If love was poison, he’d drink it anyway.Shunned by society her entire life, Joanna Bagley has been living as a nomad amongst the Travellers of Britain. When her daughter gets seriously ill, she has no other choice but to ask for help from the man that has been haunting her past for years…Christopher Albertson, now Duke of Gresham, has always been duty-bound, until the death of his domineering … until the death of his domineering father. Knowing no other love than the fair Traveller he fell for many years ago, his life changes unexpectedly when he takes her child under his protection.
But when he gets poisoned, all clues lead to Joanna. With suspicious filters found in her possession, she is thrown in prison, awaiting her horrid fate…
Until her daughter discovers a secret entrance to the Gresham manor that may be the only lead to her mother’s salvation…but who will believe a little Traveller girl?
*If you like a realistic yet steamy depiction of the Regency and Victorian era, then Tamed by the Marquess is the novel for you.
This is Scarlett’s 3rd novel, a historical Regency romance novel of 80,000 words (around 400 pages). No cheating, no cliffhangers, and a strong happily ever after.
Pick up “Tamed by the Marquess” today to discover Scarlett’s fantastic new story!
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This was a fast-paced, swoon-worthy read, that I found I did not want to put down! The story was fresh, original and exciting with characters that are realistic and likable. It is everything you could want in a rousing romp through the pages of a historical romance and more!
*I received a complimentary ARC of this book in order to read and provide a voluntary, unbiased and honest review, should I choose to do so.
I find it nearly impossible to believe that this book, “Tamed by the Marquess,” was written by the same person who wrote the first two books published by “Scarlett Osborne”. The writing style and tone are completely different from those of the previous books, the plot (mostly) makes sense, and, most importantly, the author seems to have a better grasp on the history of the Regency period. That isn’t to say that the historical details in this book are perfect, however; for example, the author’s information on how divorce worked during that time is completely wrong. It wouldn’t have been as easy to obtain a divorce as the author seems to think, even for a duke such as the one featured in this story. Christopher, the Duke of Gresham, would have had to petition Parliament to pass a Private Act/Bill of Divorcement, which could have taken years to obtain, in order to legally dissolve his first marriage and be allowed to remarry.
As for the book’s plot, while I found it to be a major improvement on “Ms. Osborne’s” last two efforts, there were still some things that didn’t quite make sense to me. For example, how did Mr. Coleman end up back in the courtroom to be arrested at the end of Joanna’s trial? After his testimony, he made a point of asking the judge to be excused to return to Gresham Manor because the duke’s “illness” had required him to take on so many of the duchy’s responsibilities. When exactly did Mr. Coleman return to the courtroom? Why didn’t he remain at the estate to ensure that no one interfered with his plans for Christopher’s demise? Also, how is it possible that Dorothy knew nothing of her father’s plans? The Colemans seem to have planned everything else together, so it seems unlikely that she wouldn’t have been in on that aspect of the scheme as well.
In addition, the central romance between Joanna and Christopher didn’t work very well for me because the main characters were apart for so much of the book. It was tough to believe that their childhood connection was strong enough to last through all those years apart, especially when one considers that they were only “in love” with each other for a single summer. It also seemed strange to me that Joanna never came to resent Christopher, even a little, for all of the struggles she experienced as a poor, unwed single mother. They both seemed very naive and gullible to me, even at the very end of the book when they were much older and presumably should have been wiser.
At any rate, this was a relatively entertaining story and I liked that it was different from most of the other historical romances I’ve read because it featured a gypsy (“Traveller”) main character. I also liked some of the secondary characters, particularly Joanna and Christopher’s daughter, Hannah, and Christopher’s cousin and heir, Rowley.
*ARC provided by the author/publisher via BookFunnel in exchange for an honest review.
Joanna was a bit selfish and harsh with Christy imo after one kiss! She expected much she had no right to. It really angered me that Joanna looked poorly on Christy saving her dad! She seemed unable to be pleased with anything Christy did! WTH! Chris ‘s dad taking him to a bawdy house was repulsive! No dad needs to do that. plus the shame!! Yuck! Lady Jersey is an evil vane hag! The old Duke was such a dirty perv I could barely read his parts. There are a plethora of characters to loathe, but very few to like or even give redemption to. I found too many villains and not enough fair or decent folk!!
Joanna Bagley was a Traveller of Britain. Her daughter Hannah was sick and getting sicker. To get the proper medicine that would hopefully make her well Joanna left her on the back stoop of the ducal Manor house for the Duke’s of Gresham.
This whole book started back when Joanna and Christopher the Marquis of Clydekill grew up together running in the woods on the estate. Christopher’s father the Duke of Gresham has decreed that the travellers the runoff of his property and if any of them are found poaching on the property they will be hung and quartered as the law allows. Christopher tells Joanna and Cormac informed Domnall what the Duke had planned for anyone caught poaching. Joanna and Christopher realize that they were no longer just friends they were a man and a woman and wanted each other in the way a man wants a woman and a woman wants a man. Then the worst thing happened. To see what happened, you must read the book. And it’s a good book…
I felt emotionally moved by the tumultuous, heart aching machinations of the Duke of Gresham, his daughter-in-law and her father against soulmates Lord Christopher Albertson and the love of his life Joanna Bagley. The characters in the story seemed true to life. Their actions, words and deeds exposed the very depths of their soul. The author brought out their personalities so that the reader could really get to know them. This story will have you fixated and absorbed immediately. This is a page turner that you will not be able to put down. The absolute horror and injustice that Christopher and Joanna had to suffer for their love was discouraging, frightening and horrendous. Throughout the years of separation Joanne stayed faithful. If it had not been for their daughter Hannah that Christopher never knew about, they would never have been reunited and even then, the evil people in Christopher’s life were trying to doom the relationship and murder Christopher and they almost succeeded. If it were not by the grace of God that brought to light the sinister conspiracy, Joanna would have been sent to Newgate or hung for a crime she did not commit and Christopher would have met a murderous end. Even though everything was straightened out in the end I still could not help but feel compassion and sadness for them. This is a must read. You will not be disappointed.
The story revolves around Christopher, a marquess, and Joanna, a gypsy, who meet and fall in love over their childhood years. His father interferes and things go from good to bad. There is a HEA for them but a lot happens first, including his forced marriage, poisoning, bribes, attempted murder charges to name a few. It is a good read and there is a lot going on in this book.