Title: A Notorious Countess Confesses (Pennyroyal Green Series)
Genre: Historical Romance
Author: Julie Anne Long
Publisher: Avon, 2012
Source: Purchase
Rating: 4.5
Sexy Rating: 5
Description from amazon.com:
She rose to spectacular heights . . .
From Covent Garden to courtesan to countess, beautiful, fearless, shamelessly ambitious Evie Duggan has riveted London in every role she plays. But the ton never could forgive her scandalous—if shockingly short—marriage, and when her star plummets amid gleefully vicious gossip, the countess escapes to the only legacy left to her: a manor house in Pennyroyal Green.
He never expected to fall so hard . . .
He has the face of a fallen angel and a smolder the devil would envy, but Vicar Adam Sylvaine walks a precarious line: resisting temptation . . . and the wild Eversea blood in his veins. Adam’s strength is tested when scandal, aka the countess, moves to Sussex. But when a woman who fiercely guards her heart and a man entrusted with the souls of an entire town surrender to a forbidden desire, will the sweetest sin lead them to heaven . . . or make outcasts of them forever?
**
Prepare to fall in love with a man of the cloth. Vicar, Adam Sylvaine is a hunky hero of the first order. He is handsome, muscular, kind and of impeccable morals until he can’t resist fallen woman Evie Duggan.
Evie is a courtesan who became a countess when an Earl won her in a card game. He died of heart failure from too much Evie so she had to move to the country and start anew. She wants to put her infamous reputation behind her but of course there are many obstacles.
Julie Anne Long can write stunning characters that we feel we know intimately. All of her books are first rate in the character development department. In this book we don’t so much long for Evie’s redemption as we long for Adam finding true love.
There was a noticeable lack of editing but I refuse to let that detract from what is a very good story about characters that stay with you after the last page is read.
La Deetda Reads 
I read and LOVED What I did for a Duke. One of my top HRs. But I am getting tired of Long using peripheral characs to try and draw out the Lyon/Olivia story arc. I think I am going to wait until Long has finished the series before I buy anymore of her books.
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Okay…I have this notion in my head that I read that the Lyon/Olivia story was going to be upended in the next book. I’m not sure why I think that. If I wasn’t so lazy I would research it. 🙂
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Unfortunately, no. Long has recently stated that she has many stories to come before Olivia/Lyon. There’s a post about this and series in general on Dear Author.
This also worries me because inevitably expectations rise and are never fulfilled with these ‘last of’ books. It’s a shame because when Long writes good, she’s fantastic.
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Ah, so those last lines tease in ‘Notorious Countess’ was just a false lead.
This is the quote:
…in the lowering light two people were walking together.
“It’s my cousin Olivia. And…by God, if that isn’t Lord Landsdowne she’s walking with.”
They beheld the miracle in silence.
“Landsdowne might just win that wager yet.” Adam said on a hush.
So that made me think she may be scraping the Lyon/Olivia romance.
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Yeh, no, it’s a tease. She has also hinted that Olivia & Lyon may not be in a book together. So…..who knows. What I’m pretty sure about though, is that we won’t be seeing them for a while.
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