Did you read WHEN YOU GIVE A DUKE A DIAMOND by Shana Galen as I recommended back in August? You did? Fabulous - then you're going to want to continue the mystery in IF YOU GIVE A RAKE A RUBY with Fallon and Warrick Fitzhugh. If you haven't read the first book in the Jewels of the Ton series featuring the stories of three fabulous courtesans of London known as the Diamonds, then you most certainly should.
***eARC provided by publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest and unscripted review.
Blurb for IF YOU GIVE A RAKE A RUBY:
Her Mysterious Past Is The Best Revenge . . .
Fallon, the Marchioness of Mystery, is a celebrated courtesan with her finger on the pulse of high society. She’s adored by men, hated by their wives. No one knows anything about her past, and she plans to keep it that way.
Only He Can Offer Her A Dazzling Future . . .
Warrick Fitzhugh will do anything to protect his compatriots in the Foreign Office, including seduce Fallon, who he thinks can lead him to the deadliest crime lord in London. He knows he’s putting his life on the line . . .
To Warrick’s shock, Fallon is not who he thinks she is, and the secrets she’s keeping are exactly what make her his heart’s desire . . . * * * * * Fallon, the Marchioness of Mystery has managed to keep her past, her true identity, and her greatest secret to herself, with the exception of the Countess Sinclair, until she enters her bedchamber to find a man lounging on her bed. Now, the question isn't how to preserve her secrets, but how to keep from succumbing to this man of mystery. A man who claims to know who she truly is and who plans to use the information as blackmail if she refuses to assist him in a most dangerous endeavor.
Warrick Fitzhugh has a price on his head, just as do the remaining Diamonds in the Rough - a group of men who have sworn their lives and their duty to their country as spies. Having promised his queen that he will find the person or persons who are selling the names of these honorable men so that they may be killed off one by one, Warrick has discovered that the courtesan, Fallon, is in reality the daughter of the man who wants him dead - Maggie Bayley. His information correct, he drags Fallon back into a world she had managed to escape once - barely. But once her interest is sparked with the knowledge that her father still lives, Warrick is confronted with not the task of how to get her to work with him but how to protect her from danger, and himself.
The mystery of who wants the Diamonds in the Rough dead, which began in WHEN YOU GIVE A DUKE A DIAMOND, continues full force in IF YOU GIVE A RAKE A RUBY. Shana Galen takes us into the darkest recesses of London, into a world of depravity that shocks and intrigues, and into danger that nearly costs our hero and his heroine their lives. Action driven from the very beginning, IF YOU GIVE A RAKE A RUBY by Shana Galen is a historical romance at its best. It's intriguing, exciting, mysterious, sexy, and carries us to a romantic happily ever after, while leaving us primed and ready for the next installment.
I highly recommend IF YOU GIVE A RAKE A RUBY by Shana Galen to anyone who loves an action-packed historical romance that takes you from the ballrooms to dangerous carriage chases, nerve-wracking hints of danger to near death battles, steamytête-à-têtes in dark places that will have you fanning yourself, and a declaration of love and family acceptance that will leave you sighing. All of this while being led in the direction of the final installment which will hopefully resolve the mystery once and for all. If you haven't read WHEN YOU GIVE A DUKE A DIAMOND, I do recommend reading it before IF YOU GIVE A RAKE A RUBY, as it is a continuous mystery that will be better understood if these books are read in order.
Happy Reading Everyone!
IF YOU GIVE A RAKE A RUBY, a Jewels of the Ton novel by Shana Galen, Sourcebooks Casablanca, release date March 5, 2013 in print, ebook and audiobook formats.
WHEN YOU GIVE A DUKE A DIAMOND - awesome title, don't you think? I thought so and that was why I was very excited about receiving an ARC from Shana Galen to read and review. I hoped I was going to be in for a ride and she didn't disappoint me. Release date: September 1, 2012. **ARC received in exchange for an honest and unscripted review.
Blurb for WHEN YOU GIVE A DUKE A DIAMOND:
He had a perfectly orderly life...
