Juliana Merton mourns the murder of her husband as she
endeavors to carry on the operation of a rare bookseller.
Her sole ambition is to possess the Shakespeare Editions,
believing they are part of her heritage. Left as an infant
to be raised by her "grandfather," Juliana's search is in
proving she is not illegitimate.
Cain, the Marquis of Chase, is a sexy rake of disreputable
and wretched morals capable of wooing any woman he chooses.
Hiring Juliana to help him purchase the Burgundy Hours,
while knowing the manuscript actually belongs to him,
becomes more than either of them bargained for. The books
are being auction as the Tarleton Collection. Becoming
respectable is uppermost on Cain's itinerary to become
guardian his 16-year-old sister, so he can protect her from
a disastrous arranged marriage. Escaping several attempts
on her life, Juliana consorts with Cain to uncover the
mysteries assailing them both. Hot, sensual sex only
escalates the unexpected feelings they realize for one
another.
Miranda Neville provides a lot of history and
background on rare books and works of art in 1800s London.
Cain is a warm, considerate and virile man who any woman
would have trouble denying. Juliana is a beautiful, sweet
character who knows not her own worth. It is gratifying to
see Cain throw caution to the wind in regards to social
standings when he decides to pursue that which he desires.
I thoroughly enjoyed THE WILD MARQUIS and would recommend
it to anyone enjoying an exciting historical read.
He is notorious for his wretched morals and is never
received in respectable houses. The ladies of the ton would
never allow him in their drawing rooms . . . though they
were more than willing to welcome him into their
bedchambers. Ejected from his father's house at the age of
sixteen, he now lives a life of wanton pleasure. So what
could the Marquis of Chase possibly want with Juliana
Merton, a lovely, perfectly upstanding shopkeeper with a
mysterious past?
A moment's indiscretion?
A night's passion?
Or a lifetime of love?
Even the wildest rakes have their weaknesses . . .
Excerpt
The first thing she learned about her visitor was that he
possessed a fine pair of boots.
Then he offered a hand. Disconcerted, she accepted the help
without thought. As she rose she had an immediate
impression of youth and elegance. Not that all book buyers
were old and unkempt. Bibliophilia gripped gentlemen of all
stripes. But Juliana knew most of the serious book buyers
in London by sight, and not one of them sported such
effortless masculine grace.
The impression made by his figure withered when she met a
pair of crystal blue eyes, scanning her from head to foot
with alarming intensity. His scrutiny raised a flush in her
pale skin and made her grateful for her high-necked black
gown and close fitting cap.
In the past, when alone in the shop, a man had occasionally
made an amorous advance. So Juliana dressed herself in
enveloping gowns of a particularly beastly cloth, which
managed to be both shiny and ineffably drab. Add the
sensible linen cap tied under the chin and covering every
strand of hair, and the problem had disappeared. She
resembled, she knew, a diminutive nun of more than common
virtue, or a small black beetle. Her forbidding appearance
was supposed to make book buyers see her as a well-informed
bookseller and forget she wasn’t a man.
With this visitor it wasn’t working. His gaze told her he
saw through her disguise and knew she was young, blonde and
female. Lord, she wouldn’t be surprised if he saw through
her garments. She’d never encountered a man who exuded such
raw seductive potency.
With little knowledge of the species, she had no difficulty
recognizing a member of it. This was a rake.
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