A Touch of Scandal

We originally meet Garrett in Ms. Haymore's, A Hint of Wicked. There you find him fighting for his wife, Sophie, who after years of believing he is dead, has fallen in love and now married to Tristan, none other than Garrett's best friend. After a couple of scuffles, a very "sexy" fantasy, and a wild chase along the countryside, Sophie makes her choice and Garrett finds himself in the midst of a divorce. On the search for his enemy (and luckily for him), he somehow finds himself bathing in Kate's "secret" pond. When Kate sees him for the first time she believes he is a God sent from Olympus. She finds herself rushing through her daily chores in order to make it in time to the pond and catch glimpses of him. Once he catches her spying on him, they both find themselves attracted to one another, almost as if their souls were waiting to find each other. But their brief happiness is abruptly put to a halt when Garrett finds out that Kate is her enemy's sister and Kate realizes that Garrett is the Duke of Calton... someone well above her station. I have been looking forward to this book from the moment that I read the last page of A Hint of Wicked. Garrett was very intriguing and I wanted to read his story and for him to get his "happily-ever-after" soooo bad. So, needless to say, I was stoked when allowed to be part of this blog tour. Garrett was all that I wanted him to be and more (yes, I admit it, he was all that and a bag of chips!) He was the sort of man who overlooked Kate's disheveled state and looked upon the beauty within. Kate is everything that I think I would be if I were in Regency England... unladylike, outspoken, honest, trustworthy and completely devoted to her family (even though they treat her so badly). Not to mention, unconventionally beautiful. There were so many factors that I loved about this story. For starters, there was the whole love at first sight thing (swoons) - love that. Then there were the surprising plot twists, former mistresses, ex-wives and that age-old seducer, forbidden love. Really, what more could a girl ask for? It was perfect! I will end this review with just one last word... Auto-buy! (that's one word, right?!) =D This book was provided for review by Hachette Book Group.

Katherine Fisk is a sweet, young woman who knows life as a simple servant working as a lady's maid to take care of a mother she wants to please and an ailing younger brother. She also knows how to keep a secret as her employer is her older brother William, a man leading a life shrouded in mystery and deception at the expense of his wife and sister. Always doing the right thing has been Kate's way of life but it is one that bears a great weight upon her shoulders. When Kate meets Garrett James a simple friendship quickly turns to passion and unbridled love. But her affection for Garrett turns to nightmare when all his secrets intertwine with hers and she discovers that as a result of actions during war he is there to kill her brother who it turns wants to kill Garrett. Both men ask out loud of her "who do you trust"? It turns out Kate trusts Garrett more than her unstable brother and helps Garrett escape when William has him captured and imprisoned but the bloody result of this decision changes everyone's life. Garrett reveals his secret that he is the Duke of Carlton after he takes Kate back to his home estate along with William's wife Rebecca the woman Kate had worked for who it turns out is also Garrett's sister. Thinking nothing else could stun her Kate discovers that Garrett had a wife that he divorced so that she could be free to marry another man she had fallen in love with when she thought Garrett had been killed in battle. But he was very much alive and living in Belgium with amnesia and unable to remember his own name. Kate feels her head may explode from all this knowledge but her heart knows one true fact - she loves Garrett and that in the end he is a man of honor and will not hurt her even though he makes no promise of forever. Still there is one more surprise that shows up at Garrett's door which could be the final straw that will force her to leave him. Is Kate strong enough to stick it out and show him how much she loves him? Decisions are tough for Kate but she has never backed down from any fight and she thinks that Garrett is worth any battle. Okay did you follow all that because trust me this book has so many stories, subplots and characters going on simultaneously you need to pay close attention. It will seem a little confusing for the first chapter or so but once you grasp the pieces and put them together you will be fascinated with how this plays out and Ms. Haymore is a master storyteller. Just when you think this is the end and peace will reign down guess what another twist presents itself to keep the action playing out. Mary Gramlich is The Reading Reviewer located at [...]

A TOUCH OF SCANDAL by Jennifer Haymore is another delightul historical romance se in 1823 England. It is a continous story of A Hint of Wicked. It is well with depth and detail. It has intrique, betrayal, romance, sensuality, twists and turns, passion, villians and heros. It is fast paced, edge of your sit action. The characters are interesting, have love of their families and must choice between family and love of their lives. I can't hardly wait for the next installment coming out in October (A Season of Seduction). I would highly recommend especially if you enjoy romance, action, and Regency. This book was received for review and details can be found at [...].

In 1823 her brother William Fisk orders his younger sister Katherine to accept the position of lady's maid to his wife Lady Rebecca. He warns her to do his bidding as his domestic spy reporting what his spouse does or else she, their ailing younger brother, and their mom will be cut off. Katie knows how ruthless her sibling is and agrees for the sake of her family. Having hid her identity from her mistress, Katie is attracted to Rebecca's brother Garrett, the Duke of Calton, who arrives in Kenilworth. However, as she falls in love with him, Katie learns that her beloved Garrett is in town to kill his brother-in-law after what William did at Waterloo during the war and to free his sister from unholy matrimony to this lunatic. In turn William wants Garrett dead too. Each demands Katie believe and trust them; forcing her in a predicament to choose between her sibling that means her family too and her soul mate. This powerful Regency romantic suspense has a lot more going on than just the above with each additional complication enhancing the tense tale. Katie is a brave person while Garrett seems to have recovered from his shocker in A Hint of Wicked and William is diabolically clever and unhinged. Loaded with action from the moment readers understand Katie's feelings of imprisonment, sub-genre fans will enjoy her escapades as she struggles with the conflicting dilemmas of love demanding loyalty to her family or her heart. Harriet Klausner

A Touch of Scandal by Jennifer Haymore Historical Romance- March 30th, 2010 5 stars This is the second book in Jennifer Haymore's Regency series. In the first book, A Hint of Wicked, 2 men vie for the love of 1 woman. Garrett the Duke of' Carlton returns home after years of amnesia to find his young wife, Sophie has remarried to his best friend! Unfortunately, Sophie and Garrett have changed and Sophie finds she is really in love with his friend Tristan. Rejected, his hopes dashed, Garrett was a very sympathetic character. I was really excited to read Garrett's story since I loved him in the first novel, and at times I wanted Sophie to pick him instead of Tristan. But you don't have to read the first novel before reading this one, because this story easily stands alone. However, it was especially interesting to me because I read the first book and was thrilled to read his story. This second book is very different from the first, it focuses on the typical forbidden love story that we have all heard before: the servant girl who falls for the prince. Though that does happen with Kate and Garrett, the addition of plot twists with past mistresses, and ex-wives makes this story a page-turner. You can't help but enjoy a classic forbidden love story when it is done well, which is the case with Jennifer Haymore's strong second novel. If you like historical novels with good plot twists similar to Nicole Jordan and Amanda Quick, this up and coming author is a wonderful choice. I give this novel 5 stars. I loved the first-rate twist on a classic story, a happy ending that had to be earned, and some evil villains that we love to hate. Reviewed by Sophia from the Bookaholics Romance Book Club