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Daughtry Family #4
How to Wed a Baron
He is but a pawn in someone else's game. With no choice but to do the prince regent's bidding, Justin Wilde must marry— marry!— a woman not of his own choosing. And for the man notoriously referred to as the Bad Baron, marriage is the last thing he wishes to consider. Especially when the bride has the beauty of an angel but the devil's own temper….
Stunned to find herself married to a stranger, Alina vows to uncover the reason behind their forced union. Yet the more time she spends with her roguish husband, the less the past seems to matter. But when the truth behind their wedding at last emerges, will it strengthen their fragile bond—or shatter their lives forever?
Stunned to find herself married to a stranger, Alina vows to uncover the reason behind their forced union. Yet the more time she spends with her roguish husband, the less the past seems to matter. But when the truth behind their wedding at last emerges, will it strengthen their fragile bond—or shatter their lives forever?
377 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published December 1, 2010
About the author
Kasey Michaels
276 books537 followersKasey Michaels is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than 100 books (she doesn't count them). Kasey has received three coveted Starred Reviews from Publishers Weekly, two for the historical romances, THE SECRETS OF THE HEART and THE BUTLER DID IT, and a third for contemporary romance LOVE TO LOVE YOU BABY (that shows diversity, you see). She is a recipient of the RITA, a Waldenbooks and Bookrak Bestseller award, and many awards from Romantic Times magazine, including a Career Achievement award for her Regency era historical romances. She is an Honor Roll author in Romance Writers of America, Inc. (RWA)
Kasey has appeared on the TODAY show, and was the subject of a Lifetime Cable TV show "A Better Way," in conjunction with Good Housekeeping magazine, a program devoted to women and how they have achieved career success in the midst of motherhood (short version: "with great difficulty").
A highly praised nonfiction book, written as Kathryn Seidick, "...OR YOU CAN LET HIM GO," details the story of Kasey and her family during the time of her eldest son's first kidney transplant.
Kasey has written Regency romances, Regency historicals, category books including novellas and continuities and a few series "launch" books, and single title contemporaries. She has coped with time travel, ghosts, trilogies, the dark side, the very light side, and just about everything in between. Hers is also the twisted mind behind her ongoing Maggie Kelly mystery series starring a former romance writer turned historical mystery writer whose gorgeous hunk of a fictional hero shows up, live and in color, in her Manhattan living room – to melt her knees, to help her solve murders, and to leave the top off her toothpaste. And, says Kasey, she's just getting started!
Series:
* His Chariot Awaits
* Lion On the Prowl
* Crown Family
* London Friends
* Chandlers Request
* The Trehan Brothers
* Maggie Kelly Mystery
* Romney Marsh
* Sunshine Girls
Kasey has appeared on the TODAY show, and was the subject of a Lifetime Cable TV show "A Better Way," in conjunction with Good Housekeeping magazine, a program devoted to women and how they have achieved career success in the midst of motherhood (short version: "with great difficulty").
A highly praised nonfiction book, written as Kathryn Seidick, "...OR YOU CAN LET HIM GO," details the story of Kasey and her family during the time of her eldest son's first kidney transplant.
Kasey has written Regency romances, Regency historicals, category books including novellas and continuities and a few series "launch" books, and single title contemporaries. She has coped with time travel, ghosts, trilogies, the dark side, the very light side, and just about everything in between. Hers is also the twisted mind behind her ongoing Maggie Kelly mystery series starring a former romance writer turned historical mystery writer whose gorgeous hunk of a fictional hero shows up, live and in color, in her Manhattan living room – to melt her knees, to help her solve murders, and to leave the top off her toothpaste. And, says Kasey, she's just getting started!
Series:
* His Chariot Awaits
* Lion On the Prowl
* Crown Family
* London Friends
* Chandlers Request
* The Trehan Brothers
* Maggie Kelly Mystery
* Romney Marsh
* Sunshine Girls
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
December 5, 2010
I received this as an ARC and it's posted on http://www.demonloversbooksandmore.co...
