A lady must have money and an army of her own if she is to win a revolution—but first, she must pit her wits against the wiles of an irresistible rogue bent on wrecking her plans…and her heart.
Lady Lucie is fuming. She and her band of Oxford suffragists have finally scraped together enough capital to control one of London’s major publishing houses, with one purpose: to use it in a coup against Parliament. But who could have predicted that the one person standing between her and success is her old nemesis and London’s undisputed lord of sin, Lord Ballentine? Or that he would be willing to hand over the reins for an outrageous price—a night in her bed.
Lucie tempts Tristan like no other woman, burning him up with her fierceness and determination every time they clash. But as their battle of wills and words fans the flames of long-smoldering devotion, the silver-tongued seducer runs the risk of becoming caught in his own snare.
As Lucie tries to out-maneuver Tristan in the boardroom and the bedchamber, she soon discovers there’s truth in what the poets say: all is fair in love and war…
Terrific follow-on to Bringing Down the Duke. Once again, the setting is London, late Victorian period, as the Suffragist movement gains steam. The challenges facing women, such as property ownership, voting, and marital abuse, are an excellent backdrop for the romance between Lucie and Tristan.
We met Lucie in the last book, as head of the Oxford chapter of the suffragists. She is stubborn, determined, and focused on seeing the dream come true. Disowned by her family, she lives on her own with her cat, Boudica, embracing the title of "spinster." She refuses to give up what little autonomy she has by marrying. In this book, which takes place a few months after the previous one, the ladies need a way to publish a report they have compiled. Lucie plans to purchase a publishing house and use that. As the story opens, she has just purchased one-half of a publishing house, where the other two owners are absentees, leaving her free to run it as she likes. Unfortunately for her, the man she buys from informs her that the other two men have just sold their shares also. Lucie's new partner is her childhood nemesis, Tristan Ballentine.
Tristan is an unexpectedly complex man. He has the reputation of a rake, but also a secret identity as a fantastic poet. Tristan has recently returned from the wars in India and Afghanistan. He appeared briefly in the previous book as an unmitigated rake who danced with Annabelle. He is handsome and has quite a reputation with women. His older brother died, leaving Tristan as the heir, something that displeases his father. Dear old dad has arranged a marriage for Tristan but requires a cleaned-up reputation. Tristan has no intention of cooperating until Rochester threatens to put Tristan's mother in an asylum if he doesn't. Caught in a trap, Tristan decides to play along until he can find a way to rescue his mother. He comes up with the idea of republishing his poems under his own name to raise the needed funds. Buying half of a publishing house is the quickest way to do so.
The sparks between Lucie and Tristan are off the charts from the start. The two of them have a history from when they were children, and Tristan took great delight in playing pranks on Lucie. What she never knew was that there were elements of a serious crush involved. As an adult, Lucie played a part in many of Tristan's fantasies. Thrown together as they are, Lucie continues to plague Tristan's thoughts. It isn't too long until Tristan works his way into hers, also. I loved the back and forth between them. At first, it is very antagonistic, especially on Lucie's side. Tristan just wants a chance to live out his fantasies and offers an unexpected bargain. The more time they spend together, the more they realize that they have much in common. I loved watching Lucie open Tristan's eyes to the truths of her cause, and how Tristan found himself sharing more of the real him with her.
The fire between Lucie and Tristan was intense when they finally gave in to it. Neither of them expected that deep of a connection, and both tried to resist it. It takes a long time for each of them to realize their feelings. It was fun to see Tristan demonstrate those feelings without knowing it, by merely being himself. From being there to support her during the ball to his final demonstration of his belief in her, he finally saw that he'd always loved her. There were still some obstacles standing between them, not the least of which was the secret he kept from her. I ached for Lucie when that came out. Tristan impressed me with how he handled it. Fate wasn't entirely done with them, though, and there was one more hurdle. I loved how Lucie dealt with all the parties concerned. I was a little surprised by their plan for the future, but I loved how Tristan was so supportive of what was essential to Lucie.
I liked seeing more of Annabelle and Sebastian and how their life together is going. The house party at Claremont was interesting with all of the undercurrents. Hattie and Catriona also had their parts to play, especially in helping Lucie carry out her plans. I appreciate the strength of the friendship among the four women and how they support each other. There are a few rough spots, but the friendships are solid enough to weather them. Lucie's cousin Cecily irritated me from the beginning, and I wasn't at all surprised at her part in the book. Lucie's mother was pretty bad, too, but she did redeem herself somewhat at the end. I detested Tristan's father.
