It Started with a Scandal

Such a great book! Funny, witty, sad, heartfelt, romantic and in depth. One of her best

One of her best. I love the whole series.

There is no better writer than Julie Anne Long, specializing in dialogues and in building relationships. There are equal: Kristen Ashley, Julia Quinn, J. R. Ward, Lisa Kleypas, Rachel Gibson, Lynn Kurland, Susan Elizabeth Phillips, and a few more. Deeply satisfying is the best compliment I can give, each time I finish one of her books. Thank you Julie Anne Long for sharing your gift of writing!

This book is not to be missed for historical romance fans. After the last two (slightly) disappointing stories (Happened One Midnight and Between Devil and Ian Eversea) JAL has created a masterful story which tugs on the heartstrings in a similar fashion to Like No Other Lover (an early wonderful book in the PG series). Ending was great (some PG books, not including those with epilogues, end abruptly) and leads into the long-awaited story of Lyon Redmond due out in fall 2015.

I’ve read a couple from this series: none in order, and each one completely engaging and engrossing. Julie Anne Long draws the readers in with plenty of twists, turns and intrigue with characters that are wonderfully human and complex and sizzling attraction. In this story, we have two scarred people: Philippe is physically scarred, and ‘hiding’ in England to recover from his injuries. A Prince from the House of Bourbon, his goal is to recover his French home and lands. In need of a housekeeper to run his household, Elise is hired. A former teacher undone by a scandal and a young child, she’s now more cautious and thoughtful about decisions and choices. These two have some serious growth and sacrifices to make as they work their way to the end: social status is a huge player in the story, and Elise not only is lower in status, but she is also a ‘ruined’ woman. Philippe is not interested in complications that will stall his recovering of his home in France, but he has to come to realize that a man cannot simply isolate himself in anger and grief, and still hope to achieve his ends. Elise is solid and determined: loyal to the gruff and often grumpy man who gave her a chance, she isn’t easily bowed or cowering. Her expectations are high, and she sets her own even higher. Far from a dithery interior monologue from either character, their attraction is palpable, it is simply a matter of what steps each is willing to take to grasp that opportunity. Lovely descriptions of place and details of renovations all add to the current story as bits from both Elise’s and Philippe’s past are revealed to show their journey to this point. Julie Anne Long had me reading long into the night, unwilling to put this title down. I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via Jeep Diva for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.