The Wicked Deeds of Daniel Mackenzie

The Wicked Deeds of Daniel Mackenzie by Jennifer Ashley

Daniel Mackenzie is one of the infamous Mackenzie's and has all the charm of his uncles and father and a lightness of spirit that escaped them. He enjoys creating inventions, and is especially fond of crafting a brand new car that would beat any of the German models. He knows immediately that Ms. Bastien, a renowned medium's assistance, is a fraud but instead of exposing her he is more interested in the contraptions she uses to make all the "spirit" sounds she uses to fool everyone. Violet is terrified that Daniel will expose her secrets, but even more scared when he kisses her and it brings back haunting memories of her childhood. In terror, she bashes him over the head and, believing him dead, she abandons him at a hospital. Daniel is, of course, not dead and while he is upset he is eve more intrigued by the beautiful young woman who hit him over the head and has a remarkable ability to make useful inventions. He follows her to Paris where Violet is shocked to find the man she believed she had killed, alive and well. Daniel takes an interest in Violet and her mother, especially when he learns that Violet is basically her mother's caregiver and believes her mother is taking advantage of her.

When one of her mother's clients attempts to assault Violet and she escapes, he decides to press charges and she is arrested. Daniel and his well connected family manage to get her out of prison but he decides that since he has such a vested interest in her welfare that she will accompany him in England. Her mother moves into the Mackenzie mansion and Violet finds herself far too close to the handsome Daniel. But even Daniel is not prepared when Violet confides in him details of her abusive and violent childhood and while she expects him to turn away in disgust, he instead appoints himself her protector and her avenger and dedicates himself to proving her capable of having a real relationship based on respect and love. When a villain from Violet's past resurfaces to cause trouble, the entire Mackenzie clan is there to defend their newest family member and Violet realizes that she truly wants nothing more than to find her happily ever after with Daniel.

I like that this story switched around the roles of the stereotypical roles of heroines and heroes as Violet was the one who was more broody about her past and Daniel had come to accept his own past and had made peace with his relationship with his father. I did like Violet because she was incredibly brave and I liked that she was a conundrum as she was fearless and independent but also cared so much about her mother that she sacrificed herself. Reading about a survivor of rape is always wrenching and Ashley does a deft job of adequately portraying the hurt, the betrayal, the hope, and spirit that accompanies such a violent act and the feelings that come later in the future. I liked that Daniel cared so much for Violet, but I felt like I was supposed to have lots of lingering feelings for Daniel as a holdover from his appearances in other books in the series, and indeed it often seems like the Mackenzie love builds on itself instead of being really expressed in the book.

Violet and Daniel worked incredibly well together and I really enjoyed that they had so many interests in common and that they each encouraged the other's pursuits and helped each other improve and work on their inventions. I liked that they enjoyed spending time together and that a majority of the book was spent with them in the company of each other and in a wide array of activities. There was some sex between them, but given her history, it was more about the emotional aspect of the sex and helping Violet overcome her fears. It was still better than a lot of romances I have been reading and I liked that they did not make her completely sexless just because she had been raped. Daniel and Violet's relationships with their families played an incredibly important part, but while I was interested in Violet's codependence with her mother it was dropped from the book far too quickly. The Mackenzies, who I have enjoyed in the past, and continued to be well done side characters who don't take over the story.

Rating: An interesting book, but despite everything, it still managed to be a little bland with nothing super exciting to keep more interested.

The Seduction of Elliot McBride

The Seduction of Elliot McBride by Jennifer Ashley

Julianna St. John is all set to get married until she discovers at the altar that her fiance has absconded with his widowed piano instructor. Julianna realizes she is more upset about the societal problems her broken engagement will cause than about actually losing her fiance. Luckily for her she sees her childhood crush, Elliot McBride, quite close at hand, and decides that she should make the most of the situation and asks him to marry him. Elliot had every intention of stopping the wedding of the woman who sustained him through years of torture in the Indian desert. He jumps at the chance to marry her and quickly scurries her to his crumbling estate in the Scottish Highlands. Julianna quickly notices that her husband is hiding secrets from everyone around him and it is apparent that many of the people closest to him regard him as barely sane. But she doesn't let anything get in the way of her happiness now that she is married to the man she has worshipped since she was little, the man she always imagined would be her husband.

