Helen Hawkestone is a young and sweet woman. She is sister to a Marquis and has a brother -in-law who is a duke. So she comes from good stock. But she does not care about society, her brother is looking for a husband for her. Clary Homeward has had a very bad past, but five years ago he was given a second chance for both his brother and him. He is the secretary to the Duchess and helps her with the orphanages she buys and maintains. Helen wants to help, so she goes to the newest orphanage. I t is filthy, falling apart and the children look to be in bad shape. The problems brought up in the tale are the same as we still deal with now. The characters are so full of life, caring and trying to right a problem. Ms. Evans always gives us the best books, and keeps us ...very entertained.
Her writing is among the best and she will never disappoint.
I received this ARC free and voluntarily reviewed it.

I wasn't to too sure about this book when I started but I ended up really enjoying it. The struggle the hero went through was different than any other book I have read. He had something real to overcome unlike other other heroes.

Perfectly titled! This is a great story about overcoming one’s past to fulfill a promising future. I enjoyed the portrayal of strength from both Clary and Helen. This is a great addition to a great series.

I have been reading The Disgraced Lords series since it first began in 2014. While I wondered how this series would continue once each of the original Libertine Scholars found love, Bronwen Evans has managed to come up with romance for characters who were previously introduced in the series while providing them with exciting action and adventures.

A Dream of Redemption is a dark tale that deals with seedy orphanages and child trafficking. While learning about the squalid side of 1815 London, Lady Helen works together with her love interest, Clary, a man with a dark childhood background. As they strive to provide better conditions for children in one existing orphanage, they are also faced with the challenge of finding children who have gone missing from that orphanage. At the same time, Lady Helen seeks a long-term solution to prevent future orphans from being exploited. Not every plan runs smoothly and there are several dangerous twists and turns in the plot before Helen and Clary can find their HEA.

I received an ARC of A Dream of Redemption from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Bookish and independent Lady Helen Hawkestone is expected to marry well. But, having grown up with warring parents, the institution holds little appeal. The trick, she realizes, is to marry for love a task that’s easier said than done. Clary Homeward is an enigma a heart-stopping, body-stirring, forget-her-social-upbringing enigma. A single offence against a noblewoman such as Lady Helen would ruin a man like Clary. Her sister, Marisa, Duchess of Lyttleton rescued him from hellish poverty and employs him with her charity work. Try as he might to push her away, Helen tempts him to want things he could never have. But when girls from the orphanage start disappearing, destined for a grim fate Clary knows all too well, Helen insists on helping.
Another page turning, engrossing read which once again I was loathe to put down & read until 2am to finish it. Quite dark in places, the descriptions of the orphanage & Clary’s teenage years were particularly harrowing, I commend the author for delving into the seamier side of nineteenth century life. The characters are very well portrayed, Clary & Helen were both strong characters. She had her eyes opened as to how others had to live & he was consumed by guilt. Their road to their HEA wasn’t smooth but they did fight to get there. I’m a fan of the author’s books & this didn’t disappoint, it is the eighth in the series but could be read as a standalone book but why would you when the series goes from strength to strength

My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read

This is a twist on your usual historical romance. Taking place in London in 1820, when class was the most important thing and you didn't dare even think about forming an attachment to someone below you, Clary and Helen meet. She is the daughter of an aristocrat; he grew up abandoned in the streets and was forced to do unspeakable things to survive. Without knowing the details of his past, Helen knows his station is far below hers, but as they work together cleaning up an orphanage to decent standards she comes to feel much for him. Clary has been very attracted to his employer's sister for a long time but knows not to entertain the notion. I loved the way Helen took into account how her actions would affect everyone around her and though that slowed her down a bit, in the end it didn't matter. She was in love and wanted to spend her life with Clary. They eventually came to terms with what their life together would be and got their happy ending. I appreciated the fact that there wasn't a magical elevation in status for Clary and they went into their future with their eyes wide open. A really wonderful read.

Clary Homeward works as a private secretary to Duchess Marissa Maitland and together they have tried to improve the lives of children in orphanages. When Marissa's younger sister, Lady Helen, wants to lend a hand, it turns out to be a nightmare for Clary. Five years ago, Lady Helen had comforted him and she's been his angel ever since. Now he has to juggle his feelings with his professional duties to Marissa. Too bad, no one told Helen that Clary was off-limits, not only was he not titled, but he has a very dark and sordid past.

I really liked Helen. She had an independent spirit and she was determined to do something with her life besides attending balls and teas. When she volunteered to work at the latest acquired orphanage, her attraction to Clary blossomed even when he resisted her. Does the past really matter when the heart is involved?

