Led Astray By A Rake
Sara Bennett
Series: The Husband Hunters Club – Book One
Period: Early Victorian
AVON, JUNE 2009, 373 pp
ISBN-13: 978-0061336911
$6.99 (US) $8.99 (CDN)
Reviewed by Mary
June 2009
Miss Olivia Monteith along with her friends is a recent graduate of Miss Debenham’s Finishing School. Having been “schooled” in the art of procuring a respectable, hopefully rich, titled husband, she had not been taught to follow her heart or lead with her feelings, things Livy intends to pursue. She is seeking a love match that will provide her with desire and passion and while she keeps this information from her parents her fellow members in The Husband Hunters Club know what she is seeking. When she revels to her friends that she has set her sights on Lord Dominic “Wicked Nic” Lacey they are shocked. They don’t see a happily ever after. But Livy disagrees. She’s been in love with Nic since she was 10 years old and rescued her from a fall. He promised to marry her then and she intends to hold him to that obligation.
While he may be a rake and wastrel Nic is also a man who fulfills his obligations. He and his mother live on the same property and he cares for her since his father’s death. She blames Nic for his death, and refuses to acknowledge his existence. He has few friends and less interaction with proper society so when Livy shows up on his doorstep and states her intentions he is quite frankly shocked. He explains that things said as children do not hold up for adults but Livy is determined to claim this man as her husband.
What Olivia does not know is the secret that has been suffocating Nic since his father’s death. Could he be the one responsible for what had happened when a young woman shows up claiming that the child she bore needs to be provided for? Is the subsequent fight between Nic and his father what pushed the man to his demise? Nic is not sure but these doubts are enough to keep him away from anything that would involve commitment.
However Livy is more determined to be with Nic than he is to stay away from her. She uses every trick she knows to bind herself to him and to keep herself away from the man who does want her – Theodore. While he may be an acceptable husband he is not what Livy thinks will make her happy.
Led Astray By A Rake is my first but by no means my last novel by Sara Bennett. I particularly loved the secrets that lead you to open one door only to find another one behind it – and –the writer’s ability to keep one locked up tight right until the reveal. Nic proves to be a great hero because of his flaws and self-doubting personality. While Livy is a ray of sunshine in his dark existence, she is head strong and fighting for freedom her parents seem unable to give her. I look forward to reading more in this series; it was a great read and I highly recommend it.