A Gentleman by Any Other Name

Chance's wife died six months ago and he is currently looking for a nanny for his daughter Alice. So far, every candidate he has seen has been unsuitable. Until Julia arrives. Chance thinks Julia is beautiful and head strong, and since she is the last woman interviewing for the position, he is desperate, so he hires her. Julia thinks Chance is an intriguing and maddening man, but she finds his daughter Alice delightful. Chance intends to take Julia and Alice to Becket Hall, his family home in Kent. There Julia and Alice will stay with his father and his large and slightly odd family. He planned to come back to London to continue work with the War Office but coincidentally he now has work to do in Kent so he is staying. Chance is needed to investigate the smuggling that is taking place there. Chance's family appears to be involved in the secret activities and Julia is quick to discover what is going on. To assure her silence and protect his family, Chance seduces Julia. He was not counting on his feelings growing for her in the process though. As the Beckets try to solve the problems of gangs and smuggling while keeping their family safe, Chance comes to realize that he wants Julia forever and so he has the added task of keeping her safe and by his side. A Gentleman By Any Other Name is delightful. Chance and Julia are very likeable characters. I was drawn to their witty banter and their passion. I felt they were very well suited to each other. The entire Becket family is a colorful mix of characters, each having their own fascinating story to tell. Drama, intrigue and romance combine creating a really enjoyable story, A Gentleman By Any Other Name is the first book in what promises to be a fantastic series! Nannette reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

This is the first book in the series. It introduced you to the Becket's of Romney Marsh and their extended family. It was a good read.

Kasey Michaels has done it again and fabulously so with the most endearing characters you could hope to find peopling Becket House on Romney Marsh! The dialogs are brilliant, the characters are mesmerizing, the sensuality inspiring, and the chuckles are endless! I predict the unconventional Beckets of Romney Marsh are going to wheedle their way into the readers' hearts as they have certainly done in mine. Chance Becket and Julia Carruthers are fabulous protagonists that were simply made for one another. Julia having come to London to find work as a nanny for Chance's motherless daughter Alice, was hired and found herself heading back to Chances' family home in Romney Marsh the very next day. Though somewhat intimidated by his unconventional family, Julia didn't seem intimidated by Chance. Julia's outspokenness and contrary ways seemed to amuse and totally confound Chase who had never met anyone quite like her. The fact that Julia's sincere devotion to his beloved daughter Alice was definitely a point in her favor, and the fact that she was attractive certainly helped him to overlook her cheeky barbs. When it appeared that Julia stumbled upon some Becket family skeletons, she wondered if Chances' passionate advances were based on attraction, or simply to keep her quiet and protect his family and the secrets of a past he so desperately wanted to forget. *** Along with her clever writing, Kasey Michaels draws the reader in with memorable characters, witty and intelligent banters, and a delightfully woven plot. The love scenes are sensual and overflow with tantalizing emotion. Readers should be delighted and more than satisfied with this latest effort, and I for one will be anxiously awaiting the next story featuring Chance's sister Morgan and the rest of the Becket family members!

In 1811 England, widower Chance Beckett hires Julia Carruthers as a nanny to his five years old daughter Alice though she no experience; he simply liked her spunk championing his child. A couple of days later they travel to Romney Marsh, the home of his adopted father, where he plans to leave Julia and Alice while he went back to work for the War Office. However, his superior wants him to rusticate and uncover who is leading major smuggling operations in the area that abet the French. Ainsley is elated to see his oldest son Chance, who has not visited in several years as they are estranged. He and his other adopted children and the only one of his seed assume that Julia is Chance's lover. As Julia adjusts to the strange household, she and her employer fall in love. However, Chance refuses to take a chance on this flimsy emotion while seeking to capture the head smuggler. The zany Beckett extended family turn A GENTLEMAN BY ANY OTHER NAME into a delightful Regency romance. The War Office smuggling subplot comes late into the tale as readers meet the enchanting and often amusing cast, wonderful Ainsley and his seven orphans, some of his sailing cronies, Chance's daughter and Julia. The story line is fast-paced as matchmakers galore interfere with the relationship between the wharf rat and the lady. Kasey Michaels is at her historical make that hysterical best with this fine you can go home if the heart is in it romance. Harriet Klausner

Thirty-year-old Chance Becket remembers his horrid beginning. He has spent most of his life trying to forget. He married well in Society, had a daughter, and even landed a prestigious position with the War Office. Now chance is a widow, as of six months ago. Alice, his five-year-old daughter, needs the attention Chance does not believe he can give. Therefore, he quickly hires a nanny, Julia, and off they go to Romney Marsh on the coast. Chance full expected to simply drop Alice and Julia off at Becket Hall, when his large, motley collection of adopted family members reside. However, the War Office, charged Chance with looking into the smuggling situation and other possible problems within the Romney Marsh area. So Chance's plans to escape back to London are no null and void. Chance will have to face his past, smooth over all rough family matters, and help the family deal with a serious gang problem. Julia Carruthers knows all about smugglers. She may be a vicar's daughter, but neither she, nor her father, condemned the people in their village for how they survived. They even helped a bit. When Julia finds herself alone in the world, she is relieved to be hired as Alice's nanny. She is also happy that they are leaving London for the coast. However, even before they reach Becket Hall, Julia has seen too much, heard too much, and she is just too smart for her own good. So even if Julia wanted to leave the marsh, Chance and his family would not, could not, allow her to. Besides, before Julia was fully hired by Chance, they were arguing, and the clashing of wills is just as passionate in the bedroom. Still, Julia is the outsider. She will have to earn the Becket family's trust. Everything better get settled quickly. The family will soon deal with the Red Men Gang. It is a large, well-controlled, strongly led, and generously financed organization that now controls all the smuggling for miles of the coast. The only section left for the Red Men to seize is Romney Marsh. ***** OMG! Non-stop action from start to finish! It seems that author Kasey Michaels does nothing half way. Many could have made a dozen novels out of the characters and plots within this single book. Yet it looks as though this will only be a trilogy, with the next two books being released within the next two months. Of course, each book will be a stand alone story. You do not HAVE to read them all. But I pity anyone who misses them! I wonder, if enough fans write the publisher, perhaps the author can be persuaded to create even more novels about the Becket family. How easily I came to care for every single member of this odd family, even the voodoo priestess. (Yes, she is part of the family too.) A fabulous story that I hated to see end. ***** Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.