Elliot is also living the life he has always wanted for himself with no one in the outside world to disturb the happiness he has finally found with Julianna. She is the best thing that ever happened to him and he doesn't want anyone to take Julianna away from him. Their happiness is threatened when a local couple threatens to have Elliot investigated for the death of a fellow Englishman in India but Elliot has recently discovered that this former friend has followed him from India and does not believe it is a friendly visit. Julianna is worried about Elliot's safety and about what this will mean for Elliot's mental healthy, which had been improving since their marriage. Elliot is determined to keep his family safe but it brings up unpleasant memories from India and he finds that the only way he can get through them is with Julianna's help. Together they must over come Elliot's demons and uncover what really happened to Elliot and his friend while in India before they can continue the happy marriage they both dreamed about.

Both Julianna and Elliot were complex characters who I have found it really hard to reflex on without first discussing their relationship. I felt like they had a very co-dependant relationship in the sense that it was obvious that Elliot would barely be able to function without Julianna there. She in turn seemed to relish being needed and had no difficulty focusing entirely on what needed to be done to help Elliot. This made her a rather unlikable heroine for me because I wanted someone who was strong on her own and this was almost like her entirely being became caught up in him. I appreciated that Elliot had lived through hell during his time in India and that this would, of course, cause immense emotional trauma. However, I do not want to read about a hero that is so mentally unstable that he operates under constant threat of having a relapse and choking someone close to him. This aspect of their relationship made me very uncomfortable.

Aside from that aspect of their relationship, which was of course predominant, there were a very few moments where I could see them being happy together, but they were never friendly and happy and joyous. They had sex but it was surprisingly dull and not very frequent. They were very accepting of Indian culture and this was supposed to endear them to the reader, show how open they were, but it seemed unrealistic for the time and like Ashley was trying too hard. About halfway through this very short book the side plot involving the friend from India took over and the relationship took a back seat which upset me, but was also I relief since I wasn't that into it. Unfortunately I was just as uninterested in what had happened to this friend and what was going to happen to him. I felt like it had nothing to do with the story and was just superfluous filler. The book was well written, an easy and fast read.

Rating: I did not enjoy this book and found the relationship between the characters mildly disturbing and the side plot just plain boring.

The Duke's Perfect Wife

The Duke's Perfect Wife by Jennifer Ashley

Lady Eleanor Ramsey was engaged to Hart Mackenzie, a future Duke, but was forced to call of the engagement when his former mistress revealed that there was a dark side to him that he was not telling her. She realized that Hart was primarily selfish and thought only of his own needs and desires, but even though she left him, she kept him in her heart. So when someone starts to send her nude pictures of Hart she wants to get to the bottom of it before the person exposes him just as Hart is poised to make a run for Prime Minister. Hart had not expected to see Eleanor again but realizes that it is perfect timing as he had been planning to take a wife and Eleanor would be a great political companion and he remembers how perfect they had been. Eleanor was the one person Hart trusted with his secrets, like his father killing his mother and his brother, Ian witnessing it and being thrown into a mental institution and Hart's own fight to keep from becoming like his father. He accepts her help really intending to make her his wife, but Eleanor is just as determined to not fall for Hart's charm again.

Eleanor throws herself into finding out who has the nude pictures of Hart and repeatedly finds herself admiring said naked pictures and remembering what it was like to make love to him. Hart worries that Eleanor's quest will lead her to discover the darkness in him that he wants to keep hidden. It is obvious that Hart is different in bed than most of the men of the ton and ladies speak about his prowess in whispers while men seek him out for advice and help. Eleanor does not know what these hidden facets are but she wants to find out and knows that the only way for her and Hart to move forward is for him to be completely honest. In his attempt to derail Gladstone's coalition government Hart opposes and Irish home rule bill that makes him a target of Irish independents and several attempts on his life are made. Hart cannot risk Eleanor getting hurt just as the two of them are working through their problems and possibly starting a new, more honest relationship. He is just as determined to protect her as she is to protect him but even aside from their outside threats, Hart's own secrets will prove the biggest obstacle to their happily ever after.