4.5 stars and small SPOILERS for the sake of summary:
Anyone who has been following knows that I have issues with this series. I read the first book How To Tempt A Duke and I loved it. I loved it so much I bought the whole series. I was so incredibly disappointed in the second book How To Tame a Lady that the only reason I kept on was because I'd paid for the books. The next one How to Beguile a Beauty was better, but really the breakout star of that book wasn't the hero or the heroine, it was Justin Wilde, the Bad Baron. Well, his book is fabulous. This is what I would expect from Kasey Michaels.
Justin is the Crown's (unwilling) Assassin. His beautiful wife was very indiscreet with her affairs, and Justin ended up meeting someone at dawn. Well, not only is dueling outlawed, the other guy turned early. Justin heard the shout and shot in self-defense...but he fired on 2, killing the man, therefore, he became exiled, and his wife died falling down some stairs. Wanting nothing more than to go back home to his beloved England he does the Crown's bidding until after 8 years he is finally allowed home.
Unfortunately "home" isn't happy to see the Bad Baron. His friends snub him, the ton loves to hate him. Only a few steadfast friends and his dear valet Wigglesworth stick by him.
*And a quick sidenote on Wigglesworth: he stole the show. He was such a fun and quirky character I cannot tell you enough how fabulous his parts were...especially when he went incognito through a gypsy camp dressed as a woman. Priceless.*
But back to Justin, a stipulation of coming home is that he must be at the Prince Regent's beck and call...oh and call he does. Prinny finds some convoluted plot to force Justin to wed an Austrian noble, who's more English than Austrian, and then Justin must keep her safe from those who want her dead.
Justin hates being told what to do, and this plot from Prinny is only accepted because he would end Justin's servitude. Justin cracked me up. He plays the dandy, but is truly dangerous when he's at his most witty and charming.
Enter our lovely heroine Alina. Alina is a fantastic character. She is lively and young, but not so young as to be silly. She grows into her character, and into her love. And falling in love with Justin is not easy. He decides he cannot marry her, for her own good of course. See, she doesn't know this, but the man Justin killed in the duel was her uncle. Even after telling her all this, she realizes that Justin truly does believe himself to be an awful, soulless, man. So she sets out to seduce him.
With a little help from the couples we've seen throughout the series, Justin and Alina finally do come together. He took care of the threats against Alina but not as one would assume. And of course, there was the HEA.
I loved this book, and I loved the main characters. Oh! And I finally figured out what the heck a "curly brimmed beaver" is!
This my friends, is a curly brimmed beaver:
fabulous hat, no?
4.5 stars and small SPOILERS for the sake of summary:
Anyone who has been following knows that I have issues with this series. I read the first book How To Tempt A Duke and I loved it. I loved it so much I bought the whole series. I was so incredibly disappointed in the second book How To Tame a Lady that the only reason I kept on was because I'd paid for the books. The next one How to Beguile a Beauty was better, but really the breakout star of that book wasn't the hero or the heroine, it was Justin Wilde, the Bad Baron. Well, his book is fabulous. This is what I would expect from Kasey Michaels.
Justin is the Crown's (unwilling) Assassin. His beautiful wife was very indiscreet with her affairs, and Justin ended up meeting someone at dawn. Well, not only is dueling outlawed, the other guy turned early. Justin heard the shout and shot in self-defense...but he fired on 2, killing the man, therefore, he became exiled, and his wife died falling down some stairs. Wanting nothing more than to go back home to his beloved England he does the Crown's bidding until after 8 years he is finally allowed home.
Unfortunately "home" isn't happy to see the Bad Baron. His friends snub him, the ton loves to hate him. Only a few steadfast friends and his dear valet Wigglesworth stick by him.
