Boudreaux’s Lady by Lauren Smith – a Review

Boudreaux’s Lady by Lauren Smith – a Review

 

Amazon / B&N /BAM / Book Depository

 

Description:
Danger makes the heart grow fonder…
Miss Philippa Wilson makes the best of a bad situation. Her lot in life isn’t what she’d choose, but being an upstairs maid for a wealthy baron is better than living on the streets. Little does she know her lackluster days are about to become decidedly more interesting…and dangerous. When a madman wants Philippa dead, it’s going to take more than the plan of her good-hearted employer to save her and find out why she’s being targeted. It’s going to take a hero…or maybe a rogue.
Beauregard Boudreaux is a notorious rogue, living uneventful days and terribly scandalous nights with little thought to settling down. He needs nothing more than a strong drink, a beautiful mistress, and a spirited card game to be happy…When he intervenes to rescue a friend’s upstairs maid from a killer, he’s drawn into a game of cat and mouse with the maid used as bait to draw out the killer. But the more time Beau spends with Philippa as her protector, the more he has an irresistible attraction to this mysterious woman. He also can’t shake the feeling that he’s seen her somewhere before.
But Beau has lost too much in life to risk being hurt again. He can’t let himself fall in love, not even with the temptation Philippa presents to him.
And bloody hell, she is oh-so tempting…

 

 

Review:

Boudreaux’s Lady is a historical romance novel. If you are familiar with Lauren Smith’s League of Rogues Series, you will recognize many of the characters in this new novel. This is a wonderfully thrilling novel with mystery, danger, suspense and of course, sizzling romance.

The main characters of the story are Beauregard Boudreaux and Phillipa Wilson (Selkirk).

This novel begins with a prologue set in London in October of 1806. Lady Albina Selkirk, wife of Cornelius Selkirk, the Earl of Monmouth has given birth to twins. A boy and a girl. The first born was a son, but he was stillborn. The girl was born second and healthy. Lord Monmouth was furious that his only son and heir was stillborn. He cursed at his wife as she lay bleeding out, dying. He instructed the midwife, Lucy, to take the girl to the miller’s cottage (the Wilsons) and make a deal to swap her for their son. He would give them much money to start over and he would raise their son as his heir, but they must all keep silent about it, forever. If they would not take his offer, he would kill the girl child.

The story picks up twenty years later at a ball where the Duke of St. Albans watched his grandson, Roderick, dancing.  He spoke to his good friend and almost neighbor Beau Boudreaux. The duke remarked on how the boy did not favor either him or his father, the Earl of Monmouth. But he loved the boy anyway. He was a good man with a kind heart. Beau and the duke were good friends since Beau was a boy and his mother had moved them here after his father had (a marquess) been killed by a firing squad in France, for his political beliefs. Beau thought of the duke as a surrogate father. The duke told Beau was the anniversary of his daughter’s death during childbirth and showed Beau her portrait in his hall. She was the most beautiful woman Beau had ever laid eyes on.

This setup is a little long, but I’m attempting to let you know what the story entails. I am, of course, leaving out the juicy details and conversations. I don’t do spoilers and you wouldn’t want me to spoil this marvelous tale. The author has done a marvelous job of showing the characters and gently letting you get to know them and their motives.

Our second main character, Philippa, is introduced now. She’s a maid in the household of Lord Lennox and his wife Rosalind (League of Rogues). While making up rooms upstairs, she hears someone arrive to see Lord Lennox. It was Lord Monmouth. Something about his voice chilled her and she became curious. Watching from the staircase as he waited, he became aware and looked up. His face paled and he muttered “No, you can’t be… Not here. It’s not possible.” He suddenly rushed up the staircase and grabbed by the throat and began choking her…

And that’s as far as I go with the setup! Except, she first meets Beau when he helps Lennox try to rescue her after Monmouth has someone kidnap her to kill her. Yes, this is an exciting thriller from start to finish. I haven’t given you much of the details that are included…because I don’t want to spoil it. Grab yourself a copy and make sure you have time to read. You won’t want to put this one down! I couldn’t!

Congratulations to author Lauren Smith on a brilliant novel.