Eleanor was sassy and spunky and certainly jumped into her self appointed assignment of finding out who sent the nude pictures of Hart. The thing I admired the most about her is her dedication to her absentminded father and how cute and fun their relationship was. I thought the picture thing a little ridiculous and couldn't understand why she felt like she should be in charge of finding the pictures since Hart didn't really seem to care. I also could not understand what she found so likable about Hart as he was rather cold and distant and kind of took advantage of people, even if he thought he was doing it for their own good. Hart was certainly the strong, dark, brooding type as he directed the little people all around him because he knew what was best for them. I will admit his past was certainly haunted since his father was a grade A asshole but he was completely driven to be prime minister and the only real hint of a reason we were given was his future hope for Scottish home rule. It seemed a little far fetched. They spent quite a bit of time together and I did like how their relationship evolved beyond merely loving each other because of their past together.

Their previous relationship was brought up a lot but the reason behind their breakup was really poorly explained as Eleanor wasn't upset about his mistress, but about his "darkness" in the sexual arts. This is a recurring problem for me in Jennifer Ashley books as she constantly hints about how scandalous and sexual her male characters are and it ends up being sexy enough but not anything to merit all the worry. This book was even worse then usual as his "dark" side was the cause of much anxiety among both of them and even I started to buy into the hype wondering what was so exciting and secret. Needless to say I was incredibly disappointed and thought the whole build up was ridiculous and ended up being a complete let down. Hart's political career was a big part of the book but I found that I didn't really enjoy reading about it and I felt like it was a side story instead of a well integrated part of their romance. Past characters make frequent appearances, which I don't mind since they're family and it's done in a subdued but important manner. What I didn't like was that Ian ended up being my favorite hero in this novel when I was supposed to be thinking about Hart.

Rating: A big let down all around with totally unrealistic characters, the very disappointing secret, and a hero who's brother overshadowed him.

The Many Sins of Lord Cameron

The Many Sins of Lord Cameron by Jennifer Ashley 818

Lord Cameron Mackenzie caught Ainsley Douglas in his room and assumed she was there to sleep with him, but she left claiming that she could not betray her kind, but elderly husband. When he later discovered that she had stolen a necklace from his room he felt incredibly betrayed and did not listen to her explanation that she thought the necklace belonged to a friend of hers. Neither forgets what almost happened in that room even while Cameron dedicates himself to sleeping with as many ladies of the ton as he can and Ainsley recovers from her husband's death and goes to work for Queen Victoria. Six years later Ainsley is back in his room rummaging through his stuff, this time on a mission to find love letters the Queen had written to her gardner. This time Cameron has no intention of letting her go and during the course of his brother's house party he sets about seducing the beautiful and aloof lady of his dreams. Ainsley does not want to fall into bed with Cameron; she had made a mistake long ago and her brother had helped her sort out the consequences and she does not want to shame him again.

Cameron has his own past scars; his deceased wife was insane and when not cheating on him, she was physically abusing him and threatening their son, Daniel. He volunteers to help Ainsley recover the letters from the woman who is using them to blackmail money out of the queen and keeps her secrets and goes along with her furtive plans while doing his best to protect her from gossip or harm. Cameron runs a successful horse training facility, but on the off season he goes to Paris and invites Ainsley with him and for once she takes a risk and, throwing caution to the wind, she decides to go off with him. He has realized that he never wants to risk losing Ainsley so he wastes no time in marrying her and claiming her as his forever. But the scars from Cameron's past have not completely disappeared and every time Ainsley tries to talk to him she is shut down and worries she will never really know her husband. When the Queen calls Ainsley away Cameron is terrified of losing her and they both must learn to move on from the hardship in their pasts and trust in their love for one another.