*And a quick sidenote on Wigglesworth: he stole the show. He was such a fun and quirky character I cannot tell you enough how fabulous his parts were...especially when he went incognito through a gypsy camp dressed as a woman. Priceless.*
But back to Justin, a stipulation of coming home is that he must be at the Prince Regent's beck and call...oh and call he does. Prinny finds some convoluted plot to force Justin to wed an Austrian noble, who's more English than Austrian, and then Justin must keep her safe from those who want her dead.
Justin hates being told what to do, and this plot from Prinny is only accepted because he would end Justin's servitude. Justin cracked me up. He plays the dandy, but is truly dangerous when he's at his most witty and charming.
Enter our lovely heroine Alina. Alina is a fantastic character. She is lively and young, but not so young as to be silly. She grows into her character, and into her love. And falling in love with Justin is not easy. He decides he cannot marry her, for her own good of course. See, she doesn't know this, but the man Justin killed in the duel was her uncle. Even after telling her all this, she realizes that Justin truly does believe himself to be an awful, soulless, man. So she sets out to seduce him.
With a little help from the couples we've seen throughout the series, Justin and Alina finally do come together. He took care of the threats against Alina but not as one would assume. And of course, there was the HEA.
I loved this book, and I loved the main characters. Oh! And I finally figured out what the heck a "curly brimmed beaver" is!
This my friends, is a curly brimmed beaver:
fabulous hat, no?
January 29, 2011
Red Herring Alert!
http://www.kaseymichaels.com/links.html
For those of you who don't know what a red herring is, let me explain. Red herrings, normally found in mystery/suspense stories, are something thrown in that purposely distracts the unwary (aka stupid) reader from the real issue.
Why, you may ask, am I talking about red herrings and How to Wed a Baron in the same sentence? While the book is supposed to be a romance, it is actually first and foremost a road-trip suspense, mystery, thriller story. Yes, my fellow Romanceland readers, the love story takes second seat to the suspense. Actually, it takes a third seat. The heroine, Alina, and love are greatly over-shadowed by our hero Justin. In fact, she is relegated to secondary character.
Justin, Justing, Justin!
When Justin made his appearance in How to Beguile a Beauty, he almost stole the show. In that book, I found his bantering to be a great source of amusement and I suspect Ms. Michaels had a hard time keeping his character from taking over the book.
Well, now Justin's back with his own story! Now we get to see the other side of Justin - and what a side it is! You see, Justin's more than a pretty face; he is also a ruthless, dark, cold-blooded assassin. And I do mean cold-blooded; he has been serving his country in that capacity for years and when it comes to disposing of people, he show's no remorse. I found his character to be totally engrossing, which is a good thing. However, it's also a bad thing because this is a romance with two people in it.
The romance plays a secondary role to all the skulduggery that's going on. There are assassins, spies, evil monarchs, chases through the countryside, hiding in a caravan of Romany. This is a romance in which the characters, especially Justin, fall instantly in love with each other. So, there is no growing. And, of course, he is not good enough for her. Then there's Alina, who can see the good in Justin...she must have some eye-sight, because Justin keeps his good side well hidden and we the readers can see that he is really a scary, ruthless killer. And I for one wondered how Alina could see what she saw.
There were two secondary characters - Stefan, the cocky Rom, and Wigglesworth the humorous foppish valet who were the comedy relief.
How to Wed a Baron was difficult to review, I loved the dangerous hero; because of him I found it hard to put the book down. However, I found the romance weak.
This is a good book that's light on romance, has a complex suspenseful plot and a terribly complicated, tortured hero.
Time/Place: Regency England
Rating: B-
Sensuality Rating: Hot
P.S. Watch out for the red herrings - there are many in this story and they are very complicated.
http://www.kaseymichaels.com/links.html
For those of you who don't know what a red herring is, let me explain. Red herrings, normally found in mystery/suspense stories, are something thrown in that purposely distracts the unwary (aka stupid) reader from the real issue.
Why, you may ask, am I talking about red herrings and How to Wed a Baron in the same sentence? While the book is supposed to be a romance, it is actually first and foremost a road-trip suspense, mystery, thriller story. Yes, my fellow Romanceland readers, the love story takes second seat to the suspense. Actually, it takes a third seat. The heroine, Alina, and love are greatly over-shadowed by our hero Justin. In fact, she is relegated to secondary character.
Justin, Justing, Justin!
When Justin made his appearance in How to Beguile a Beauty, he almost stole the show. In that book, I found his bantering to be a great source of amusement and I suspect Ms. Michaels had a hard time keeping his character from taking over the book.
Well, now Justin's back with his own story! Now we get to see the other side of Justin - and what a side it is! You see, Justin's more than a pretty face; he is also a ruthless, dark, cold-blooded assassin. And I do mean cold-blooded; he has been serving his country in that capacity for years and when it comes to disposing of people, he show's no remorse. I found his character to be totally engrossing, which is a good thing. However, it's also a bad thing because this is a romance with two people in it.
The romance plays a secondary role to all the skulduggery that's going on. There are assassins, spies, evil monarchs, chases through the countryside, hiding in a caravan of Romany. This is a romance in which the characters, especially Justin, fall instantly in love with each other. So, there is no growing. And, of course, he is not good enough for her. Then there's Alina, who can see the good in Justin...she must have some eye-sight, because Justin keeps his good side well hidden and we the readers can see that he is really a scary, ruthless killer. And I for one wondered how Alina could see what she saw.
There were two secondary characters - Stefan, the cocky Rom, and Wigglesworth the humorous foppish valet who were the comedy relief.
How to Wed a Baron was difficult to review, I loved the dangerous hero; because of him I found it hard to put the book down. However, I found the romance weak.
This is a good book that's light on romance, has a complex suspenseful plot and a terribly complicated, tortured hero.
Time/Place: Regency England
Rating: B-
Sensuality Rating: Hot
P.S. Watch out for the red herrings - there are many in this story and they are very complicated.
October 18, 2010
Kasey Michaels’ latest was smart, sexy, refreshing, and fun. A forced engagement brings the hero (Justin) and heroine (Alina) together, and such two strong-willed characters create fireworks from their first meeting, and it only gets hotter. Their constant game of one-upmanship kept me glued to the page. Alina’s unaware of the true reason for their engagement and her role as a pawn between warring factions in her country for a good portion of the opening section of the novel; such an unaware heroine can sometimes read as flighty, but this is not the case in this book. Her compassion and intelligence shine, and when she outshines her fiancé on their first encounter, she’s begun the game. And Justin’s attitude – his sense of ridiculousness, the lack of concern over his future, ring true. And then he meets an immovable object: Alina. And he can’t help but be reminded that he feels. It isn’t just their relationship with each other that kept me reading; the secondary characters such as Tatiana and the Prince Regent added such depth to their stories. Justin’s suppressed rage with the Prince Regent reminds me of Sebastian in Cruel Intentions- a man who has been made, and almost feels too much. It goes to show you how great writing can make a common plot refreshing. While this can be read as a standalone, it is part of a series beginning with the eBook prequel How to Woo a Spinster, and then the paperback title How to Tempt a Duke.
**Note: I was given a free digital galley for review, courtesy of Harlequin via NetGalley.com. Any thoughts or opinions of this book are entirely my own. **
**Note: I was given a free digital galley for review, courtesy of Harlequin via NetGalley.com. Any thoughts or opinions of this book are entirely my own. **
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 30, 2017
leído en Mayo 2011
Normalito
Normalito
April 21, 2011
While I give this book a favorable rating, and it was a fun read it was at the same time a let down.
What bothered me here was that there was no climax, no big finale, no super tense conflict...
People met. Like each other. Decide they love each other very sensibly. There's a bad guy. Mystery solved. End.
The writing is a lot of fun- but the follow through and lack of any one real genre here leaves the story in limbo. It doesn't do any one thing well.
What bothered me here was that there was no climax, no big finale, no super tense conflict...
People met. Like each other. Decide they love each other very sensibly. There's a bad guy. Mystery solved. End.
The writing is a lot of fun- but the follow through and lack of any one real genre here leaves the story in limbo. It doesn't do any one thing well.
June 9, 2012
Fun, fun, fun!
This is only the second book I've read by Kasey Michaels, but I think I've found a new go-to author for trashy-romance novel addiction.
This one is full of twists and turns, red herrings, assassins, greedy kings (and princes), political intrigues, revenge, and of course...True Love.
Awwww.
I've gotta find more of her stuff!
This is only the second book I've read by Kasey Michaels, but I think I've found a new go-to author for trashy-romance novel addiction.
This one is full of twists and turns, red herrings, assassins, greedy kings (and princes), political intrigues, revenge, and of course...True Love.
Awwww.
I've gotta find more of her stuff!
July 16, 2017
This is a re~read. I like the Justin Wilde's storyline; it is as crafty and as devious as the life he was forced to live while in exile and the lengths and resources he had to make use of in order to gain his pardon and go back home to England. With all his expertise and wit, he was still a pawn; but what was tragic here was that ~ he didn't care, until Alina. Yet after they met, he now realized that he is not the only pawn on the board, she is there with him. This novel has more meat in it than the other Daughtry novels in the ensemble: more drama, more plot twists and more intrigues; in spite all these, it still has its humorous turns. The reader is also treated to the art of duping the gullible without appearing to dupe, as the game is played with such subtlety that deception has become an asset and even a "virtue" (if is done with finesse devoid of the smell of rotting fish).
May 7, 2020
Aunque el protagonista es muy divertido cuando se relaciona con su ayuda de cámara, la novela es bastante floja, tiene una gran variedad de entresijos que más que aportar deslucen el relato. Yo no la volvería a leer en absoluto, no obstante le pongo 3 estrellas porque él es divertido.
March 5, 2017
I liked the twist in the plot, it got a little soap operatic at times, but a nice light read. About assassins, if there can be such a thing as a light read about assassins.
May 29, 2019
This book was fine, but so confusing! The pace was so slow for a long time and really picked up at the end. I liked the end the best. I found the constant descriptions of clothes boring.
Shelved as 'dnf'
April 5, 2021Abandonné à la moitié. J’ai bien le historique en tête mais pas la romance. C’est interminable et sans intérêt.
December 13, 2010
Justin has a troubled past, he's been exiled by his king for killing a man in a duel, defending the honour of his deceased wife. After 8 years spent across Europe, he gets a message telling him he will be pardoned in exchange for one thing. This one thing turns out to be marriage to Alina. Justin doesn't know why the Prince Regent is forcing this union upon them, but he can't turn down the opportunity to finally be able to come home again. Even though he never wanted to marry again after his first disastrous marriage.
Alina basically had two options: marry Justin or be married off by her aunt to a man of her aunt's choosing. And her aunt doesn't much care for Alina, so there isn't much hope for her there. Besides, she really wants to meet her mother's family in England. Meeting Justin, she's pleasantly surprised he's not some sort of ogre. But of course there's trouble ahead, will it serve to drive them apart of keep them together forever?
I enjoyed reading this book, it started pretty slow and I didn't really like Justin in the beginning. He had a pompous ass air hanging over him, very noticeable in the first part of the book because he was mostly interacting with the Prince Regent and one of his male servants, who he both looked down upon. Later on he turns out to be pretty charming, even though he's still a bit of an ass to his servant. To be fair, the man is portrayed as pretty silly, so maybe he can't help it.
Anyway, I thought Alina was a pretty good heroine, she's free spirited and knows her own mind, she's also pretty optimistic, which was nice. Sometimes I didn't understand her reactions to the things happening, but hey, in real life I also get baffled by choices other women make and it didn't really bother me reading the book.
Normally in romance novels I see the clue coming from miles away and this time I didn't, so props to the author for that!
