Slightly Wicked (Bedwyn Saga)

unlike some of the reviewers, I really liked the protagonists, especially the heroine. I thought Judith was fully developed, a woman of depth and passion who had been hamstrung emotionally by well-meaning but dead-wrong parents (her father especially). In the light of her upbringing, her attitudes are understandable. Rannulf has been a do-nothing, but some people take longer to grow up; that's a very big part of his change over the course of the book. He is almost unlikeable in his rakishness at the beginning, but it does not take the careful reader long to see beneath the surface. He's not the somewhat damaged hero that brother Aidan is, and that may account for some of the negative reactions. He's had it pretty easy up until now and that can make a person less than serious about life and responsibility.Judith, and his ailing grandmother, however, change all that, just as Rannulf's support of Judith changes her. Her horrible relatives (aunt and cousin) and her ne'er-do-well brother are intriguing secondary characters who truly move the plot and the romance along. I thought the book was more than slightly spendid.

Mary has given her readers a wonderful family in the Bed-wyns.I know that some had their doubts when we were introduced tothem in last summer's "A Summer To Remember",but as we are intro-duced to the family members one by one,we learn much about them.Lord Rannulf for instance is at first glance,the rebellious third son who was meant for the Church,but has refused any of hisEldest Brother's livings & now has what seems to a rakish rep,butthat is not so as you will find out as you read the book.

Slightly Wicked - how aptly titled when our Regency mistress abandons her restraint characters in Slightly Married and paints a melting, Cinderella-schmaltzy romance between Judith Law the dreamer and Lord Rannulf Bedwyn the rakish charmer.It is rare that Ms. Balogh throws the couple for a wild reckless interlude in the beginning of the story. Judith is the impoverished daughter of a clergyman who journeys to Harewood Grange upon her mercenary Aunt Effingham's summon to chaperon her grandmother. Her stagecoach topples and the valiant knight turns out to be Rannulf. Instant attraction strikes and both of them pull their deceptions: she lies to him that she is a theatrical ingenue Claire Campbell while he just states his identity to be Ralph. Judith ends their affair with an abrupt departure, never expecting them to meet at Harewood Grange when he is on his way to woo her cousin in a bid to pacify his ailing Grandmother Lady Beamish.Rannulf finds himself falling hard for Judith - and how can he not when we readers applaud her strength in resisting a marriage of honor from Bedwyn, her magnanimity towards his wastrel of a brother and her unwavering affection for her Grandmother? This vulnerable creature has always believed her glorious auburn mane to be ugly and shameful at the castigation of her father and aunt until she reveals her inner strength with Rannulf's encouragement. And Rannulf earns her heart with his rescues of her from the perifidious cousin Horace while she claims his with wits and characters. Mary Balogh's Slightly Wicked is constantly moving and delicate with memorable characters who sees their relationship tested with trials. The poignancy we witness at Judith's forgiveness with her brother, father and grandmother shows Mary Balogh's relaxing her storyline but not the heartstrings.

I picked this book up, not realizing it was No. 2 in a series. I decided to read it anyway and was not let down. I read tons of romances and I think this one is clearly up at the top of my list. I thought the premise that brought Rannulf and Judith together was different. All too much, authors focus on the physical attraction between the two main characters, but Balogh did a great job developing their mental/emotional realtionship as well. Then again, maybe it's because the man realizes he loves the woman FIRST! *sigh* Can't wait to read the other two!