Duel Review-Books #1 and #2 of The Wicked Waywards Series by Liana Lefey

Title: The Devil’s Own (The Wicked Waywards, book #1) & Tempting the Vicar (The wicked Waywards, book #2)

Genre: Historical Romance

Author: Liana Lefey

Source: Free for review from the publisher

Publisher: Entangled: Amara, Book #1 Oct. 19, 2020, Book#2 Jan. 17, 2022

Pages: 242 and 314

Rating: 4 and 4

Sexy Rating: 5

Violence Rating: 4

Description from Amazon: The Devil’s Own

Lord Devlin Wayward, gambler and dedicated rake, returns home for the first time in years, and lands himself and his identical twin, Daniel, the good reverend, in deep trouble. Devlin ends up with a broken leg and unable to travel to London, yet he must return. He’s got an important deal that will make or break his fortune. He persuades the reluctant reverend to take his place in London while he temporarily minds his brother’s flock.

Miss Mary Tomblin is taken with the devastatingly handsome reverend. He represents everything she desires in a husband, after narrowly evading a ruthless rake last Season. Mary knows she’ll make him an excellent wife, but the vicar rebuffs every advance – until he suddenly accepts her help with pastoral duties while his broken leg heals. Mary seizes the chance to show the good reverend what an excellent helpmeet she will be.

The devil takes on the role of village vicar and discovers it’s nowhere near as easy as he imagined—especially when he falls in love with an angel who mistakes him for a saint.

**Deet’s review

This is a cute (if unrealistic) premise; twins switching places. They are so identical that even close family takes some time to figure out who is who. Mary is totally infatuated with Daniel the real vicar who won’t give her the time of day. But he persuades his devil of a brother to please try and dissuade Mary. The ruse backfires when the Devil, Devlin, falls for Mary.

I enjoyed this as a sit down and relax, no angst, romance. It was witty and charming and rather sexy but not over the top. It did feel a bit repetitious toward the middle but the side characters were so well drawn and interesting I didn’t mind. I can recommend this book to romantics everywhere. It is a breath of fresh air in these troubled times.

Description From Amazon: Tempting The Vicar

After his twin brother pulls a foolish prank, Reverend Daniel Wayward’s life is now decidedly complicated. With his family, his parish, and even his reputation at risk, there’s only one way to avoid utter ruin—by swapping places with his rakish, wicked twin. And the second Daniel steps foot into his brother’s worldly and sinful life in London, he’s completely caught by temptation of the most enticing, green-eyed kind.

Miss Olivia St. Peters knows the son of the duke is a dangerous fellow, but something in those hooded, hungry blue eyes makes her blood sing with pleasure. She’s determined to have this Wayward noble, no matter what Society—or even her father—says about the match. And if that means playing with fire, she’ll gladly burn…

The more Daniel resists the oh-so-inviting charms of Olivia, the more determined she is to have him. Now he’s caught between his vows of faith and the lure of sweet temptation. And the only thing standing between his heart and his immortal soul is one unforgivable deception…

**Deet’s Review

In this the second book of The Wicked Waywards, we are treated to Daniel’s adventures in London on behalf of his brother Devlin who is administering to Daniel’s flock in the country. This is a plot very much like that of book#1, the twins have switched places and in so doing Daniel has a crisis of faith and falls in love with the debutant who was enamoured of his brother. This was an easy, satisfying read. Liana LeFey is an accomplished author. I can recommend both books to Regency romance fans, but start with book #1 The Devil’s Own.

Release Day Review- The Devil’s Own by Liana LeFey

Title: The Devil’s Own (The Wicked Waywards, book #1)

Genre: Historical Romance

Author: Liana Lefey

Source: Free for review from the publisher

Publisher: Entangled: Amara,

Pages: 242

Rating: 4

Sexy Rating: 5

Violence Rating: 4

Description from Amazon:

Lord Devlin Wayward, gambler and dedicated rake, returns home for the first time in years, and lands himself and his identical twin, Daniel, the good reverend, in deep trouble. Devlin ends up with a broken leg and unable to travel to London, yet he must return. He’s got an important deal that will make or break his fortune. He persuades the reluctant reverend to take his place in London while he temporarily minds his brother’s flock.

Miss Mary Tomblin is taken with the devastatingly handsome reverend. He represents everything she desires in a husband, after narrowly evading a ruthless rake last Season. Mary knows she’ll make him an excellent wife, but the vicar rebuffs every advance – until he suddenly accepts her help with pastoral duties while his broken leg heals. Mary seizes the chance to show the good reverend what an excellent helpmeet she will be.

