An Independent Lady

Rating:
Summary: Good writing, mediocre plotting
Review: Marcus Benedict Rothwell, Seventh Earl of Hawkbridge, was distressed by his sister's letter informing him of a series of family mishaps; the news that his grandmama had yet again taken under her wing some impecunious person who may well be a sponger bent on taking advantage of the old lady's generosity and good-heartedness certainly did not help, either. Marcus thus went immediately to Hawkbridge Manor in Devon to eject the widowed Mrs. Amaris (Amy) Chantry who was now companion and latest protégée of his grandmama.

After one glimpse of the surprisingly young and innocent-looking Amy, Marcus was a goner. He felt an immediate attraction to her, and she him. But Marcus, sensing that Amy was not who she claimed to be, was determined to find out her true identity while Amy, haunted by a sordid past, was equally determined not to let anyone disturb her new-found peaceful existence...What exactly was Amy's secret? Can these two find love despite their mistrustfulness of each other?

I enjoy Julia Byrne's writing style very much: her prose is elegant and apropos of the time period of the story. The ensemble of characters, although mostly run-of-the-mill, does offer a few nice surprises. The Dowager Lady Hawkbridge, for one, is endearing and refreshingly hilarious--I enjoy every scene in which she makes an appearance. The same can't be said of the hero and heroine, however. While likeable, they seem a little bland and hard for me to warm up to. And the plot is somewhat threadbare; there's not that much happening in the story. That being said, AN INDEPENDENT LADY is still a solid Regency romance whose well-executed and not-so-tame (according to traditional Regency standards)love scene will leave you breathless.

Rating:
Summary: An Independent Lady
Review: This is the first book I ever read by this author.I loved it the minute I read it.You have a dashing rake named Phillip but he is not one of those nice rakes.No this Earl is rotten or is he? In the end because of a strong minded Jane who never had people trully care for her, Phillip shows his true color.It takes a lot of curage and things go from bad to worse but everyone pulls through.A wonderful book with great characters and nasty vilons.A must read!
I am most defenitly reading her other books!!!