Title: Too Wicked To Wed
Author: Cara Elliott
Genre: Historical Romance
Series: Lords of Midnight #1
Number of Pages: 384
Publisher: Forever (Grand Central Publishing)
Source: Sent
Outspoken and independent, Lady Alexa Bingham enjoys the heady freedom of making all her own decisions, even though the challenges of overseeing her family's country estate are daunting. But when a chance encounter with London's most notorious rake awakens a secret longing for adventure, she accepts her aunt's invitation for a Season in Town . . . only to find that breaking the rules of the ton has serious consequences.The Earl of Killingworth uses his rakehell reputation to hide the fact that poverty has forced him to work for a living. As the owner of a gambling den and brothel, Connor has no time for glittering ballrooms or innocent young ladies. But after a reckless wager leaves him with a new business partner, he is forced to take a risky gamble . . . Will the cards fall in their favor? Alexa and Connor begin to play a dangerous game of intrigue and deception as they seek to outwit a cunning adversary who wants to put them permanently out of business. But if they are not careful, it is the flames of their own fiery attraction that may destroy them. (goodreads.)
Too Wicked To Wed was such a heartwarming read. It reminded me why I fell in love with the genre of historical romance. I just love how historical romances are all about falling in love, taking chances on love and discovering that following your heart is more important then what other people might think of you.
Alexa was my favorite type of heroine-headstrong, independent and lovable. She gives Collin, Earl of Killingworth a run for his money. She wins half of his business in a card game, and while he wants her just to hand it over Alexa won't do it. The banter between the two made me laugh out loud and I found myself cheering for Alexa. I liked how she wasn't intimated by Collin and how he didn't quite know how to deal with her.
While the battle of wills between Alexa and Collin was great, I also enjoyed the mystery of who was behind the mysterious destruction and loss of money of Collin's tavern/brothel. If I hadn't accidentally flipped to the end before I finished the book and found out who was behind it I would have been really surprised by who the culprit was. I enjoyed seeing Collin and Alexa working together to figure out who trying to ruin Collin. I also liked how they mystery involved Collin's friends Gryff and Cameron. Both fought in the war with him and have secrets of their own. They were introduced in such a way that they were immediately drawn into the story and the preparations for their books in the future didn't overtake the story being told in this one. There's nothing worse then the romance being told getting lost for another story.
Too Wicked to Wed the first book that I've read by Cara Elliott and I am looking forward to reading her other series Circle of Sin.
Curran Crush Meter: High
Martini Sigh Meter: Medium
Barrons Hero Hotness Meter: Medium
Ethan/Merit Sizzle Meter: Medium
Finn Sidekick Meter: High
