Importance Being Wicked Victoria Alexander
In 1887, cousins Grayson Elliot (see What Happens At Christmas) and Viscount Winfield Elliott stare at the fire damage done to the latter's Fairborough Hall. Gray insists it is not too bad and Winfield keeps reminding himself it could be worse until the worst occurs when the roof collapses.
Though she hides from her family her running of her late husband's building construction firm, Lady Miranda Garret is an active earnest owner. Win hires her firm unaware that Miranda will design and supervise the renovation. Miranda knows of Win's reputation having ended three engagements, but when they meet she is attracted to the Lothario and him to his architect. As they play a game of wicked desire, they fall in love, but neither is prepared to be first to change the rules of engagement.
The latest Millworth Manor Victorian romance is an entertaining gender war starring two witty protagonists who sub-genre fans will adore. Fast-paced and somewhat wild especially the horde moving into the nearby dower house, Victoria Alexander provides her audience with a wonderful historical.
Harriet Klausner
Victoria Alexander is one of my favorite authors and this book did not disappoint me. An easy read, would recommend to anyone.
BalasHapus
BalasHapusI was so excited to read and review Victoria Alexander's new historical, The Importance of Being Wicked. I am big fan of her writing and when I read that this book was going to be about Lord Stillwell (whom we have met in two other books: What Happens at Christmas and the novella Lord Stillwell's Excellent Engagements) I just couldn't wait to read it.
BalasHapusThe one thing that really stood out in this book, and that made me enjoy it so much, was the witty banter between the characters and especially between Lord Stillwell and Lady Miranda Garrett. The dialogue was very well written and made the characters come to life for me. I have always enjoyed Victoria Alexander's books and The Importance of Being Wicked is another wonderful addition to her already acclaimed bookshelf.
Lady Garrett is a widow who is still running her late husband's architectural firm, Garrett and Tempest. She is an educated woman who has a very big secret - she has always been the architect of the firm, not her husband. When a fire destroys Fairborough Hall, the ancestral home of Lord Stillwell, he hires Garrett and Tempest to rebuild it.
Lady Garrett plans to stay and oversee the construction personally, even if Lord Stillwell doesn't fully approve. Their first encounter sparks a battle of wits and thus begins the most enjoyable of dialogue between these two characters. The reader knows that Lord Stillwell is a bit unlucky at love, having already three failed engagements under his belt, and Lady Garrett has been widowed for some time. It was such a delight to this reader, to see how these two characters were going to eventually fall in love.
The Importance of Being Wicked was one of those books that I was sad to see end. It was such a joy to read and I loved both Lady Garrett and Lord Stillwell (and their mothers). If you have never read a Victoria Alexander book, this is the perfect book to start with. If you have read her books, I guarantee you will enjoy The Importance of Being Wicked as much as I did.
In 1887, cousins Grayson Elliot (see What Happens At Christmas) and Viscount Winfield Elliott stare at the fire damage done to the latter's Fairborough Hall. Gray insists it is not too bad and Winfield keeps reminding himself it could be worse until the worst occurs when the roof collapses.
BalasHapusThough she hides from her family her running of her late husband's building construction firm, Lady Miranda Garret is an active earnest owner. Win hires her firm unaware that Miranda will design and supervise the renovation. Miranda knows of Win's reputation having ended three engagements, but when they meet she is attracted to the Lothario and him to his architect. As they play a game of wicked desire, they fall in love, but neither is prepared to be first to change the rules of engagement.
The latest Millworth Manor Victorian romance is an entertaining gender war starring two witty protagonists who sub-genre fans will adore. Fast-paced and somewhat wild especially the horde moving into the nearby dower house, Victoria Alexander provides her audience with a wonderful historical.
Harriet Klausner
Hott Synopsis
BalasHapusAll Win wants is some peace. He spent years looking for the right wife only to be thrown over for a greater title, declared too frivolous, and found too romantic. He's just thrown himself into his work, making sure that his family would be well off for the years to come... until it hit.
No, not the fire. Yes, that was devastating but Miranda, the representative of the architecture firm rebuilding the manor, is a force to be reckoned with. Win just can't seem to make it through a conversation with her without appearing to be a twit.
Miranda can't seem to understand what it is about Lord Stillwell that brings out her most... well, let's say, least diplomatic. If only she could find a way to keep herself from beginning these thoroughly stimulating arguments.
Hott Review
What I liked: There is just something about a Victoria Alexander novel that puts me in a good mood. Sure, they're sexy and romantic, but there is just something about her characters that makes me a bit sad as I finish the last pages - like saying goodbye to a dear friend.
What I didn't like: If only she could write faster!
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Source: I was loaned this book by Zebra via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review
Grade: A+
Steam: Adult
Series: Millworth Manor
It could be worse is the only thing Winfield Elliott, Viscount Stillwell, keeps in mind as he looks at the destruction caused by the fire in his family's home, Fairborough Hall. At least no one was harmed in the fire and only the middle portion of the house was affected. Nothing for it but to hire a firm to make the necessary repairs. Of course, Win wants it to look the exact same way it did before the fire. This is his ancestral home after all. So he hires a private investigator to find a good firm. The only firm that is willing to start on the work immediately turns out to be Garrett and Tempest. When the time comes to meet with the firm's representative, Win is shocked to be met by a woman in the most horribly ugly shoes imaginable. A woman furthermore who Win finds to be entirely too argumentative.
BalasHapusLady Miranda Garrett has no choice but to act as her firm's representative on Fairborough Hall. Even though she has been running the firm ever since her husband's death--and was the main architect before his death--she never dealt with clients but took care of everything from her office. In this case, she really has no other option but to meet with the client and a more infuriating man she's never met. Unfortunately, Miranda will have to be the liaison between the client and the workers during the entire renovation of Fairborough Hall.
I really loved this book. Victoria Alexander even includes Grayson and Camille from What Happens At Christmas in this story and all of the Hadley-Attwaters as Miranda is the youngest of the clan. I really enjoy stories that allow us to continue with characters we've already met and fallen in love with and Victoria Alexander is a master of this. I enjoyed the witty dialogue and the way Miranda kept Win on his toes. The story of the folly was a wonderful touch as well. Well done, Victoria Alexander! I can't wait to see which member of the Hadley-Attwater clan you next bring into the series.