Thank you for approving my request for this book. Unfortunately, he last few books from this author have really lost their magic for me, and they don't feel authentic to the time period. I have lost interest in reading anything from this author.

We first meet Charlotte and Julian in Lady Eleanor`s Seventh Suitor. Both courted scandal, but ended going their separate ways. A year plus later they meet once again, unviable since Charlotte`s sister is married to Julian`s cousin. However, much has changer, both harbor a darkness. Julian`s darkness is war trauma related, while Charlotte`s is related to a series of life traumas. Today, we would say they both suffer from PTSD. However, in the post Waterloo era the only treatment was to live with it or die from it. When Julian is charged with saving Charlotte from herself, they are thrown together time and time again. Will they ever confide in each other the secrets they keep locked inside? Will they discover the love they felt a year ago was true and never died? Or will they end up destroying each other and the people they love best. I enjoyed this second book in the series much more than the first. Ms Bradley leaves many of the questions unanswered until the every end. A very good read.

*I got this ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

I have read all the Sutherland Sisters books so far and in each and everyone I want to kick some sense into the heroine. But isnt it always like that with Anna Bradley? She has such a way with words that even if you think like we are running in circles with the story you cannot put the book away, like a huge dog is chaising it's own tail.

The leads are absolutely likable. They have their secrets and their past - we have to wait for quite some time to see what's behind all those "closed doors" but it's worth it.

Romances such as this are such a guilty pleasure for me. This one was pretty good - I became invested in the characters and found myself more engaged than I usually am in these quick reads.

Review: I’m a sucker for regency romance, toss in the whole concept of a second chances and a relationship that was love then hate–and I’m a goner.

I was immediately sucked into this book. It had everything that you could possibly want for this sort of trope. An intriguing backstory, a great leading man, a complicated woman who you literally have no clue whats happening with until the very end, and a great FULL story where any reader will feast and feast and feast.

With all of that being said, around 30% into the story all I kept thinking was, they are they both so hateful? He mentions being traumatized but really it turns into more of a revenge against Charlotte than his past sins. There were a lot of motivating factors behind both Julian and Charlotte and most of the time I one hundred percent understood where the author was taking it. But then things would take a turn, I’m assuming in the effort to throw the reader off (lets be honest all authors, myself including, want to set the bar higher after a first book in a series). Suddenly I’d find myself going, “wait, why is he being such an A-hole when in the last chapter he was trying to get her to fall in love with him again?”

And she did the same thing, Charlotte was very much the ice queen who had good reason to keep Julian at arms length. When things came to a head I went oh good yes FINALLY they are going to communicate. And then, bam, he goes off on a tantrum and lets be honest, as an author I totally got it. As a reader I was like but whyyyyyy? Was it necessary? I’m not entirely sure. Did it make the story….different? More deep? Intense? Yes to all of the above. I just had a very hard time getting back into the story and believing that Julian really did want to make things work, the things he said, the things he did, and the things that took place between them after all of the heaviness of the past almost felt like too much.

It was superb writing.
Amazing development.
Maybe I just wasn’t in the right place because I was so shocked that certain things were being said or took place by either character. And maybe, just maybe, thats the mark of an insanely good author—I hated her, I loved her, I hated her again, and then when my toddler woke up I was like YOU SLEEP! THAT IS WHAT TWO YEAR OLDS DO! 😉

All that being said, it was an amazing story that sucked me in even when I got angry and wanted to slam my phone against the wall and or re-write something b/c it made my heart hurt too much to read the words, to see the effect they had on either character.

All in all, an incredible regency romance that is NOT your usual romance, that will most definitely have you staying up until two a.m. cursing this author as you drink an entire pot of coffee.

Well done.

So much emotion in this book. You could feel the love and feel the hurt everyone was going thru. Once I started this book, I couldn't put it down. Lady Charlotte and Julian first appear in Lady Eleanors 7th suitor. I strongly recommend you read that book first. You don't have to but it would add so much to this story. Julian and Charlotte fall in love in that book but end up going their separate ways. This book picks up a year later. Charlotte is now a widow and Julian has just returned from the war. Both broken in spirit and mind from the things they've experienced in the past year.
Charlotte is acting out, being an outrageous widow. Her family doesn't know what to do to help her. They ask Julian to help, knowing he had a connection to her before. This is where the roller coaster of emotions really begin. Your heart goes out to them for the things they have both suffered but instead of helping each other at first, they continue to hurt each other. So they conclude the best thing for them to do is stay away from each other. But in the end Love will win out.