I have one 'but' to add, one thing I felt was missing: I didn't cry. And I'm a HUGE sap, I almost always cry reading romance novels. Even when it's not sad. The emotion portrayed in the book wasn't enough to trigger my tear ducts, and that's a shame, cause I love it when books make me cry.
My rating: 3 stars
Alina basically had two options: marry Justin or be married off by her aunt to a man of her aunt's choosing. And her aunt doesn't much care for Alina, so there isn't much hope for her there. Besides, she really wants to meet her mother's family in England. Meeting Justin, she's pleasantly surprised he's not some sort of ogre. But of course there's trouble ahead, will it serve to drive them apart of keep them together forever?
I enjoyed reading this book, it started pretty slow and I didn't really like Justin in the beginning. He had a pompous ass air hanging over him, very noticeable in the first part of the book because he was mostly interacting with the Prince Regent and one of his male servants, who he both looked down upon. Later on he turns out to be pretty charming, even though he's still a bit of an ass to his servant. To be fair, the man is portrayed as pretty silly, so maybe he can't help it.
Anyway, I thought Alina was a pretty good heroine, she's free spirited and knows her own mind, she's also pretty optimistic, which was nice. Sometimes I didn't understand her reactions to the things happening, but hey, in real life I also get baffled by choices other women make and it didn't really bother me reading the book.
Normally in romance novels I see the clue coming from miles away and this time I didn't, so props to the author for that!
I have one 'but' to add, one thing I felt was missing: I didn't cry. And I'm a HUGE sap, I almost always cry reading romance novels. Even when it's not sad. The emotion portrayed in the book wasn't enough to trigger my tear ducts, and that's a shame, cause I love it when books make me cry.
My rating: 3 stars
May 8, 2018
Utterly charming, fast-paced and fun. It's well-written and has a plot so twisted that I still don't believe it.
January 4, 2011
HOW TO WED A BARON by Kasey Michaels is a historical romance set Regency London.It i the fourth in "The Daughtry Family Series", but can be read as a stand alone.(Book one "How to Tempt a Duke", Book two"How to Tame a Lady",Book three,"How to Beguile a Beauty"). It is well written with depth,details, turns,twists, fast paced and a definite keeper.It has romance, friendship,forgiveness, love,wit, banter between the hero and heroine, trust,new beginnings, betrayal, deception, passion, sensuality, revenge, and the power of love. The hero, Justin, is handsome, wealthy,witty,an assassin, has a terrible temper, wants a pardon from the Prince Regent for past deeds, works for the Crown Regent as a assassin, and will totally fall in love with the beautiful Magdalena.The heroine, Magdalena(Alina) is young, innocent, half Romany, witty, is sent to England as Justin's betrothed by her King, has someone out to kill her or so they think and will fall hopelessly in fall with Justin. While Justin and Alina are pawns in someone else's game,they will learn to trust each other with their lives.Together will Justin and Alina outwit their enemies and start a new beginning?You will have to read this delightful fast paced,page turning book full of wit,adventure, suspense and intrigue to find out their story of trust,love and new beginnings. I would highly recommend this book. This book was received for the purpose of review from Net Galley and details can be found at Harlequin and My Book Addiction and More.
February 4, 2013
I bought 22 books in one shot at HPB a few months ago, this book and "The Passion of an Angel" were among them. By page 17 I was already noticing similarities to Passion. The hero is sarcastic. He has a valet who is effeminate and "flits". And too much dialogue & description was given to non-essential characters/scenes. Though it did ease up as the characterization was set, I found myself skipping large blocks of description and inner monologue simply to get through the story anyway.
Let me add in here that the book is well-written technically. My beefs with it are content and character-related.
I found the heroine annoying. The hero was ok but no one I was rooting for. Every other character simply muddied the story with convenient assistance without adding much. And the plot was flat.
