A NOT SO RESPECTABLE GENTLEMAN is an intriging page
turner with great characters, romance, and suspense which
keeps you on the edge of your seat, oh
yes, and it's mighty sensual!!!!! It's actually a spin off
from Diane Gaston's first series named, "The Diamonds of
Welbourne Manor, England's most scandalous family!
Years earlier, Leo Fitzmanning's father had left his wife
to live openly with the equally married Countess of
Linwall. They had lived their free-spirited, bliss-filled,
yet unwed, life together for twenty years. Leo and his two
sisters had been a product of that life while the duke also
had two legitimate sons. Their reputation was such that
society referred to them as The Fitzmanning Miscellany,
although they knew better than to say it to Leo's face.
There was also a half-sister, Justine, by a French woman
his father had met prior to making the countess'
acquaintance. They had grown up at Wellbourne Manor and
even the two legitimate sons had spent a great deal of time
there, so they were all close. But Leo has no wish for
scandal and is trying to gain society's respect by
producing the finest horses in England, even finer than his
brother, Stephen's, horses.
Leo is the illegitimate son of the Duke of Manning, and has
been working hard to overcome his family's scandalous
reputation. He has his own horse farm and believes it will
be a most profitable journey. But one night,a fire ruins
most of his dreams, his horses and farm are burnt to the
ground. A careless act, but he will do anything to support
the love of his life, Mariel Covendale.
They are secretly betrothed.
When he goes to her father to ask for her hand in marraige,
her father tells him that she is already betrothed to
another, which is a lie. Miss Mariel Covenant is
brokenhearted when her father informs her that Leo has not
shown up to ask her father's permission for them to wed,
but he has lied again. Hearing that Leo had left the
country,
she figures he has deserted her. So both their hearts have
been broken by her lying father.
Leo finds a way to make his fortune and returns to England,
but soon learns that Mariel has not married in those 2
years, but is once again betrothed to another, Lord
Kellford, a monster of a man. Leo will not let this
marraige happen. He will not let her live a dreadful life
with a devil of a man whom only finds pleasure in causing
pain to his women. He is determined to help her. But her
father also has many hidden secrets and does not care who
she marries as long as his betting debts are paid.
Determined to put a stop to it, Leo tries to warn her
father, who turns a deaf ear. So he approaches Mariel, but
she is still mad at him. As all of his feelings for her
return, he knows he must find a way to stop the wedding.
However, he figures they do not have a future together as
he is no longer the same man who left London two years
earlier. Not knowing any other way, he decides to re-enter
society...with the help of his family. But he doesn't have
much time left. Can he find out why she is being forced to
marry Kellford and figure out a way to correct the
situation before the wedding day? Does Leo have reasons of
his own for stopping the wedding...reasons he is not even
admitting to himself?
A fast-paced tale, A NOT SO RESPECTABLE GENTLEMAN, the
latest novel by RITA award winning author Diane Gaston, is
an intriguing, passionate historical romance. I could not
put this book down, read into the wee hours of the morning!
Leo and Mariel are wonderful together and I could not help
rooting for them. But I did not like Mariel's father at all
and was looking forward to his comeuppance. As for the
Fitzmanning Miscellany, the entire family was warmhearted
and loving, making me eager to read more about this
wonderful family. There was also a beautiful, secondary
romance between Leo's valet/batman and Mariel's personal
maid. Packed with suspense, blackmail, mystery, betrayal,
complex characters, family dynamics, passion, true love and
a scrumptious ending, this story is a winner. I enjoyed
A NOT SO RESPECTABLE GENTLEMAN immensely and look forward
to reading more of
Ms. Gaston's works.
Since Leo Fitzmanning returned to London, he's kept his seat
at the card table warm, his pockets full of winnings and his
mind off a certain raven-haired heiress.
Until whispers at the gaming hell reveal that Miss Mariel
Covendale is being forced into marriage with an unscrupulous
fortune hunter!
Leo must re-enter the society he detests to help her, before
returning to his clandestine existence. But he hasn't
counted on Mariel having grown even more achingly beautiful
than he remembers. Soon Leo realizes that there's nothing
respectable about his reasons for stopping Mariel's marriage!
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