The journey for this couple was great and ultimately fulfilling. Two people are punishing themselves for their sins only the people closest to them don't really see and don't know what to do. These two lash out in different ways but ultimately they do see each other for what they are. They have a history and are set to hate the other for everything that they did and didn't do. She left him and married another and he went to war. The intervening time serves to haunt them until they can come to terms. They help each other accomplish this and in the end they get their HEA.

~Reviewed by Bonnie~~

We first met our protagonists, Charlotte and Julian, in LADY ELEANOR’S SEVENTH SUITOR, as secondary characters. The glimpses we had showed them falling in love, and then parting when Charlotte marries another and Julian leaves to become a soldier. Without knowing the details, I was very eager to read this story to find out exactly what went awry.

Charlotte Sutherland fell quickly and deeply in love with Julian West and didn’t hesitate in becoming intimate with him. When she learns that his seduction was part of an intricate plot of revenge on her family, she is devastated. Julian’s original intentions were totally dishonorable, but soon he found himself falling in love, and meaning every word he said to Charlotte. When she learns of his deception, she refuses all contact with him and is quick to marry Lord Hadley. Now a heartbroken Julian decides to purchase a commission and goes off to battle.

In the intervening year, both Julian and Charlotte have suffered trauma and pain – the kind that changes them forever. Julian has returned home after fighting in the battle of Waterloo and is considered a hero. Inside, he feels like anything but a hero. He has obvious signs of PTSD and suffers from nightmares and guilt. Charlotte’s husband died mere months after their wedding, and she returned to London only to engage in scandalous and shocking behavior. Her antics have left her teetering on the very edge of ruin, and her family is deeply concerned.

The last thing Julian wants is to have anything to do with Charlotte. Yet, his cousin, Cam, (who is Charlotte’s brother-in-law) begs for his help, as no one else can reach Charlotte, or convince her to curb her outrageous actions. Julian reluctantly agrees, and thus the two former lovers encounter each other for the first time in over a year. Yet, they may have been two strangers, for each of them has changed drastically.

Julian’s once sparkling eyes are flat and emotionless, and his charm replaced with a blunt and businesslike manner. As for Charlotte, she seems to need excitement in order to breathe. She varies between extreme gayety and vacant emptiness. Though she knows she’s hurting her family, and walking a dangerous path that could have her ostracized from society, she can’t seem to help herself.

Each encounter between this couple is hard to read. It’s obvious that both are in deep pain and are determined to bury it. They continually hurt each other, and I could feel Charlotte heading toward a disastrous end, and Julian to a placid and boring future that was totally wrong for him. Gradually, bit by bit, author Anna Bradley reveals the events that happened to Julian and Charlotte since their parting.

It was honestly hard for me to like these characters for most of the book. I understood that they were damaged, but Julian’s cruelty, and Charlotte’s surface disregard and flightiness made me want to just give up on them. Yet, I found my mind changing as tiny little pieces of their former selves made appearances. It’s not until near the very end that we learn the full extent of what happened in Charlotte’s world, and it’s a very painful story. LADY CHARLOTTE’S FIRST LOVE does eventually wind its way to a happy ending, though it’s a hard journey getting there. This is not a light or happy read – it’s dark and distressing. Yet, I have to admit to being totally captivated, engrossed, and emotionally involved. If you enjoy an intense read, along with themes of second chances and forgiveness, this is the book you’re looking for.

I voluntarily reviewed an advanced readers’ copy of this book.

Well written and very interesting novel. I was drawn into the story of missed opportunities and misunderstandings between two young lovers. They finally resolve everything in a romantic finish.

Love's tragedy!

A Shakespearean tragedy if ever there was one. Enmeshed in the emotional harrowing web that pulls at Julian West and Lady Charlotte Hadley I found it hard to put this down.
West returns from the war a broken man, followed by nightmares, and yet feted as a hero--a sobriquet he detests and knows in his inner being is a lie.
Charlotte is a widow with devastating memories of her relationship with West, the blame she carries for her husband's death, and the betrayal she feels West dealt her.
Charged by his cousin Cam who is Charlotte's brother-in-law, to to bring Charlotte home to her family, the last thing West wants to do is face down the troublesome, brittle marchioness. A woman who is constantly outraging the ton, cutting a swathe through high society with her equally outrageous friends, and who is a step away from being rejected by this august group. A woman who has always been the light of West's life no matter how he tries to deny it.
When I previously said I could hardly wait for Charlotte's story I didn't realize the depth of pain that would be forthcoming.
Two broken people condemning themselves to unsatisfactory lives through misunderstanding and on West's part, misplaced duty.

