To set things right, she has to be very wrong… Until he catches her stealing from his mentor.
The moment Jocelyn Renwick glimpses her family’s stolen heirlooms in the possession of a wealthy earl, she demands their return. He dismissively insists they’ve been in his family for generations, and she privately vows to get them back at any cost. But the law-abiding Lord Carlyle foils her plans, and she reluctantly partners with him to solve the theft of her property. Now Jocelyn must decide if justice for her family is worth risking a chance at love.
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A wonderful novella about Miss Jocelyn Renwick seeking justice. Two years ago she had a brief season interrupted when she and her father came home after a society affair to a burglarized house – her mother’s jewels are some of her fathers were stolen. Her father, already in poor health, was pushed to an early death. Now as companion to her guardian’s mother, Jocelyn is again in society in a different capacity. At a ball, she is stunned to see her mother’s pearl necklace on Lady Aldridge. Intent upon following her, she steps on the foot of Daniel Carlyle, Viscount. The attraction of both is immediate. Daniel never expected to inherit the title – he was a constable and uncomfortable in this new role. When Jocelyn discovers that Daniel knows Lord and Lady Aldridge, she uses him to gain an invitation. That necklace was unique, a gift her father had made for her mother and she is determined to get it back. Lord Aldridge is Daniel’s mentor in society and Jocelyn was hopeful he just purchased goods he did not know were stolen. That was shattered when he declared the necklace was in his family for generations. After explaining the situation to Daniel, he suggest she consults a lawyer, but with no proof, there is nothing to do. So Jocelyn just steals them back, to the horror of the justice-minded Daniel, who promises to get to the truth. With love growing between them tested by the righteousness of Jocelyn and the justice minded and loyal Daniel, it is an entanglement of right and wrong, and justice is never black and white, but various shades of gray. A romantic story with greed, loyalty, justice and a most unlikely hero!
‘To set things right, she has to be very wrong…
Former constable Daniel Carlyle hasn’t the foggiest notion how to be a viscount. No one is more shocked than he when his father’s second cousin and his son die on the same day. When a prominent earl offers to guide Daniel through Society and the House of Lords, he’s grateful to have a champion. Things seem to be falling into place when he meets a lovely young woman he intends to make his viscountess. Until he catches her stealing from his mentor.
The moment Jocelyn Renwick glimpses her family’s stolen heirlooms in the possession of a wealthy earl, she demands their return. He dismissively insists they’ve been in his family for generations, and she privately vows to get them back at any cost. But the law-abiding Lord Carlyle foils her plans, and she reluctantly partners with him to solve the theft of her property. When they discover the earl is up to his ears in criminal acts, he threatens to link Daniel to his gang of thieves. Jocelyn must decide if justice for her family is worth risking a chance at love.’
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2.5 stars, rounded up to 3 stars.
To Love a Thief is the fourth book in Darcy Burke’s Secrets and Scandals series.
This one is a short edition to the series at around about 125 pages. And do to the limited number of pages, there was not enough for things to be developed at a decent pace without feeling rushed. Things felt very insta-love to me, which is a pretty big deal breaker for me and instantly ruins my ability to connect with the characters, which was a shame because they were both likable characters amd they had potential. Had the book been longer, I feel like this issue could have been resolved and it would have been a much better read as a result.
But the book is short, so I stuck with it and the danger and subterfuge made the read more intruiging and enjoyable for me. But again, I feel that had the book been longer, this aspect of the story would have benefitted as well.
This has not been my favorite read by Darcy Burke, but I also know that this is one of her earliest series and so her writing is not really what I’m used to reading from her more recent books.
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I would like to thank the author, Darcy Burke, for sharing an electronic copy of To Love a Thief with me. This is my honest review.
This was a lovely, sweet novella with engaging characters. Lord Daniel Carlyle, a former constable, meets Jocelyn Renwick at a society function. For Daniel, it is love at first sight. Jocelyn is more concerned with discovering why a stolen family heirloom is on the neck of a member of the ton.
There are villains aplenty, suspense, some secondary characters that may be featured in next books in the series. Love scenes that are steamy but not overdone.
It would have been nice if the story would have been more developed and made into a full length book but despite that it held my attention and was a delightful read.