Mine Till Midnight

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Synopsis

Amelia Hathaway has her hands full, trying to manage her four siblings, who she's cared for since the deaths of their parents. She's also working on learning how to navigate high society after her older brother, Leo, unexpectedly inherited a title and an estate from a distant relative. Out of all her siblings, Leo, who is reeling from the death of his betrothed and spends his days engaging in all manner of debauchery, has been the most difficult to wrangle. When he goes missing yet again, Amelia ends up at Jenner's club searching for him, where she meets the handsome manager, Cam Rohan. Cam somewhat reluctantly offers his help and then steals a kiss afterward, a kiss that Amelia cannot seem to forget. When she makes the decision to move the family to their new country estate, she believes she'll never see Cam again, but she's shocked when he shows up as a guest at a neighboring estate. They start getting to know each other and desire blooms, but even after sharing some passionate moments with Cam, Amelia is reluctant to get married. She's been an independent woman for all her adult life and doesn't relish having to answer to a man. But when their new home catches fire and her family is in shambles, and Cam is the one there lending a strong shoulder for her lean on, Amelia may not be able to resist.

Cam Rohan was born Romany but started working at Jenner's years ago when he was just a lad. His talent with numbers has helped him rise through the ranks to become the manager, a job for which he's well-compensated. Cam lives simply and has never put much stock in money or property, but every effort he's made to get rid of his riches has only made him wealthier. When he meets Amelia at the club, he's immediately intrigued by her, and after a stolen kiss, he hopes to see her again. He didn't think it would be so soon, though, so he's surprised to find her living on the estate next to his friend's. Lately Cam has been feeling a strong desire to track down his Romany tribe and embrace his roots again, but the more he gets to know Amelia, the more he thinks he might have finally found a woman worth staying put for. When her new home burns down, he makes sure to be there for her and offers all the help she needs. But when Amelia's strong sense of independence gets in the way, Cam will have to work hard to get her to accept his proposal.

Review

Mine Till Midnight is the first book in Lisa Kleypas's Hathaways series, which is a spin-off of her Wallflowers series. Cam was first introduced in that series as the half-Romany/half-Irish manager of Jenner's who has been friends with Evie since childhood. Amelia is the eldest Hathaway daughter who has placed the responsibility on herself of keeping her family intact. She and Cam meet when she goes in search of her errant older brother, Leo, who only recently inherited a title from a distant relative and who has been engaging in drunken debauchery. Cam helps Amelia locate Leo and then steals a kiss, but neither thinks they'll likely see each other again. Fate has other plans in store, though, when the Hathaways move into Ramsay House, their decrepit new estate, which happens to be nextdoor to Stony Cross Manor, Lord Westcliff's (It Happened One Autumn) estate. Cam happens to be visiting Westcliff, so he and Amelia rekindle their attraction, sharing many more passionate kisses. After Ramsay House catches fire, Lillian extends an invitation for the whole family to temporarily move into Stony Cross Manor, which only places Cam and Amelia in even closer proximity. However, despite passion flaring between them, free-spirited Cam has been thinking of returning to his Romany tribe, while Amelia is a little too much of a control freak to allow a man to take away her independence. They'll have a lot to work out in order to make a lifetime commitment to one another, but when things with her family take a drastic turn for the worse, Amelia may just find that it's nice having a strong shoulder to lean on.

Cam started working at Ivo Jenner's club when he was just a lad and he and Evie became like brother and sister. When her husband, St. Vincent, took over the club, he kept Cam on as manager, and Cam has become known for being excellent with numbers and keeping the peace. St. Vincent pays Cam well for his expertise, but since Cam's Romany side disdains personal wealth, he's tried to get rid of it with no luck. In fact, he's said to have a good luck curse, because even when he throws his money at what appears to be bad investments, they always pay off, leaving him a very wealthy man. Despite that, he lives simply and a part of him longs to go in search of his tribe and perhaps return to that nomadic life. Cam has never had a problem with attracting female companionship, but lately he's been bored with all the women around him. Then Amelia comes to Jenner's looking for her errant brother. She draws him in a way that no woman ever has and he can't resist helping her, then stealing a kiss. He figures he'll probably never see her again, but when she shows up at Stony Cross Manor, while he's there visiting, he can't resist pursuing her. Soon he discovers that Amelia is a woman who's worth setting aside his wanderlust and putting down roots for, but she'll be a little harder to convince that they could have future together. There were a couple of times that Cam was perhaps just a tad too pushy for my taste, but overall, he was a good hero. I love how casual he is, always in his shirtsleeves and never wearing a cravat, but he's earned the respect of the Wallflower characters who support him despite his Romany heritage. That's not to say that he doesn't face some discrimination from others, but he handles it well. I think what I liked most about him, though, is how he becomes someone Amelia can lean on for support and he doesn't hesitate to take on her crazy family with all their problems. He's also very patient in waiting for Amelia to change her mind and let him into her life for good.