A NetGalley ARC
(October 2017)

Lovers reunited, what is better than that!!

Julian and Charlotte fell in love pretty quickly (we see this in the previous book, Lady Eleanor's Seventh Suitor), but things didn't work out. Charlotte marries another, but it doesn't end well. She ends up trying to drown her memories in adventures in London. Her sister is not happy about this, so ask Julian to help keep an eye on Charlotte and get her to come home for the holidays.

Of course nothing is as easy as it should be and Julian can't get Charlotte to agree to go home. But during this time, they fall back in love with each other. But they have both changed since they first fell in love and what is between them may keep them apart.

Another great read by Bradley!! Love this series so far and can't wait for the next book in the series!

This was not an easy book. These were not an easy H and h to like. But this is an author I’ve love in the past, so I persevered and was rewarded with a beautiful story. I had read the previous book and liked this couple very much, I did not expect to find I would now find both of them quite difficult and unkind to one another. They had been young, in love and passionate in the prior book. Never did I expect to have the pain and tears that came as they finally were honest with one another. Through over 2/3 of the book I waited for the truth to come, but it still wasn’t forthcoming. Finally, in only the last few chapters do they drop the walls, and I think I cried the last two chapters. Highly recommend.

To be featured on my blog soon, along with the next book in the series.

Review in the near future both on my blog and on Goodreads.

4.5 Stars

We met our heroine, Charlotte Sutherland, in LADY ELEANOR'S SEVENTH SUITOR, where she was part of a revenge plot by Camden West and his cousin, Julian West. Julian's task was to compromise Charlotte, which he did, but with disastrous consequences. Charlotte fell immediately and genuinely in love with Julian, and to his surprise, he fell in love also. When Charlotte learns that her seduction was part of a scheme, she is devastated, and refuses all further contact with Julian. In what is no doubt an act of desperation, Charlotte immediately marries Lord Hadley, and a heartbroken Julian goes off to war.

In the intervening year, the lives of Charlotte and Julian have changed drastically. Julian fought in the battle of Waterloo, and has returned to be hailed as a hero. Yet, he's a different man - he suffers guilt and nightmares, and he's not the charming, carefree man he was. As for Charlotte, her husband tragically died after only four months of marriage. Rather than remain in mourning, Charlotte has returned to town with a vengeance. She keeps company with three other "wicked" widows and Lord Devon, who has a reputation as a debauched rake and a possible murderer. Their escapades get more daring and scandalous every day, and Charlotte is teetering on the edge of social ruin.

Charlotte's sister, Eleanor, and her now-husband, Cam, beg Julian to try to bring Charlotte to heel, before she takes an irrevocable step. The last thing Julian wants is to see the woman who broke his heart, but he agrees, and begins to dog her steps, rescuing her from outlandish situations. Charlotte doesn't want to be rescued, and doesn't want to see Julian, but he won't stay away.

It's clear that there is definitely more to Charlotte's story. Her actions are caused by a desperation that is tearing her apart. While she is battling the demons from her past and her brief marriage, Julian is suffering from PTSD and fighting his own ghosts. His new personality can be cruel, while Charlotte's flightiness and disregard for seemingly everything but excitement is painful and hard to read. While I could sympathize with both of them, I was torn between wanting to shake them and hug them. I had a hard time liking the people this couple had become.

We do get occasional glimpses of the people Charlotte and Julian used to be. When the details of Charlotte's marriage are revealed, her actions become understandable. It seems impossible that this couple could ever find a way back to each other, through the pain and betrayals and the obstacles now in their path. Yet, they do, and the journey is very rough. This is not a light or easy read, but it is emotional and powerful and impacted me greatly. LADY CHARLOTTE'S FIRST LOVE is an intense read, one that I won't forget, and one that I recommend for the reader who wants a compelling story that will totally envelop you.

I received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review. The story is about a young widow who is set on the path of self-destruction and the man who had once loved her is requested by her family to save her. Charlotte does not believe she deserves anything good in life due to her past lies. Julian tries to save her but in the end they save each other. They finally admit they love each other and have a HEA ending. There is a lot that happens in between and it is a good read. I would recommend this book.