Reviewed by Georgianna

Copy supplied for review

Share

Easy Revenge (Boudreaux Universe) by LP Dover-Review Tour

Easy Revenge (Boudreaux Universe) by LP Dover-Review & Giveaway Tour

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk / Amazon.au /  B&N (paper)/

Don’t own a Kindle? Download the FREE Amazon Kindle App for your mobile device or pc

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date April 9, 2020

Clara and Zac thought they were headed for their happily ever after, until a break-up slathered in betrayal left them both jaded and vindictive.

Twelve years have passed since they left Wyoming, and during that time Clara found her calling at a prestigious PR firm in California while Zac moved to New Orleans to join his Boudreaux cousins at Bayou Enterprises. They thought they could forget each other and move on … until a local charity auction in their hometown of Snowy Creek sets Zac up for the ultimate revenge. If he wins, Clara will be at his mercy, forced to work for him for one full week. Tantalized by the sweet taste of revenge, he eagerly ups the ante to claim his prize.

But what starts out as a week of filthy manual labor and bitter rivalry leads to a shocking revelation. Someone has been plotting for over a decade to keep Clara and Zac apart. Can the pair band together to uncover who? Or will their rift from the past continue to ruin their chance at a blissful future?

•••••••

REVIEW:EASY REVENGE by LP Dover is a contemporary, adult, erotic, romance stand alone story line, a part of the multi-authored Boudreaux Universe series. This is thirty year olds, architect Zac Ward, and PR agent Clara Berkeley story line.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Zac and Clara) EASY REVENGE follows the second chance relationship between thirty year old, architect Zac Ward, and PR agent Clara Berkeley. Twelve years earlier, Clara Berkeley spent a few weeks in Paris with her best friend Trina but a phone call from Home left Clara heart broken and destroyed. Fast forward to present day wherein Clara returns home to Wyoming in the wake of her father’s cancer diagnosis, a return that will bring Clara face to face with her past. A charity auction finds Clara working for the man who broke her heart, a man who stirs something deep within our story line heroine. What ensues is the rebuilding but acrimonious relationship between Clara and Zac, and the potential fall-out as our couple discover the truth about what happened years before.

Clara Berkeley has never recovered from the heart break of Zacs betrayal years before but not all was it appeared to be. Zac believed Clara was responsible for the destruction of their relationship and the truth would bring our couple together but have the potential of destroying a family, and ruining a life-long friendship.

The relationship between Zac and Clara is one of second chances; a rekindling romance between two people destroyed by betrayal, vengeance, jealousy and lies but a rekindling that would reveal to what extremes people will do to tear them apart. The $ex scenes are intimate and passionate without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

There is a large ensemble cast of colorful secondary and supporting characters including Claras parents Diane and Alexander Berkeley; her best friend and client Trina; Zacs cousin Savannah, and his best friend Drew, as well as his boss Galen Matthews.

EASY REVENGE is a story of opportunity and betrayal; good intentions, betrayal and acknowledgement. The premise is emotional and twisty; the romance is seductive and captivating; the characters are broken, angry, charismatic and energetic.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author L. P. Dover is a southern belle living in North Carolina with her husband and two beautiful girls. Before she began her literary journey she worked in periodontics, enjoying the wonderment of dental surgeries.

She loves to write, but she also loves to play tennis, go on mountain hikes and white water rafting, and has a passion for singing. Her two youngest fans expect a concert each and every night before bedtime, usually Christmas carols.

Dover has written countless novels, including her Forever Fae series, the Second Chances series, the Gloves Off series, the Armed & Dangerous series, the Royal Shifters series, the Society X series, the Circle of Justice series, and her standalone novel Love, Lies, and Deception. Her favorite genre to read and write is romantic suspense, but if she got to choose a setting in which to live, it would be with her faeries in the Land of the Fae.

L.P. Dover is represented by Marisa Corvisiero of Corvisiero Literary Agency and Italia Gandolfo of Gandolfo Helin & Fountain Literary Management for dramatic rights.

Website/ Facebook/ Twitter/ Google+ / Amazon / Goodreads / Newsletter

NOTE: The Reading Cafe is NOT responsible for the rafflecopter giveaway. If you have any questions, please contact the tour provider.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Share