A glimpse of the ducal heir
Behind closed doors…
Commissioned to paint the new heir to the Creighton
dukedom, Guinevere is struck by Dev Bythesea's presence. Raised in the halls of
the maharaja's palace, he's unlike anyone she's ever known, but she's not the
impeccable duchess Dev requires. Yet when he asks for one of her scandalously
private paintings, it takes them away from the prying eyes of the ton -- and
into a world of passion that is theirs alone…
A good book that touches on an unusual subject for a Regency
romance - the issues faced by those who don't quite fit into Society's narrow
view of who belongs and who doesn't.
Gwen is the granddaughter of an earl and the widow of the
second son of an earl. She and her husband Christophe were artists who spent
most of their short marriage in Italy, where they pursued their art. When Christophe
died, grief-stricken Gwen returned to England. However, once she recovered from
the worst grief, she lived independently and continued pursuing her art instead
of staying with her family and looking for a new husband. She has earned an
excellent reputation for her portraits, which is at odds with her position as a
lady, leaving most people wondering how to treat her.
Devlin Bythesea is the new heir to the Duke of Creighton,
thanks to a series of unfortunate deaths. The son of an English father and an
Indian mother, Dev spent all his life in India. Called to England because of
the impending death of his uncle, Dev faces an uphill climb to gain acceptance.
His aunt insists that having a traditional portrait done is the first step,
followed by finding a proper English wife. But Devlin has no intention of
letting his aunt pick his bride, so he hatches a plan for some insurance. One
of his friends told him about the other portraits that Gwen paints, which are
not for public viewing.
From the moment she and Dev met, Gwen felt the sparks that
flowed between them. But she'd already lost one man whose death nearly
destroyed her, and she refuses to marry again. Dev feels the attraction just as
strongly and wants to have her in his bed, but he understands the fear that
controls her. I loved their time together, as their ability to see past their
public facades to the person underneath brought them closer together. I loved
how Gwen listened to Dev when he talked about his life in India and understood
how the two worlds made up the whole man. The descriptions of both portraits
showed that she could capture that melding.
As the attraction between them grew stronger, Gwen fought
her feelings. The idea of loving someone else after Christophe made her feel guilty
and filled her with fear of losing again. She convinced herself that she and
Dev could give in to their passion without muddying the waters with feelings,
knowing there was an end date for their relationship. Dev realized the truth of
his feelings before she did but had no idea how to convince Gwen they could
have it all.
Matters are complicated by Dev's cousin, Bish, who is green
with jealousy over Dev gaining the dukedom. He starts an insidious campaign of
impugning Devlin's fitness to inherit the title. He is a sneaky little twit, taking
it a step further by also turning his sights on Gwen. His actions are
despicable and create some unwelcome stress for Dev. I loved how Dev found a
way to spike Bish's guns, and the scene before the Heralds was fantastic.
Unfortunately,
Bish's actions did throw a wrench into Dev and Gwen's relationship, and harsh
words were exchanged between them. Luckily for Dev, he received timely and
helpful advice that enabled him to return to Gwen's good graces. She had had
time to think and realize that having two great loves in one lifetime was
possible. Dev's big scene at the end was fantastic, and the epilogue was a
great look at their lives a year later.
One of my favorite parts of the book was Dev's relationship
with his uncle. Dev's love and respect for the old duke are undeniable. I loved
how Gwen got involved by visiting with Dev and sketching the older man for Dev
to remember him by. He won my heart with his advice for Gwen and his belief
that she and Dev belonged together. The wedding scene is intensely emotional,
and the description of the portrait in the epilogue emphasizes Gwen's talent.
I enjoyed seeing the mention of characters from previous
books and will have to go back and read the ones I missed.
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