Review: The Devil in Winter by Lisa Kleypas
SYNOPSIS:
Four young ladies enter London society and band together to each find a husband. Has the third “Wallflower” now met her match?
A Devil’s Bargain
Easily the shyest Wallflower, Evangeline Jenner stands to become the wealthiest, once her inheritance comes due. Because she must first escape the clutches of her unscrupulous relatives, Evie has approached the rake Viscount St. Vincent with a most outrageous proposition: marriage!
Sebastian’s reputation is so dangerous that thirty seconds alone with him will ruin any maiden’s good name. Still, this bewitching chit appeared, unchaperoned, on his doorstep to offer her hand. Certainly an aristocrat with a fine eye for beauty could do far worse.
But Evie’s proposal comes with a condition: no lovemaking after their wedding night. She will never become just another of the dashing libertine’s callously discarded broken hearts—which means Sebastian will simply have to work harder at his seductions… or perhaps surrender his own heart for the very first time in the name of true love.
REVIEW:
This book was all the warm fuzzy feels! Sebastian and Evie are positively enchanting as they go from scorned and stubborn to tentative to tender and something more, I was captivated by their journey. The tantalizing love story is woven around a rake’s redemption and a hidden danger that could strike at any moment, and the tension had me eager to turn the page and find out what would happen next.
I loved how abrasive and blunt Sebastian was, there is just something about a brutally honest, harsh man that draws me in like a moth to a flame. I wanted to unravel him and solve the mystery behind the mask. It seems that all Sebastian truly wants is to be loved for who he is, not just his looks and charm. Behind his burly behavior is a tender man who hates admitting to be wrong, is scared to fall in love, and desperately doesn’t want to dependent on anyone. Honestly, he had my heart soaring and I just wanted to wrap him in a hug.
As I have spent the last 2 books watching Evie struggle to find a voice or opinion, it was refreshing to find her find an inner strength. She became a pillar of courage and determination as the story went on. And ultimately, she was giving Sebastian a run for his money. Lisa Kleypas has mastered the art of writing perfectly compatible couples, and Sebastian and Evie are just that. They smooth out each others’ rough edges while soothing insecurities, just sigh….
The plot is fast paced, I loved how rapidly Sebastian and Evie came to be. Evie’s father is in poor health, and even with this heavy topic, it didn’t overshadow the budding romance or other plot lines. If anything it brought them closer as a couple. Evie finding a tenderness for care-taking and Sebastian finding a purpose in a gaming h*ll. There were several moments of danger and that added a depth and furthered the emotional bond between these two. I am absolutely in-love with this series.
LINKS:
Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble
