London, England – Regency Era

Abigail Foxworth has given up all hope of ever finding a husband. The men asking for her hand leave her cold, and she can’t imagine herself being married to any of them, let alone having to share a bed. Her Aunt Eugenia is at wit’s end because Abigail is on her way to becoming a spinster. But Abigail wants passion and love, the type of feelings her grandmother has experienced and tells her all about.

Abigail and her aunt are invited to a party at Lady Rachel Greenhough’s home, and Lady Rachel has something special planned. She has invited Sir Philip Ashton, who will give a demonstration in mesmerism (the theory of suggestion) to her guests. Philip prefers to be at home working with his experiments rather than playing with the debutantes and gentlemen who have no idea about his work. As Philip takes the stage, he sees Abigail and is lost. The same goes for Abigail as she looks into Philip’s eyes and finally experiences those feelings her grandmother told her she would feel when finding the right man.

Philip asks Abigail to take part in his demonstration and quietly puts the suggestion in her head that she must come find him after he is done. As soon as Philip finishes his performance, Abigail searches him out for no reason she can explain other than to listen to his soothing voice and look into his seductive eyes. Abigail locates him in a darkened room, and he shows her what he wants of her. With his passionate kisses and his wonderful touch, he mesmerizes her. Philip will court the lovely Abigail until she is lost in his arms and will consent to become his wife.

Philip Ashton has quite the skill to make anyone do what he wants, well within reason, and Abigail quickly falls for his charms. Even though Philip may be able to hypnotize people with his voice, Abigail becomes his willing victim due to his skills as a lover. Their romance is fast and sudden but with nice results. Even though their love is quite sudden, I really did enjoy their conversations and the honesty between the two. Also, their love scenes are quite hot and I found no disappointment there.

Sahara Kelly has written an enjoyable Regency era romance with two likable characters in Abigail and Philip. Abigail’s grandmother brings some lighthearted moments to the story, and Aunt Eugenia is Abigail’s voice of reason. Even though Abigail falls quickly for SIR PHILIP ASHTON’S EYES, there is no doubt in my mind that these two will have a wonderful and loving life together. Perhaps Philip fell for Abigail first because of how she sees him with her own eyes, and don’t be surprised if you do too. This novella previously appeared in the Mesmerized anthology.

Kate Garrabrant