The devil takes on the role of village vicar and discovers it’s nowhere near as easy as he imagined—especially when he falls in love with an angel who mistakes him for a saint.

**

This is a cute (if unrealistic) premise; twins switching places. They are so identical that even close family takes some time to figure out who is who. Mary is totally infatuated with Daniel the real vicar who won’t give her the time of day. But he persuades his devil of a brother to please try and dissuade Mary. The ruse backfires when the Devil, Devlin, falls for Mary.

I enjoyed this as a sit down and relax, no angst, romance. It was witty and charming and rather sexy but not over the top. It did feel a bit repetitious toward the middle but the side characters were so well drawn and interesting I didn’t mind. I can recommend this book to romantics everywhere. It is a breath of fresh air in these troubled times.

Advance Review- A Wicked Reputation by Liana Lefey

Title: A Wicked Reputation (Once Wicked book #3)

Genre: Historical Romance/Regency

Author: Liana LeFey

Publisher: Entangled: Amara, Feb. 25, 2019

Source: Free for review from the publisher

Pages: 243

Rating: 4

Sexy Rating: 5

Violence Rating: 4

Description from Amazon.com:

Betrayed by her fiancé and her best friend, Lady Diana Haversham’s reputation is left in ruins, and she is unjustly cast out by her family. Left with little choice, she agrees to pretend to be a courtesan to protect her benefactor’s secret. What she didn’t count on was meeting temptation in the form of one Lord Lucas Blackthorn.
Lucas is fascinated by the shameless Diana, whom his friends claim is his perfect counterpart. He can’t stop thinking about her sultry smile and captivating eyes, but what draws him most is the sharp mind she reveals—and the certainty she’s hiding something.
When Lucas learns the scandalous truth, Diana will have to make a life-and-death choice.
Each book in the Once Wicked series is STANDALONE:
* To Love a Libertine
* Once a Courtesan
* A Wicked Reputation

***

This was a good read. The premise of a scandalous lady being wooed by an aristocrat is perhaps not new but this match up has many layers of subterfuge. It has heart pounding moments Where we think everything is lost. The side characters are well developed and add to the plot. Lucas is a swoon worthy hero but so is the Marquess Harrow who is Diana’s protector. Diana is the daughter of a Duke but because of lies her reputation was ruined.

I liked the unique plot and the way the characters were developed with sympathy. At times I thought that Lucas made some rather ill thought out mistakes which almost made me give up on him. But then he would turn around and redeem himself.

Advance Review- Scandal of The Season by Liana Lefey

Title: Scandal of The Season

Genre: Historical Romance/ Regency

Author: Liana Lefey

Source: Free for review from the publisher

Publisher: Entangled Select Historical, May 30, 2017

Pages: 300

Rating: 4.5

Sexy rating: 4

Violence rating: 4

Description from Amazon:

Five years ago, Lord Sorin Latham fled England’s shores to avoid heartbreak and scandal in the form of one Lady Eleanor Cramley. On returning home, he finds the young miss he used to scold for lack of decorum is now a stunning woman who fires his blood. But he must resist temptation or risk losing his honor as a gentleman and the friendship of those he holds dear, including Eleanor.

Lady Eleanor is determined to be the paragon of propriety Sorin urged her to become. But now that he’s back, the man she once thought of as an older brother makes her long to be anything but proper. She must make Sorin see her as worthy of his heart and his desire without losing his good opinion, or her Season will end in disgrace.

**

A new-to-me author, Liana Lefey, has come up with a very enjoyable friends-to- lovers story.  Sorin and Ellie are each afraid that the other sees them as nothing more than a brother or sister and each is endeavoring to show the other that there is more to their feelings.  However they keep getting it wrong until a villain forces their hand.

This is a most entertaining book from an author that I hope to hear more from.  It is well written, historically accurate and a fun read.  The side characters are well developed with a hint of more books to come.

 

New Release Review- To Make A Match by Liana LeFey

Title:  To Make A Match

Genre: Historical Romance/Georgian

Author: Liana LeFey

Publisher: Montlake Romance, August 13, 2013,

Source: Free for review from Amazon Vine Program

Rating: 4

Sexy Rating: 5

Description from amazon.com:

The spirited Lady Victoria Lennox longs for a husband, but she cannot wed until her prickly older sister, Amelia, becomes a wife—and Amelia seems intent on driving away all potential suitors. To avoid becoming a spinster, Victoria concocts a plan: a carefully arranged scandal will compel Amelia to marry. And to bait the trap, who better than the dashing Lord Julius Cavendish?