I'm not a fan of love at first sight stories and this is basically one of those. Justin claims it's because she's fiery and can see beneath his façade, or some such, but he's been in love with her since one of her very first lines (something about not giving something leave to do something--I was so not into this story that I didn't keep notes). I didn't see any reason for these two to fall in love beyond the whole "you're pretty. You're pretty too" thing. There's attempts to explain why they like each other but it doesn't show in the actual action.
Unfortunately I've learned that I'm not a fan of this author's work. I'll stick with Christina Dodd, Lorette Chase, and Sabrina Jeffries.
Let me add in here that the book is well-written technically. My beefs with it are content and character-related.
I found the heroine annoying. The hero was ok but no one I was rooting for. Every other character simply muddied the story with convenient assistance without adding much. And the plot was flat.
I'm not a fan of love at first sight stories and this is basically one of those. Justin claims it's because she's fiery and can see beneath his façade, or some such, but he's been in love with her since one of her very first lines (something about not giving something leave to do something--I was so not into this story that I didn't keep notes). I didn't see any reason for these two to fall in love beyond the whole "you're pretty. You're pretty too" thing. There's attempts to explain why they like each other but it doesn't show in the actual action.
Unfortunately I've learned that I'm not a fan of this author's work. I'll stick with Christina Dodd, Lorette Chase, and Sabrina Jeffries.
October 17, 2021
on my to read list and wanted to update my comments after second read but not time for third
all arguments for and against are valid from readers except the one that wanted to weep, she should peel an onion. thought wilde one of the best characters of michaels ever, the plot still has me puzzled i.e. lukov assassinated and assassinationer then executed
just a little less than enough between wilde and alina than would have liked
other wise one night's read
no time elapsed, only the first time that power has not passed peacefully in USA,
and its normal for Fox news??
reread this past week, desperation, but the title still holds its rating. The second reading brought out details and nuances missed during the first read, as mentioned in one night. it is the carrying away of the unbelievable reality that such other reality is sought for comfort and sanity. An excellent read, with political overtones which have always been around, and a fantastic love story.
sorry political comment essential to remind us of reality. trump tried to buy Greenland.
enjoyed as respite from the complications of the lie of the big steal and how fear is chasing out any impartial voting workers, by fear, death threats, untrue crucifixions which will effect us all. we thought that trump was the frog in the simmering pot, but it turns out his attempt to subvert from grassroots, our democratic norms is the endgame of the boiled frog. be alert.
all arguments for and against are valid from readers except the one that wanted to weep, she should peel an onion. thought wilde one of the best characters of michaels ever, the plot still has me puzzled i.e. lukov assassinated and assassinationer then executed
just a little less than enough between wilde and alina than would have liked
other wise one night's read
no time elapsed, only the first time that power has not passed peacefully in USA,
and its normal for Fox news??
reread this past week, desperation, but the title still holds its rating. The second reading brought out details and nuances missed during the first read, as mentioned in one night. it is the carrying away of the unbelievable reality that such other reality is sought for comfort and sanity. An excellent read, with political overtones which have always been around, and a fantastic love story.
sorry political comment essential to remind us of reality. trump tried to buy Greenland.
enjoyed as respite from the complications of the lie of the big steal and how fear is chasing out any impartial voting workers, by fear, death threats, untrue crucifixions which will effect us all. we thought that trump was the frog in the simmering pot, but it turns out his attempt to subvert from grassroots, our democratic norms is the endgame of the boiled frog. be alert.
February 1, 2011
**** "How To Wed A Baron" is a Regency romance, fleshed out by Kasey Michaels, into a tricky mystery. Why has the Prince Regent ordered a skilled assassin, milord Justin, banished from London these past eight years because he fired early in a duel, to marry the Romany princess Alina from Prague, especially when Alina is the surviving niece of the dead other duellist, who fired first? Is another murder the only solution to ownership of disputed Romany land? Her innocence and his cynicism spark into a mature abiding flame of love, and we readers are the beneficiaries of their adventure. Even fussy valet Wigglesworth entertains us in disguise as a gypsy crone. Involving characters obviously from other books is an unnecessary push unappreciated by this reader. This story has life enough to stand alone.