William, the sixth
Duke of Pelham, enjoys his punctual, securely structured life. Orderly and
predictable—that's the way he likes it. But he's in the public eye, and the
scandal sheets will make up anything to sell papers. When the gossip papers link
him to Juliette, one of the most beautiful and celebrated courtesans in London,
chaos doesn't begin to describe what happens next... Until she came along...
Juliette is nicknamed the Duchess of Dalliance and has the cream of the
nobility at her beck and call. It's disruptive to have the duke who is the
biggest catch on the Marriage Mart scaring her other suitors away. Then she
discovers William's darkest secret and decides what he needs in his life is the
kind of excitement only she can provide...
* * * * *
Juliette may be known as one of a trio of the finest courtesans in London but things aren't always what they seem. She's accustomed to notoriety but when she opens the Morning Chronicle to find she's been linked with the Dangerous Duke of Pelham, she's not sure what to make of it or if she wants to be for he's not the friendliest of sorts, hence his nickname. Upon their first meeting, he proves himself to be all she had originally thought - rude, obstinate, arrogant and the most incredibly handsome man she'd ever seen.
Wil - Pelham or his grace to everyone else but Juliette - lives a life of strict regimen. He rises at the same time each day, eats meals at the same time every day, and does nothing spontaneously - ever - that is, until he meets the most incredible and spontaneous woman ever, the notorious Duchess of Dalliance, Juliette. On the cusp of his marriage to a woman he doesn't love but is willing to accept, the last thing he expects is to become entangled in a mystery involving one of the notorious Diamonds - London's most celebrated courtesans. Now, he's not sure of anything or anyone much less his own feelings about his past, his present, or his future. All he knows for sure is that his fiancée is missing - dead by Juliette's declaration. He's sure there's a dangerous man by the name of Lucifer who is endangering Juliette and himself. And he's totally sure and distracted by his attraction to Juliette which threatens to be his greatest undoing.
WHEN YOU GIVE A DUKE A DIAMOND by Shana Galen carries the reader on a delightful roller coaster of emotional ups and downs that keep you wondering if this pair will ever have a happily-ever-after. Shana Galen has a unique talent for doing this in her wonderful books and this historical romance is no different.
However, when I first started reading this regency romance, I wasn't totally sure I was going to enjoy myself. It was difficult to endear myself to the characters but that soon changed almost instantaneously as we left the ballroom. Pelham is stuffy and arrogant. He's totally unlikable and then suddenly, you start to see the twinkle develop in his eye. A twinkle brought on by a woman who, at first glance, seemed cold and unwilling to allow herself to feel anything for a man but who quickly comes to life and is soon as warm as the brilliance contained inside the most beautiful diamond for which she's named. I quickly fell in love with these characters. I was equally enamoured of the supporting characters especially the Countess Sinclair. I'm very much looking forward to the rest of this series for, as usual, Shana Galen has me hooked - completely and desperately.
I highly recommend WHEN YOU GIVE A DUKE A DIAMOND by Shana Galen. This historical romance will have you smiling, frowning, grumbling, and then cheering! For WHEN YOU GIVE A DUKE A DIAMOND is romance at its best and most sensually charged.
Happy Reading Everyone!
Also, if you're interested in learning more about what it's like to be an Avon Addict for Avon Romance, check out my interview on the Happy Ever After Blog at USA Today Online: YOU, TOO, CAN BE AN AVON ADDICT -- AND GET FREE BOOKS
WHEN YOU GIVE A DUKE A DIAMOND by Shana Galen, Sourcebooks Casablanca, release date - September 1, 2012, available in print and ebook format.
Did you read WHEN YOU GIVE A DUKE A DIAMOND by Shana Galen as I recommended back in August? You did? Fabulous - then you're going to want to continue the mystery in IF YOU GIVE A RAKE A RUBY with Fallon and Warrick Fitzhugh. If you haven't read the first book in the Jewels of the Ton series featuring the stories of three fabulous courtesans of London known as the Diamonds, then you most certainly should. 
