THE DARK AFFAIR is Book three in Maire Claremont's Mad Passions series. This is the first book I've read by this author, but I think this book can be enjoyed without reading the previous books in the series. However, after reading this story, I am intrigued and plan on reading the earlier books. The artwork on the cover and the book description lured me in.

One of the things I really like about this story is the inauspicious way the hero and heroine meet and are thrown together. Crushed by grief over the death of his wife and young daughter, Viscount Powers is left to molder in a madhouse. He had been self- medicating with opium to forget his troubles when his father had him committed for his own good. Unfortunately for him, there weren't any fancy rehab facilities like there are nowadays. That is his situation at the opening of the book. While there, he is nursed by Lady Margaret Cassidy.

Maggie is a very complex character. Though from the upper class herself, albeit in Ireland, she is no stranger to personal tragedy and nurses for purely altruistic reasons. In Powers' mind, he and Maggie have a slightly adversarial relationship, even though he finds himself physically attracted to her. Due to some manipulation by Powers' father, he and Maggie wind up married and he is able to be sprung from the madhouse.

I liked that she was up front with James right away about his father's involvement in the marriage scheme. I was worried at first, that James wouldn't be aware of all the details until a later point and have feelings of betrayal. The only thing Maggie holds back from him is her reasons for marriage as pertains to her brother and the trouble he's in. She also is afraid to give into her emotions and foster any feelings of love she may have for James because of her abandonment issues. She lost her mother and father to the grave and her brother took up with revolutionaries.

This is such a great story for so many reasons. I loved the chemistry between the hero and heroine and how their relationship evolves. I love the irony of Maggie trying to heal James by getting him to open up about his feelings; even though that is something she struggles with without wanting to admit it. James becomes a little more self-aware in that respect before she does. James's father was a surprise and ended up having more depth than I had anticipated. It was nice to see father and son healing as a family unit. I also enjoyed the historical context with Maggie's background and the Irish famine. I was captivated by these characters and this story. I look forward to reading the previous books in this series as well as other books by this author.