Lady Vengeance

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Synopsis

Celia Tregaron's younger brother, Ethan, was pressed into the British Navy during the War of 1812 and was believed to have been killed. Seeking vengeance against the scoundrel who was responsible, she travels to England with the intention of finding the Earl of Ashmore and making him pay with his life. After locating him, she sneaks into his home and lies in wait for him, but he manages to disarm her quite handily despite having a bum arm. It's only after her unsuccessful attempt that she discovers she has the wrong man. Marcus is the Earl of Ashmore, but it was actually his cousin, the previous earl, who is guilty of taking Celia's brother away. With him gone, she can no longer get even, but when Marcus's kindhearted mother and sister learn of her plight, they insist that Marcus use his connections to see if he can find record of Ethan to bring her closure. While he conducts his search, she's offered a place to stay in his home, and in such close proximity, she begins to develop feelings for Marcus. But when Celia's other family members unexpectedly arrive, it leads to a bit of mayhem. Soon the entire group is traveling across England in search of Ethan, but attempts on Celia's life, as well as that of her older brother, leave everyone wondering who could possibly have it out for them.

Marcus Knowles, the Earl of Ashmore, only recently came into the title when his cousin died without an heir, so when he finds a lovely lady pointing a gun at him in his own bedroom, saying that he pressed her brother into service, he has no idea what she's talking about. Instead, he deftly disarms her and then steals a kiss. After discussing the matter at length, he can't help feeling for Celia over the loss of her brother, except that he isn't entirely sure that Ethan is dead, instead suspecting that he might be a prisoner of war. After his mother and sister take up Celia's cause, Marcus agrees to use his military contacts to see if he can find any news of Ethan, but in the meantime, he can't stop thinking about the smoldering kiss they shared. It makes him want to pursue her, but he temporarily keeps his desire in check because of both his honor and not being certain if he can trust her after she led him to believe she was alone in the world and then her family showed up. But as they spend more time together, it leads to more kisses and eventually a sensual affair. However, when some bumbling highwaymen try to kidnap Celia and later shots are fired at her brother, they must figure out what's really going on before someone gets killed.

Review

Lady Vengeance is a stand-alone historical romance that takes place shortly after the end of the War of 1812. Celia's younger brother, Ethan, was pressed into service during the war by a British sea captain she later learned was the Earl of Ashmore. She hasn't heard from Ethan for many months and everyone believes him dead. Wanting vengeance, she sails to England alone, seeks out the earl, and lies in wait, intending to kill him. Luckily for her, she's unsuccessful, because she has the wrong man. After discussing the matter at length, she discovers that while Marcus is the Earl of Ashmore, he's only recently come into the title, inheriting from his cousin who died and it was the cousin who forced Ethan into the British navy. With his mother and sister taking up Celia's cause, Marcus agrees to use his military connections to help her locate her brother who he thinks is likely being held as a prisoner of war, and in the meantime, he offers her a safe place to stay at his home until he can accomplish the task. Immediately after Celia's attempt on his life, Marcus stole a kiss from the beauty and the two of them can't stop thinking about it, leading to more kisses and eventually a sensual affair. But when Celia's family unexpectedly arrives, Marcus isn't entirely certain if he can trust her after she lied about their existence. Also finding her brother isn't quite as straightforward as he'd hoped. Then they're accosted by bumbling highwaymen who seem to be trying to kidnap Celia, and at a later time, shots are fired, leading Marcus to believe that her older brother, Zachary, was the intended target. But who could possibly have it out for this seemingly ordinary family and why?

