DESIRED - Nicola Cornick
HQN [Harlequin]
ISBN: 978-0-37-377590-3
November 2011
Historical Romance

London, England - 1816

Teresa, Dowager Marchioness of Darent, has been married three times already, and isn't looking for a fourth. Scandalous and secretive, Teresa is an enigma to the ton who both slander and slight her. However, Viscount Rothbury, better known as Captain Owen Purchase and an American foreigner, sees just enough behind the supposed featherbrain's mask to be intrigued as to Teresa's real personality. Only problem? Owen is hunting the mysterious reformer, Jupiter, who creates slanderous cartoons, and he has a hunch that Jupiter and Teresa might be one and the same. But when Teresa comes to him with a marriage proposal, how can he refuse? Teresa and Owen embark on a journey together through deception and secrets, fear, scandal, and discovery. Can they possibly be headed towards a happy-ever-after?

The heroine, Teresa (Tess), is done to perfection. I loved her duality—she was complex, believable, and both pitiably weak and strong. I loved how hard she tried to be Wonder Woman and how she almost succeeded. Then there's Owen, our hero, who is possibly the kindest, cleverest, sweetest, most trusting and patient hero I've ever had the complete pleasure to read about. I was in love with him as soon as I saw him. He had wicked bad boy charm but he also knew how to be sensitive and caring, and that gave him the perfect blend of dark coffee and cream. Their relationship and the romance were adorable and so touching, I almost found myself crying during some of the scenes. There were a lot of unique settings in this book, as well, and the plot was fast-paced and never boring.

I loved the banter between Owen and Tess—they were both very clever and cute. I loved their honesty (although it did take a while to get to the honesty). Their characters were extremely well-developed, and I could sense their motivations, fears, and ambitions. Ms. Cornick didn't just tell the story, she showed it to me in one of the best examples of show-not-tell I've seen in years. I was incredibly involved in the characters and the story. The secondary characters weren't all that likeable, but they didn't show up very often so my unease with Joanna, Justin, and Emma was like white-noise in the background. The first 340 pages of this book had me ecstatically happy.

I would be remiss if I didn't mention that the last forty pages of DESIRED left a lot to be desired. The drama was unnecessary and annoying, and didn't conclude the book in any satisfactory fashion. However, considering how absolutely fantastic the other 90% of DESIRED is, this book is definitely a to-read, and landed just shy of a Perfect 10 because of the ending. Any lover of historical romance will enjoy this sexy, fun, unique novel that enchants the reader at every turn.

Rose May