Her life was charmed, until it was not.Near destitute after the sudden death of her wastrel husband, Lady Pipworth must find a way to support herself and her young nieces until her brother returns home to assume his role as head of the family. Thanks to her three brothers that raised her, Adalia’s one outstanding skill in life is gambling, and with a dower house now at her … now at her disposal, plans to fill the coffers–scandal begetting or not–begin to take shape.
A mysterious duke with one goal in mind.
The Duke of Dellon is interested in nothing more than fulfilling the needs of running his ducal estate. As for a wife and an heir–he will get to it, eventually–as long as it fits neatly into his orderly life. But when a vow invoked from the grave surfaces, he obligingly sets out to do what is required of him–stop Lady Pipworth from the foolery of operating a gaming house. And, if he should need to, marry the woman.
This is a new release of an edition originally published by AWD Publishing.
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I have a special place in my heart for romances that involve gaming dens, and Of Valor and Vice didn’t disappoint! K.J. Jackson is one of my new favorite authors.
A very good read. Loved the main characters, Adalia and Toren. Good plot. Good dialogue. The right amount of steam between the H & h. Loved Stone Devil Duke by this author and decided to see how Of Valor & Vice compared. Just as good. Followed up with Sin & Sanctuary. Perfect. Can’t go wrong with any of this author’s books.
The story begins when Adalia, Lady Pipworth has just buried her husband. She is approached by a stranger, who offers his aid as he promised her missing brother, Theo. She rebuffs his offer. However, after one niece is nearly kidnapped and a warning note arrives, she turns to the only person powerful enough to protect them, Theo’s friend, the Duke of Dellon. Together they try to find out what happened to Theo and why she and her nieces are in danger.
Adalia is a very strong personality. Hardened and numbed by her two-year marriage, she’s determined to concentrate all her energy on saving her family’s estate for her missing brother and caring for her nieces.
The duke is a cold, seemingly emotionless man, driven by duty and honor.
The story is very well written with good dialog. Although there is the latent danger threatening Adalia and her nieces, this is not a dark story. There are some light-hearted, amusing scenes. This story kept me turning the pages.
Once again K.J. Jackson has written a compelling story filled with incredibly real characters. Her ‘hero’ isn’t perfect, her ‘heroine’ isn’t a flighty, simpering damsel and that’s why I loved this book. Adalia and Toren are flawed in delightfully real ways to the point that they remind you of people you know or perhaps yourself.
I won’t rehash the plot, the book description and other reviewers will do that for you. I will say the story is powerful, complex and even harrowing at times. The way Ms. Jackson writes about Adalia and how close she was to her three older bothers is incredibly realistic. The memories of their time together, the playfulness & teasing, the card playing and cheating (because who doesn’t cheat to try to best their big brothers at something?) and of course the underlying love they all have for one another is so very real which is why it’s so gut wrenching she has lost them. Toren’s backstory is truly sad, but he did not turn into a “woe is me” character. His emotional growth is wonderful to read and experience with him.
The twists keep you turning the pages; when you think you know who did it you don’t. You will find yourself hoping these two will get out of their own way so they can find happiness together and through it all you will thoroughly enjoy their journey together.
I was given an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion. Honestly you need to READ THIS BOOK, it’s fantastic.
Lise P.