Yet Julius has little interest in stubborn Amelia. Victoria, on the other hand, he finds irresistible. Determined to make her his own, Julius adds a new twist to Victoria’s plan: his friend Lord Withington will act as Victoria’s decoy suitor, distracting Amelia from the very real courtship happening under her nose. All might be well, were not Withington immediately smitten with Amelia. He sees how tender and protective she is beneath the frosty facade.

As the perfect plan goes perfectly awry, each sister finds herself publicly betrothed to the wrong man. Can they undo the damage in time to make the perfect match?

**

This delightful romp starts out like an Oscar Wilde farce giving the reader a few giggles and smiles.  However, it soon becomes more of a drama as the secrets and deceptions cause misunderstandings and hurt.

Liana LeFey has concocted an easy read with dramatic undertones.  Victoria is a bit of a flibbertigibbet and Amelia is certainly stiff and stuffy.  The men who would woo them are the heroes we read romances to find.  The characterizations are well done and the plot well developed.  There is romance, sensuality, conflict and hard won resolution.  A good read.

Deet’s Confessions of An Addicted Personality

My Kindle died.  This may not mean much to all of you but to me it is like I lost a pet.  I have already replaced my pet with a new pet, a Kindle Paperwhite.  It won’t be here for a week because I was too cheap to pay $17 for quicker delivery. So I will actually be opening a real honest to goodness book with paper pages during the next week.  Thank goodness there are alternatives!

note: people with addictions cannot go cold turkey for long without severe withdrawal symptoms.  If they get past the DT’s then they will most likely develop another addiction to compensate.  How do I know this?  I was a smoker of cigarettes , it took me three tries to finally get off of them.  I worked the night shift as an RN and was addicted to coffee.  That took some time to get rid of the headaches when I decaffeinated.  Each time I got off the “bad” addiction I found a substitute “good” addiction.  At first it was painting and then it was reading, the blog and reviewing.

Now my addiction is Kindle.  Amazon likes this about me.  My family doesn’t mind too much.  They always know where to find me, in my reading chair and they always know I will love an Amazon gift card for my birthday.  Sometimes the neighbors think I’ve gone on vacation since I’m holed up with my Kindle.

So Deet, what you gonna read til that Kindle gets here?  Well….Thanks for asking.  Here is what I have handy in paper:

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins,  I read The Hunger Games and loved it, and saw the movie, isn’t that Jennifer Lawrence terrific? I was so impressed at how the movie followed the book.  I want to read this next book in the series before the movie comes out in November.

The Arrangement by Mary Balogh, an advance reader copy (ARC) of Mary’s book to be released in August.

To Make A Match by Liana Lefey, another ARC of an August release.

Yes, I will eventually review all of these here on the blog.  These should hold me over until that fancy Paperwhite Kindle arrives.  I hope I don’t get the shakes beforehand.

Review- Countess So Shameless by Liana LeFey

Title:  Countess So Shameless

Genre:  Historical Romance

Author: Liana LeFey

Publisher: Montlake Romance, Nov. 6, 2012, pre-order available

Source: Free for review from Amazon Vine Program

Rating: 4.5

Sexy Rating: 5

Description from amazon.com:

No one can compete for Lady Mélisande’s coveted affections like the Italian rogue she met five years prior during a visit to Versailles. Her encounter with Lord Alessandro Orsini awakened a passion so fierce that the mere memory of it still ignites her senses. So when the celebrated rake resurfaces in London, Mélisande succumbs to temptation and shamelessly proposes an affair for the Season.

Alessandro has never forgotten the girl he met in Versailles―his perfect match. Though the fiercely independent lady has sworn off marriage, it doesn’t stop him from vowing to make her his wife. While seducing her body, he wages tender warfare on her heart’s defenses. But a bitter rival also burns to possess Mélisande, and luck has provided the means to bend her to his will: a scandalous secret that could ruin her. The price of his silence is nothing less than her hand in marriage, forcing Mélisande to choose between the desires of her heart and everything else she holds dear.

**

Delicious! There was a certain feeling of authenticity in the original plot of this book.  The author stirs up a sizzling sensuality between the Hero and Heroine.  Melisande’s experience with lust at first sight ruins her for all other men.  Alessandro’s discovery of her, after five years of searching, enforces his determination to marry her.  First he needs to dissuade her reluctance.  The author’s inclusion of a truly vile and obsessed villain along with the presence of English and French royalty makes this a suspenseful and page turning read.  I was slightly put off by the age (fourteen years old) of Mellisande’s first encounter with Alessandro and couldn’t wrap my mind around her mature outlook at only nineteen.  However, those minuses are easily put aside for a truly good read.