Jennifer Ashley really has a winner with the Mackenzie series and this book is no exception. Ainsley is a wonderful heroine because she is well rounded, sympathetic, and caring and I really felt like I could understand her motives for all of her actions. Plus her tendency to sneak into locked bedrooms makes her more exciting than many romance novel heroines. Cameron is just as excellent as the emotionally damaged hero who is burying his hurt and anger in every willing woman he can find. They complimented each other because Ainsley was just stuck in her role as the proper widow at the beck and call of the Queen and he was so obviously tortured inside. He drew her out of her shell and helped her start living her life and she helped him come to grips with his past. While a tortured hero is nothing new, I admired that Ashley was able to put a new spin on it and that it was a genuine reason for him to be troubled, even if it was a little gruesome. These two spent a lot of time together, a lot of quality time together, which made it so obvious that they were falling in love with each other and I love reading that.

The relationship progressed naturally throughout the book, and I admit that I like books where the characters get married before they're in love because it gives them more time to get to know the other and work together and I get to see how they do everyday things together. The sex was fairly frequent and really hot but a big deal was made about how raunchy Cameron was and how excited Ainsley got by his "dirty talk" and yet it was just alluded to and never described which disappointed me. I really like how Ashley merges past characters into this book seemlessly; they are important to the storyline and are real people and not just props to show how prolific the author is and even the protagonists from her future novel are well down. Best of all none of them distract from the true romance happening between Ainsley and Cameron, but compliment it instead. My favorite secondary character is Daniel, Cameron's son because he was just a perfectly done teenager/ almost man who loved his dad and wanted what was best for him. The book was short and yet I definitely didn't feel disappointed.

Rating: Another very good book from a very talented author who writes very compatible characters and strong relationships in a very easy and fun to read style.

Lady Isabella's Scandalous Marriage

Lady Isabella's Scandalous Marriage by Jennifer Ashley 828

When Isabella, daughter to the Earl of Scranton, eloped with Mac Mackenzie on the night of her betrothal ball, it caused an immense scandal and her family disowned her. The two had a tumultuous marriage with sparkling highs and disastrous lows. They would throw scandalous parties and were the talk of the town and they could not keep their hands off of each other, but when things got bad, Mac would head off to the continent for weeks at a time. Things came to a head when Isabella miscarried while Mac was away and the two were never able to work through it so Isabella left and got a legal separation. Her leaving forced Mac to take a hard look at his life and habits and he realized that he needed to stop drinking and refocus his energies. Three years later Isabella waltzes back into his life with news that his doppelganger is forging paintings and pretending to be him and all the old feelings come rushing back for both of them.

He had been trying to give her the space she needed, but with the support of his brothers, he is determined to make Isabella see that he is a changed man and she belongs with him. Despite seeing how much Mac has changed, Isabella is still wary of taking him back and is disturbed by his lack of concern over the forgeries. Ever since she left him and he gave up drinking, Mac had been unable to produce any decent works of art, but suddenly Isabella has become his muse and he can't get enough of painting her- especially in erotic poses. While the two of them seem to be getting along in the physical sense, a young woman shows up claiming that she was Mac's mistress and they have a child together. And when the doppelganger accosts Isabella in the park, Mac is furious and determined to find this man so that he can start a new life with Isabella. But the man is dangerous and the future they both suddenly want could be at risk.

This book had a lot to live up to after Ashley's last book and in some senses this book lives up to that, but at other times it falls far short. Mac is a recovering alcoholic, which I guess is supposed to parallel Ian's autism, but while alcoholism is terrible and recovery is certainly a cause worthy of celebrating the book really seems to skim over most of this except for a few brief scenes. His giving up drink to win back Isabella was a wonderful grand romantic gesture that I absolutely loved and throughout the book it was very clear that he wanted to be a great person for her and was willing to do so much for her. His actions in the past were certainly awful and I thought it was great that Isabella was willing to leave him so that he would sort through his issues. Isabella was a well written character and while at times I was certainly impressed with her she did not really come across as completely done as Mac did.