Lady Charlotte Hadley has embarked on a path of careless behavior ever since she’s recently widowed and no one to stop her dangerous hijinks. That is until Julian West decides to step up and protect the Lady from herself. Julian West is a returning war hero who has every woman vying for his attention that is all except the one who stole his heart a few years ago. Charlotte’s sister Ellie charges Julian to keep an eye on her sister and protect the widow from ruin. Julian and Charlotte relationship is entangled in mistrust and misunderstandings. Charlotte’s life is filled with secrets and lies and when Julian re-enter her life everything changes. She leads Julian on a merry chase through London’s bars and brothels to the finest country estate. Will the secrets and lies be too much for them to overcome? This is a captivating story of two people who can grab a second chance at love if they can survive the secrets, lies and scandal and allow themselves to love again to find their HEA!!! This is my honest opinions after I voluntarily read a copy of this book that was provided to me with no requirements for a review.

London - 1816

Captain Julian West has arrived at a brothel searching for Charlotte Sutherland, the Marchioness of Hadley. Charlotte was widowed after a short marriage. Soon, four well-dressed, masked women enter the brothel and sit on a sofa where they proceed to drink whisky and smoke cheroots. The women would be ruined if their identity was found out. Lady Charlotte is one of them. The others are Lady Annabel, Lady Elizabeth, and Lady Aurelia, all widows. They have come here tonight as part of a wager they made with Lord Devon. Now, it appears that they have won that wager.

As the ladies attempt to take their leave, Julian grabs Charlotte and takes her upstairs where he proceeds to begin undressing her. She recognizes him as the man she has always loved. They had fallen in love some years back but he ended up going to war and she married another man. As they verbally spar with one another, her friends interrupt and Julian then vows to return Charlotte home before her reputation is ruined.

Evidently, Lord Devon is a dangerous man who will even resort to murder to get what he wants and he wants Charlotte.

This story is about a bored young woman who wants some excitement in her life but is not interested in following the rules of the ton to do so.

I enjoyed Charlotte’s character in “Lady Eleanor’s Seventh Suitor” as I felt she was a sweet young woman. Perhaps her not being able to marry Julian at one time has made her bitter. I have had a difficult time with some of the characters in this series. There is too much angst and unhappiness displayed which is real turn-off to me when reading a book. I hope that other readers will enjoy the story.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

The Marchioness of Hadley, Lady Charlotte, has been lost since her husband's death. Her marriage has left her disillusioned and heartbroken. In order to shake her melancholy, Charlotte decides to re-enter society and take it by storm. Being a widow gives her the freedom to do just about whatever she wants with no consequences. It is during one of her escapades that Charlotte runs into the real love of her life, Julian West.

Julian West has arrived home a hero on the battlefield. If only people what a battle takes out of a man. When Julian's brother and sister-in-law, who is the sister of his past flame, Charlotte, ask for his help in reining Charlotte in, Julian wants to say no. Julian does not realize what a struggle he is in for. Immediately, old feelings rush to the surface for both of them. Julian must remain strong, but Charlotte breaks through all his defenses. Could this be their second chance?

I fell in love with author Anna Bradley's SUTHERLAND SISTERS series with book one, LADY ELEANOR'S SEVENTH SUITOR. It is an amazing read, but then again so is the next addition, LADY CHARLOTTE'S FIRST LOVE. I wanted to dislike Charlotte. Something about the first novel made me think her flighty, but after getting to really know her in book two, I had a complete turn-around. Charlotte's character is deep... she has strength and determination. Julian is the perfect half to her whole. He's loyal, protective and willing to go to great lengths for Charlotte, the woman he has never stopped loving. This book will have you laughing and crying all in one sitting. Charlotte and Julian's story is a tale for all time!

This is one of those "book two in a series" stories where you technically don't have to have read the first in order to be able to understand and enjoy this one, but it will give you more of an in-depth back-story between Julian and Charlotte if you do.

That being said, this is not your average historical romance. To begin with both Julian as well as Charlotte are deeply flawed. They are NOT the same people we met and enjoyed in book one. Julian has just returned from experiencing firsthand the horrors of war. He has to live with the things he has seen and the choices he has had to make. I would go as far as to say he experiences a form of PTSD. And what does he come home to? A world where people look upon him as a hero (something he does not see himself as) while they beg to hear stories he would rather not talk about. Charlotte is no longer the young girl who was completely smitten with Julian either. She harbors some dark secrets herself, including the fear that she was the cause of her husband's death.

Unfortunately for Charlotte, no one seems to think to ask her what she wants, or even takes a good long look into what she does to try and figure out the why of it. They just attempt to order her about because they "know what is best for her". Thankfully, even if his original motive is a bit misguided, Julian does eventually see Charlotte as she is, and even more, who she is now. And even then, they still have to fight for their happily ever after. And that fight ventures into some pretty dark places.

Overall, I am sure this story may still appeal to those who enjoy a well written historical romance novel that deal with some "darker" topics.

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.

I have a new favorite historical romance author!