Amelia and her siblings lost their parents, and her older brother, Leo, only just recently gained a title that is considered cursed since three other distant relatives died in quick succession in order for him to inherit. Prior to that, the Hathaways were commoners, so suddenly becoming aristocrats is an adjustment. Added to that is Leo's recent loss of the woman he loved, which has sent him into an emotional tailspin that he deals with by frequenting unsavory establishments and drinking himself into oblivion. It was during one of Leo's episodes that Amelia met Cam while searching for her brother and was very impressed with the kiss Cam gave her. As the next oldest after Leo, Amelia is determined to hold her family together, but between Leo's problems, one sister in frail health, and another who is a kleptomaniac, she has her hands full trying to do just that. Hoping to keep everyone out of trouble, she decides to move the family into Ramsay House, their new country estate, but it, too, is all but falling down around their ears and the title doesn't come with enough income to make repairs. Amelia sets about trying to fix things up the best she can, but both that and keeping the family on the straight and narrow prove challenging. Then she runs into Cam again, and he provides a welcome distraction. However, even after things turn passionate between them, she's reluctant to even consider marriage, because she's become accustomed to her independence and doesn't want a man suddenly dictating what she can and can't do. But when Ramsay House catches fire and Leo once again goes missing, Cam proves to be a strong support for her, taking some of the burden from her shoulders, and tempting her to let him in even further. I could definitely relate to Amelia being the strong one who has to be in command, which has turned her into a bit of a control freak. I was maybe just a tiny bit disappointed that she even considered, for a minute, taking back her ex after the cruel way he'd dumped her, but at least, she came to her senses pretty quickly. I like that she gradually opened herself up to Cam and let him provide a much-needed support system for her and her family.

The Hathaways series is five books long, so each of the siblings get their own stories. I'm super-excited that the next oldest sister, Win, and Merripen, another Rom who was taken in as a child by the Hathaway parents and raised alongside them all like a brother, will become the hero and heroine of the next book, Seduce Me at Sunrise. Win's health is frail from a recent bout with scarlet fever. Merripen looks out for all of them, but especially Win, since he's been in love with her from afar for a long time. He doesn't believe anything can come of it because of his heritage, but despite that, these two share a few tender moments while Merripen is recovering from a bad burn sustained during the fire that makes me very anxious for their story. As far as I can tell, second-youngest sister Poppy is probably the most stable of them all. She'll be the heroine of the third book, Tempt Me at Twilight. The fourth book, Married by Morning, will be Leo's. He's in a pretty bad state in this book, mourning the loss of his betrothed, who he'd loved deeply. Occasionally he can be a bit of a jerk, but overall, I think his behavior was just his way of grieving or at least I hope so. I look forward to him finding love again. And last but not least, is the youngest, Beatrix, who has a compulsion to steal things that I think is partly a result of all the upheavals in her young life. By the end of this book, Cam is making strides toward turning her around. Her story will be the final book, Love in the Afternoon.

Overall, I enjoyed Mine Till Midnight and thought it was a solid start to the Hathaways series. I liked Cam and Amelia. With Cam being more free-spirited and Amelia being a bit of a control freak, they have an opposites attract vibe going on, but I still think they fit well together. He's a much-needed calming influence on her, and isn't at all scared away by all their family problems, both personal and financial. In fact, he manages to step in and take charge as needed without trampling on Amelia's toes. I also enjoyed all the supporting players. It was great getting to know the rest of the Hathaway family and I look forward to each of their stories. It was also wonderful to see some of the Wallflower characters and get an update on their lives. All that said, though, when I compared the book against some of my Lisa Kleypas favorites, I found it a bit lacking. This is one of those rare occasions, though, where I'm not entirely sure why. There was a touch of gothic paranormal that one doesn't typically see in a historical romance that gave it a little different feel that I'm perhaps not entirely sure fit. Or maybe it's because there wasn't a great deal of conflict to resolve. Cam puts his wanderlust aside pretty easily and then it's just a matter of him convincing Amelia that they're meant for each other and he won't try to stifle her too much. There is a touch of trouble from her ex, but I wasn't completely satisfied with how that all wrapped up without much of a comeuppance for him. I don't know if we'll see more of him or not to resolve the matter more thoroughly. Then there is a touch of intrigue surrounding both Cam and Merripen that I'm guessing will carry over to at least the next book, which is fine by me, because it gives me something to eagerly anticipate. So all in all, it was a good book, not a perfect one for me, but one that has whetted my appetite for more Hathaways (and Wallflowers, too, hopefully:-)).

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Lisa Kleypas

Themes

Opposite Sides of the Track