Celia lost her parents at a young age, so she and her two brothers were raised by a pair of uncles. She later married a childhood friend who was killed, leaving her a widow. It was a comfortable marriage, but one that was lacking the passion she longed for, making her determined to never marry again unless it's for love. Celia impetuously traveled to England in search of the Earl of Ashmore, wanting to make him pay for taking her brother, which she thinks likely led to his death. But she's horrified to discover that she nearly killed the wrong man. At first, she's irritated with Marcus for stealing a kiss after disarming her, but as more time passes, she can't stop thinking about it. She accepts his help in trying to locate Ethan, and her living in Marcus's home while she waits for word of her brother leads to many more kisses and eventually the passion she's always wanted. But soon she finds herself having to explain several little white lies she told about her family and her dead husband. And although she's slowly been falling for Marcus, Celia isn't sure if he feels the same, leaving her determined to return home to America after Ethan is found. But a conspiracy is eventually uncovered, which threatens her life. Celia was an okay heroine but she was a little too impulsive for my taste. More than once, she does something TSTL. In one instance, her brother and uncle coincidentally show up, and in the other, Marcus follows her. Without their intervention, she would have been harmed both times. She also desperately wants Marcus to love her, but rather than revealing her own feelings, she waits around, hoping he'll reveal his. She didn't thoroughly rub me the wrong way, because I think her heart was in the right place, but neither is she going to earn a spot on my favorite heroines list.

Marcus only recently inherited the title of the Earl of Ashmore when his cousin passed on. Needless to say, he's surprised to find a woman in his bedchamber, pointing a gun at him and saying that he got her brother, whom he's never heard of, killed. Despite nursing a lame arm, his military training kicks in. He easily disarms the lovely lady and can't resist stealing a kiss afterward, the memory of which drives him mad in the days to come. When he hears the whole sordid tale and his mother and sister stick up for Celia, who they think is alone in the world, Marcus agrees to let her stay and helps her with locating her brother. Then some of her kin show up, leaving Marcus wondering what else she isn't being entirely honest about. However, the more time he spends with her, the more his doubts about her begin to fade, and he finds himself desiring her like no other woman he's ever met. But when it appears someone may be trying to kill both Celia and her brother, Zachary, Marcus must figure out what's really going on before someone dies. I liked Marcus a little better than Celia, but one thing that kind of turned me off was the amount of drinking he does. I'm certainly not opposed to alcohol consumption, and I'm okay with a hero drinking to excess if he's brooding or for some other compelling reason. But it seemed like Marcus was over-imbibing nearly every evening for no particular reason, which made him seem like a lush. Also, the most interesting thing about him is his injured arm that appeared to have some sort of permanent damage, yet there were times when he's taking Celia in his arms (plural) or touching her with both hands. This almost made it seems like he's perfectly able-bodied, when he clearly isn't, and it was confusing as to just how damaged he really is. Also, the reveal of what happened, while I suppose was meant to be humorous, was pretty anticlimactic. So like with Celia, Marcus ended up just being an okay hero.

I honestly can't recall exactly where or when I acquired Lady Vengeance, just that it has been on my TBR pile for quite some time. Right before reading it, I noticed it has an average GoodReads rating of only 3.00 stars, which made me a little leery. I've read far worse stories, but it did only come out with a middling rating from me as well. First of all, I kind of had to suspend disbelief right from the opening pages, when Marcus and his family offer comfort to the woman who just tried to kill him. Even if she did have the wrong man, felt terrible about it, and immediately gave up her vendetta, it was still a little odd for them to be so understanding. Once I got past that, the story was okay, but the plot was a bit thin with not much happening for quite a while. It kind of plodded along until the attempts on Celia's and Zachary's lives. I have to admit that the mystery part of the story wasn't very mysterious. I easily predicted who the culprit was and at least part of his motive. The only thing that was a bit of a surprise was his co-conspirator. There were a few events that were a little shaky on the details, such as why highwaymen would accost their coach and then only leave a threatening message, which led to one of Celia's TSTL moments. It seemed like a thinly veiled plot device to allow Marcus and Celia to be alone together. The characterizations could have gone much deeper, too. I simply couldn't help feeling like I wanted to know more about both Marcus and Celia. The mechanics of the writing were reasonably sound, but there were a number of incorrect words that the proofreader should have caught and there were also several instances of the author saying something that appeared to contradict something that had been said earlier, which again should have been caught by the editor. Lady Vengeance may have left some things to be desired, but there were parts of the story that were more exciting and held my interest well, so overall, it was a decent read, just not one that I would likely pick up again.

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Sarah Eagle

Themes

Physically Imperfect Heroes