Can these two wounded souls find happiness together?
Sarah Ramsey set aside her hopes and dreams after her disastrous arrival in London nearly two years ago that left her ruined in Society’s eyes–and her mother’s. She’s grateful for her position as a companion with a kind employer, though her new life falls short of her expectations. Her dull existence is upended when she’s asked to plan a charity ball and meets the handsome man assigned to aid her.
Captain Harry Clarke enjoys his work with a charity for wounded soldiers, especially since he lost a leg in the war, which makes him a greater burden to his family. Though he feels unqualified to plan a ball, spending time with lovely Sarah is certainly no hardship. After a passionate kiss, he’s eager to spend more time with her as she makes him feel whole.
Given her ruined reputation, Sarah knows nothing can come from her attraction to Harry, even if it reawakens her dreams. Yet how can she resist the heroic captain? His compassion for others stirs her even as she tells herself that he deserves someone with more to offer than her with her tattered reputation.
Harry quickly falls for Sarah’s quiet beauty and gentle soul, and he longs to claim her for his own. But when disaster strikes, can they cast aside their doubts to work together and claim a chance for happiness?
Review:
Just lovely!
A Rogue’s Autumn Bride is a nice blend of historical romance and suspense. Sarah and Harry, already working together to plan a charity ball for their employers, also find themselves racing against the clock to uncover a horrible plot that is preying on desperate young women–putting both of their lives in danger in the process. I loved that even though Sarah roused every protective instinct Harry had, she definitely wasn’t a typical damsel in distress. When threatened, she not only stood up for herself but for other women–and then she let Harry come in and lend his muscle to the endeavor. 😉
Watching two broken (in their own minds, thanks to the messages they each got from their dysfunctional families) people come together to find love was wonderful as well. There were times I wanted to shake one or both of them–just talk to each other about what’s going on in your heads!–but at the same time Ms Williams made it seem believable that they were hesitant to, and it made things all the sweeter when they finally(!) had that conversation that allowed them to get on with their HEA already. And that epilogue… <3
A Rogue’s Autumn Bride (I know it’s the series name, but honestly, Harry wasn’t at all rogueish here) is the 8th book in the series but worked just fine as a standalone too.
Rating: 4 stars / A-
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.