet again has invited another unknown person in their home, who claims to talk to the spirits.
Just because his mother doesn't see the danger in inviting such people in their home that doesn't mean he should not keep an eye on Emme.
Rhys suspects Emme is up to something, maybe she wants to steal something or dupe his mother somehow or is a social climber. So he asks his childhood friend Michael to keep an eye on Emme in his absence.
Emme has enough troubles without adding a suspicious and handsome duke to the equation. He doesn't believe her that's not her only problem....
Emme is beginning to like Rhys. She knows that he distrusts her and does not believe in her abilities.
The other trouble is the nature of her gift seems to be changing as now she can see the spirits just like alive people. So she tells Michael about her conversation with Rhys's late sister.
Emme's disclosure unravels Michael and he begins to believe her. Michael shares his opinion with Rhys but Rhys isn't ready to believe in Emme's abilities.
But the killer isn't taking any chances dismissing Emme's claim to have talked to Rhys dead sister. If Emme can talk to the spirits, then he doesn't want to take the risk of Emme finding out.
Soon the killer begins his attempts to kill Emme. Rhys gets busy making sure Emme is safe. In his quest to keep Emme safe, Rhys once again finds himself getting married.
The hunt for the killer begins, who seems bent on killing Emme. Also the crazy spirit of Rhys ex wife comes back to haunt him too, threatening to take away one person he's starting to care about more than anyone.
I enjoyed reading 'The Haunting of a Duke' so much so I ended up thinking that it's a novella that ended too soon. Emme and Rhys characters are interesting and the story is engaging till the end. The best part was when I guessed who the killer is.
The only thing that did bother me is how people came to know about Emme's abilities, considering she's not into flaunting or even acknowledging them. A bit of back story would have been nice.
Anyway, the story is interesting. If you too like your historical romance novels with ghosts roaming around then you might enjoy 'The Haunting of a Duke' too.
"When you save someone's hide, it is an act of friendship and generosity and should not be invoked later as a form of currency." ~~ Chasity Bowlin (Book: The Haunting Of A Duke)
Hit Or Miss: Hit!
Ratings: 4 stars/5.
Book Review: The Enticement of an Earl by Chasity ...
Book Review: The Redemption of a Rogue by Chasity ...