A Woman Scorned

I tried very very hard to find this book after I read A woman of Virtue - and I am so glad i did. I only wish I could have read this first - it really sets one up well to understand the dynamics of David and Jonet. Unfortunately I read Virtue first so too much was known for me. However, that in no way could spoil what was one of the best books I have read recently. I would not have expected Cole, a military, scholarly man to have so much passion. Oh yes he tried to contain it but Jonet was not to be ignored. And the slow natural build up of these two sparring and not trusting yet one step at a time getting to know one another - it really made for such a realistic passion when it finally does occur. And please anyone that criticizes the scene some have called soft bondage - that is so totally not true. Cole had felt so seduced by Jonet each and every time and she did seem to be directing the relationship more than he - so since he had finally decided to give in to their future he just wanted to let her know that things would not always be totally HER WAY!! And by this time was not the reticent Cole not to die for in the bedroom! I loved this book - the mystery of who the evil person was - was not obvious at all and kept that question throughout. Of course the mystery of Jonet and David was quite a major plot to the story also. And both Jonet and Cole even though they seemed so opposite truly did complete each other. She made him a less orderly man, made him exciting and finally he was able to let out all of his pent up passion! And Cole gave Jonet what she truly wanted more than anything - a normal life full of true love and of course a great father to her 2 sons. I cannot give this book enough stars - the only problem unless it is rereleased many will not be able to find it!! Keep looking though it will be worth the read!!

I was most certainly not disappointed with Liz Carlyle's second novel. How refreshing to find an author who does not assume her readers are either immature or ill-informed. I appreciate that Liz Carlyle does meticulous research and makes every effort to ensure the peripheral details in her work are spot on. I was well entertained although I had figured out "whodunit" well before the denoument of the book.What draws me to LC's work are her well-drawn characters whom she lets play out a story in fully believable settings. Without patronising her readers, she sketches out men and women who are troubled, driven, passionate and emotional. The psychological implications are there for the scrupulous reader to pick up and consider.I won't go over the plot - others have done this very well. I won't "defend" the S & M scene to those who found it offensive. I have seen a lot of discussion about it here and elsewhere. However, I thought it fit into the story, fit into the mood, fit into the profile of the characters she had built. Cole Amherst is riven by internal conflict - the drive towards good (and he is an inherently good man) and the pull towards straying from his chosen path really are what the book is about. Therefore, that particular scene, which I thought was very exciting and well written, only add to his internal conflict as he "acts out" some of this with Jonet who loves him enough to allow this within the context of their loving relationship. Jonet is a strong woman; some of the readers who did not like her perhaps miss the point that she was srong as a result of her insidious and deeply rooted fears. A woman who has been used, particularly as she was by her father, may react in a different way from one who has been lovingly cherished by her parents.The other sex scenes were, in my view, excellent without detracting from the story line and I thought they were beautifully written.All in all, a tour de force. This is not an easy novel to read; it requires that the reader grow along with the characters and experience the torment they must endure to grow together. You feel, at the conclusion of the novel, that this couple fully deserve the ecstatic happiness they appear to have found together.I look forward to reading Beauty Like the Night and A Woman of Virtue.

As this story opens, the arrogant and lecherous sixth Marquis of Mercer, Henry Rowland, meets his Maker in an unexpected and untimely fashion. Months later, his embattled young widow Jonet, suspected but never proven to have murdered him, is desperate. Unexpected accidents befall herself and her two young sons, and she has surrounded herself with as many trustworthy servants from her native Scotland as she can find. However, she must resume their education and some semblance of normalcy - she cannot put this off any longer - and she undertakes to hire a tutor. Her co-guardian, who is unfortunately also her late husband's brother, would like nothing more than to prove her an unfit mother, and he endeavors to place his nephew, Captain Cole Amherst, into her household as both tutor and informant, to bolster his plans to seek sole custody of the boys. The Captain, who knows all too well what the boys would face if left to his uncle's rearing, agrees only to the role of tutor. For much of the first part of the book, he struggles with his ambivalent attraction to the widow Jonet, as well, until it becomes clear to all that her fears for her children are well-founded. Both Jonet and Cole flounder in a sea of dark uneasiness and sexual tension, not knowing where to focus their suspicions and neither sure of the other's affections. An unexpected but well-written household catastrophe finally galvanizes Cole to action, and and in the process, forces he and Jonet to deal with their feelings for one another. Secrets spill out fast and furious, mysteries and minds unravel, and the reader is left with the sensation of having read a solid, satisfying story.LC's plot contained just the right amount of suspense for me, keeping me a little impatient and stringing me along to find out more. Every time I thought I had a character figured out, she'd also write a little twist that would throw me off. The characters are also prone to introspection, and Cole comes off as more likable than Jonet, but I have to say that she never stepped out of character - a lady toughened and made cynical by a loveless match to a man twice her age, she is something of a contrast to Cole, the scholar and cleric who found something unexpected in himself when he became a soldier. I delighted in LC's literary technique of introducing each chapter with a synopsis statement, as if we were watching a play unfold. It's nice to read a work of this genre in which as much attention is paid to the prose, as is to the sex. There are some very erotic and explicit scenes later in the book as Cole and Jonet's relationship deepens, although the tension is offset by some unexpected humor. If you are offended by them, skip them. Overall, this is a book I'd gladly recommend to others, and I look forward to reading more of LC's work.

Oh my, my! Once again Ms. Carlyle proves her books are not for the faint of heart! The suspense in this one kept me up till 3 a.m. and the passion about melted the paint off my walls. Thank heaven this book is no trite, over-romanticized love story. If you only read sweet fantasy stories with virginal heroines (and I sometimes do) then move on, because this book is about real love, in all its complexity, depth, and passion. Like her other book, which I also loved, the prose is rich and descriptive. You see and feel what the characters see and feel. And to my shock (pleasently!) the hero is a strong, hunky, and extremely devout christian, who is striving to be a better person. And yes, the sexual tension still sizzles. The heroine is strong, brave, and always in control, (well almost always, she was a woman in love and like most of us strong women, the men we love can always melt our control). Speaking as a woman, I felt So wonderfully empowered after reading this book, I gave it to my teenage daughter.

After reading "My False Heart" by Liz Carlyle, I couldn't wait for her second book to come out. It does not disappoint. It is a story of a man and a woman who are destined to be together despite many obstacles. I fell in love with Cole. He's respectable - not a "rake" or a "rogue." He is the nephew of Jonet's brother-in-law, James. James suspects that Jonet poisoned his brother and wants Cole to spy on her and report back to him. Hence, Cole is hired to tutor Jonet's two young sons and moves into her house - and the attraction is immediate. Jonet is a very strong heroine. There are many evil goings-on in her house. Someone is trying to bring harm to her two small sons but she will protect them at all costs. Cole is witness to this evil first-hand and joins with Jonet in protecting his two young charges. This book is first-rate. You will find yourself really becoming involved with the characters, primary and secondary. This is one of those books that will make you want to stay home from work so that you can read it, uninterrupted. It is a book you will find humorous, mysterious and erotic - it has it all. Do yourself a favor and read it.