The Wild Marquis

The Marquis of Chase was kicked out his home by his crazy father and needs the help Juliana Merton a bookstore owner to solve some his family mysteries. While they are buying books they fall into lust and uncover many family mysteries. Well written - great characters - a novel of book lovers! Looking forward to The Dangerous Viscount due out October 2010 - Sebastian Iverley story.

I enjoyed Miranda Neville's regency romance. There's wonderful tension, a rake just waiting to be reformed and a smart book loving heroine who is searching for more than just rare books. The Marquis of Chase, Cain is a young nobleman of twenty-four who has lived on his own since he was sixteen and thrown out of his father's house. He is glib and debonair, handsome too. He becomes interested in a rare manuscript and turns to bookseller Juliana Merton to act as his emissary. Juliana is a widow and she truly loves books. Her guardian was an expert bibliophile so Juliana has an appreciation for these tomes beyond the average collector. She is grateful for the commission she will receive from Cain as her bookshop has suffered since her husband died. These leads get off to a great start. Cain is irreverent and charming and so quick witted, his double entendres are entertaining. He is cut off from family but the reader recognizes that this had been difficult for him. His vulnerability with his family is moving. Cain is naturally fair-minded and kind and he extends these virtues to Juliana. He treats Juliana with professional respect but he also cannot help but notice how attractive she is. Juliana is a cautious soul and initially she is reserved with Cain. However this changes when she intuitively feels that he is trustworthy with her secrets. There are mysteries that surround both Juliana and Cain, some of them deadly. They work together to ferret out clues and to his credit Cain recognizes Juliana is too honorable for him yet he cannot help but admire and want her. She is indeed a smart woman, knowing the ins and outs of bookselling (btw the author does a great job of capturing the feel of a Sotheby's bidding war). She's not perfect though, she can be a little stubborn and she can lash out with some sharp words but fortunately she does not do so often. Ms. Neville has written a romance novel that is out of the ordinary. Her characters are anything but run-of-the-mill and her story line is tight. The ending is sweetly satisfying too.

If you've had it up to here with seeing the same plot and the same characters in every Regency-set Romance, check out Miranda Neville's latest. She writes with a command of language that is refreshing and she knows her history. Her characters are believable and unlike what one commenter here complained about, I found the love story to be a reasonable compromise between the demands of the modern readership and respect for the time period. The storytelling kept me turning pages the whole way through and I enjoyed the way she used the mystery involving the rare book trade to keep it going. I'm looking forward to reading more from her!

This is the second novel from Miranda Neville and I thought the writing was quite good. I found the storyline to be interesting and definitely kept me looking forward to reading each chapter. My biggest complaint is that the love story seemed to take a back seat to the mysteries the characters were trying to solve. While I found the book very enjoyable, when I thought back on it, I couldn't really remember why I was supposed to root for this couple (as opposed to them as individuals). They are strong and complicated characters...good characters...but if you are expecting a romance novel with a lot of courtship and lovey-dovey-ness then this won't be the book for you. However, if you care more about the story and the writing, then you'll probably enjoy it as I did.

Known throughout the Ton for his rakish behavior the Marquis of Chase relishes chasing women but his ultimate objective is recovering a rare medieval manuscript Burgundy Hours once owned by his family. When he learns the artifact is being sold at auction as part of the Tarleton Collection, he hires rare book expert Juliana Merton as his purchasing agent. Widower Juliana instructs her client on the care of a book collection and finds the rake has redeeming values he conceals from society. He is especially aware of his reputation as a rogue and how that could prevent him from becoming guardian to his beloved sixteen year old sister. At the same time he sees beneath the veneer of the bookworm widow to a warm caring heart. As they fall in love, Cain notices a pattern of accidents occurring with Juliana at the center. He believes someone wants her dead either because of her book knowledge or related to the death of her spouse whom Juliana believes was murdered. The first Burgundy Hours Regency romance is a wonderful pairing of two people who the Ton would frown on them marrying but would encourage trysts. The lead couple makes the tale as they quickly learn not to judge a book by its cover. With the interweaving of rare book collection during the Napoleonic Era enhancing the fine story line, readers will enjoy the adventures in love and danger of the Wild Marquis. Harriet Klausner