November 20, 2011
I liked that both Justin and Alina were a little on the snarky side. Their banter was great. However, I didn't find the fact that she fell in love with him so quickly and so easily believable. One minute she was furious with him for leaving her with no goodbye, and the next she's decided she doesn't want to be without him. I'm not sure where the change of heart came from other than he was good looking.
I did something with this book that I normally don't do...I read it out of order *gasp* After meeting the characters from the other books, I'm now on the hunt for the first 3 books of the series cause those were some interesting ladies :)
I did something with this book that I normally don't do...I read it out of order *gasp* After meeting the characters from the other books, I'm now on the hunt for the first 3 books of the series cause those were some interesting ladies :)
November 28, 2010
Justin and Alina were great, but the plot of this novel was way too complicated and involved. When I finished this book, I felt that the love story was great, so why did the author feel the need to add all the involved, plot within a plot, political intrigue, assassination attempts and trickery? I think she should have devoted more time to developing the romance instead of inventing plots and double-dealing.
August 16, 2012
Somehow I just fell in love with the characters. I enjoyed the plot and the saturation of detail. I seem to have missed the moment where the hero actually falls for the heroine - his attraction turns to care without anything specific happening. That's a misstep, but the rest is grand. A great read, and an interesting cap to the series. The differences between the five installments show the impressive extent of Michaels' range. 17 Aug/12
December 21, 2010
To be truthful I didn't complete this one, it was a DNF (= did not finish). I got about 15% in, but couldn't go on, I didn't care for the heroine, and I outright disliked the hero, he felt forced and his unnatural nonchalance and humour was irritating me. So I thought there are so many other great historical romances I will not waste my time with this one. It simply was not for me.
January 9, 2011
This last of the four books involves a friend of the Duke who has been cast out of society and is now trying to return to his homeland and get on with his life. This story was the most interesting of the four tales. I loved the intrigue and the action. Trying to figure who's the bad guy and why is very involved and the tale held my interest quite thoroughly threw the entire book.
February 20, 2011
Hero: Justin Wilde aka Bad Baron
Heroine: Alina Valentin
Both forced to marry by respective monarch's (Prince Regent of England & Austrian King). It is a comical, sarcastic, entertaining story about Justin and Alina dance toward and at times away from each other.
**All characters from the series have made an appearance in all their previous glory.
Heroine: Alina Valentin
Both forced to marry by respective monarch's (Prince Regent of England & Austrian King). It is a comical, sarcastic, entertaining story about Justin and Alina dance toward and at times away from each other.
**All characters from the series have made an appearance in all their previous glory.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 10, 2011
Wasnt my favorite in the series... took about 100 pages for me to finally get into it. I felt very disconnected from the characters in the beginning. Nice strong finish and the eventual chemistry between the characters was decent, although I didnt feel either Alina or Justin's journey to get there. It was kinda like bang.
July 18, 2012
Likable characters but convoluted plot. The schemes of the Prince Regent, King Francis, the Romany and our main characters twisted and twined so badly that I couldn't keep them straight and I'm not sure the author could either. It was a fun read, if a little repetitive at times. More of the Daughtry family, all of whom I like.
July 24, 2012
(digital/library borrow) ... quite enjoyed the story. I see this is #4 in a series, which upon my reading didn't matter (although as certain others were introduced I picked up on the fact that their romances had probably been the subject matter of earlier books), but certainly worked as a stand alone story.
January 9, 2015
Good read. There's an arranged marriage between a half-English half-Bohemian (part gypsy) lady and a banished English baron, and multiple foreign plots involving various assassination attempts, and a lot of confusion and even more lies... All in all, pretty darn entertaining.
February 21, 2011
After reading a number of books full of sex without enough plot, it was delightful to find a book full of plot and interesting people. The best of the series is the last of the series. Quite enjoyable.
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