The plot involving the doppelganger really did not hold very much interest for me and I was not that excited to have it solved in the end. Perhaps this was because it ended in the usual kidnap, threaten to kill way or because it kind of disappeared a little bit through a big chunk of the book so I stopped thinking about. The best part of this section was the addition of the young child who really brought out some greatness in both Mac and Isabella and helped bring them closer together. The sex between them was well written, but did not really hold much interest for me almost as though it was put in there because it had to be; I enjoyed it more when they were lusting after each other instead of acting on it. Ian and Beth make substantial appearances that don't detract from the central focus of Mac and Isabella. This book also sets up the upcoming books about the Mackenzie brothers very well, and I can't wait to read them.

Rating: A very enjoyable hero with some interesting story elements lead to a satisfying, if not terribly exciting read.

The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie

The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie 530

Beth Ackerley is widowed and after inheriting 100,000 lbs and a house in Belgrave Square from her deceased employer, she was suddenly welcomed into the arms of society, especially broke noblemen. Despite her father being a confidence man and growing up in a workhouse, Sir Lyndon Matthers asks her to marry him. When Lord Ian Mackenzie discovers that Matthers is betrothed he wants to find out if Beth is "real" and if so then he knows he must warn her of Matthers unconventional sexual habits. Their first meeting of the opera makes it clear to Ian that Beth is not only real, but a great companion, and someone he desperately wants in his life. Despite his own noble upbringing, Ian has always been regarded as odd because of his inability to "read" people, his lack of knowledge about proper behavior, his inability to lie, and his inability to look people directly in the eye, and he suffered a harrowing existence in an asylum for years, until his brother, a high ranking Duke, got him out.

Detective Fellows, of Scotland Yard, has been trying to pin the murder of a prostitute on Ian for years, and has been stifled by Ian's high up connections. He wants Beth to help him and it is just convenient for Ian that he wants to marry Beth and at the same time it protects her from Fellows investigation. Beth can make him happy, can make him forget the memories, and he wants to keep her pure from his past and from any problems in his past. But Beth is determined to solve Ian's problems by discovering who really killed the prostitutes, even if it puts her life in danger. The more she pushes the more Ian fears that the rage he has tried to suppress for so long will emerge and he will end up hurting the woman who has come to mean the world to him. Unfortunately the truth does land Beth in a sick bed and Ian, who has so little experience with emotions, knows that he does love Beth- and she is the one who can help him through his "madness."

Wow- Beth was absolutely great in literally every way. She was funny, truthful, and a great, not crazy, optimist. I loved the fact that she was not cowed by Fellows blackmail threats to reveal the truth of her parentage. I briefly worried that this would be the "big, easily solved, misunderstanding" that drives me nuts, and was really happy that she called him on it, told Ian, and everyone got over it. Showed how great she was and how she was at peace with herself and willing to let her loved ones know about her. As I've said sometimes I have problems with novels where the hero just needs this "light" that the heroines brings into his life, because it is not adequately explained, but in this case it was done perfectly. Beth really did bring something in Ian's life that he desperately needed, and she was perfect for it. It's fairly obvious that Ian had a case of high functioning autism, that was undiagnosed because of the era, and it was great how Beth dealt with the idiosyncrasies that came with this. He was odd in a naturalistic way, and still very lovable.

The relationship developed in a completely brilliant way as they both got to know each other and especially how they came to accept each other's faults. This was especially poignant as Beth came to know Ian, learned how to cope and even admire his little issues. The sex between them was smoking with some nice "bawdy talk," but I wish there had been more of it sprinkled throughout the book. There was a big family story built into this novel (I'm very much looking forward to reading the rest of this series) with all these incredibly tortured members who are trying their best to love each other. The mystery of who really killed those prostitutes is woven so well into the story and serves as a great backdrop for their romance. I will also admit that I was completely stunned by the outcome and the extra little secret in the end. I liked the writing throughout the book- it was fast, interesting, and still managed to portray all the emotions and provide all the details that I wanted.

Rating: I was amazed at how well Ashley portrayed such an unexpected hero and at how great she just made every element of this story.