There were some dark issues discussed in this book, but Ms. Evans does a good job of not bogging down the story too much with the dreadful conditions of orphaned children. I also enjoyed that fact that Helen was the one pursuing the relationship. It was a nice twist in the story. While this story didn't totally wow me, it did keep my interest until the end. Fans of Regency romances will definitely enjoy this book.

FINAL DECISION: An enjoyable cross-class romance with a hero with a dark past and a heroine who is determined to have him. I especially enjoyed seeing the characters from the series five years later.

THE STORY: Lady Helen Hawkestone has decided to stop searching for a man to marry at balls and soirees. She realizes that every person she knows who married for love found their spouse in an unconventional fashion and also she has been intrigued by her sister's employee Clary Homeward. Clary, however, is no gentleman and no match for the innocent and aristocratic Helen. When the two work together on her sister's new orphanage project, Clary and Helen face danger from those engaged in the seedy underbelly of child trafficking and also the attraction between them that society would be scandalized by.

OPINION: I enjoyed this entry in the series. While there is a storyline involving the orphanage, the real focus in this book is on Helen and Clary and their romance. I liked how the two interacted and how Helen becomes stronger throughout the book.

Clary is a man who has overcome a horrible past and this book forces further growth in his character. He must overcome his shame in his past. I did think that his past was glossed over a bit. While it was important to the story, we don't really delve into his past. It is difficult to believe that Helen would be so blase once she found out because she truly doesn't have the experience to understand the exploitation. I did like seeing how Clary and his brother have reinvented their lives and it was nice seeing a happy ending for them.

Helen is also a character that grows through the book. She falls for Clary and begins to see the world as more complicated and more dark than she imagined. While this progression would not work for a typical aristocratic woman, her own sister's life and her sister-in-law's determination to not hide the darker parts of the world from her. Helen is no fool and she begins to recognize that her relationship with Clary will be complicated and perhaps make her a pariah, but she is willing to do everything for love.

I liked the complexity that Helen and Clary's relationship brings to the characters from the series. This is a complicated situation and I liked that the story reflected that complication.

This was an enjoyable read especially for those who have followed the series because it provides a nice wrap up along with giving some characters a well-deserved happy ending.

WORTH MENTIONING: This book left me feeling good about the entire series because the five years later update shows how happy everyone is.

CONNECTED BOOKS: A DREAM OF REDEMPTION is the eighth book in the Disgraced Lords series. This book can be read as a standalone, but the book might be more enjoyable if one reads A WHISPER OF DESIRE first because it introduces all the relevant characters.

STAR RATING: I give this book 4 stars.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in order to prepare a review. I was not required to write a review or to write a positive review. All opinions contained herein are my own.

Review to be posted on February 20th

I really enjoyed Helen and Clary's story.

Learning of Clary's story (although hinted at earlier in the series), just broke my heart. That a child would have to go through all of that just to survive. His experiences make him into the man that he is, but it also make him think that he is not good enough for a woman like Helen.

Helen had lived the typical ton life and had not been exposed to the seedier side of London. When she talks her sister into letting her help Clary with the orphanage, she is exposed to a side of life she never imagined. But having now been exposed to it, she wants to do all she can to help.

As the pair spend more and more time together, they get involved in more ways than helping out the orphans. Can they overcome the stigma of coming from two different classes to find their HEA?

This is intense, heartbreaking, engrossing, romantic and sweet. Clary is strong, honorable, dedicated, broken and insecure. Helen is headstrong, naive, caring, brave and stubborn. Clary has always thought of Helen as an angel, a person who has a heart of gold. Helen has always been attracted to and intrigued by Clary. Working together pushes their awareness of each other beyond what it should be. Clary doesn't think he's entitled to the love of a decent woman and Helen thinks fate has brought them together. Their love story is beautiful and sweet, but what they deal with is ugly. There are some happy surprises and the ending is not one I would have guessed at. I loved it.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley. This is my honest and voluntary opinion of it.

Lady Helen is of the nobility. She has decided her life is rather empty and she volunteers to help her sister, the Duchess. Marissa owns orphanages and helps children learn skills that will lift them out of poverty. Marissa is very devoted to doing her work to help children.

Helen also wants to work with Marissa's secretary, Clarence Homeward. He is very handsome but very reserved around Helen.

Helen is from a privileged background and she has led a very sheltered life. She does not have a true picture of what happens in the world. She is beautiful, intelligent and very kind hearted. She is determined to become a woman who does good in the world. But, she really does not know what she is facing.

Clarence (Clary) is from a completely different level in the world. He works very hard to help the orphans receive education, training and a safe place to live. It is his entire life.

He was used as a child prostitute. He is a product of human trafficking. Marissa has helped Clary and his brother escape their terrible life. Now, although he is hopelessly in love with Helen, an angel, he does not believe he is worthy of her in any way.

This is part of a series, but it does work as a stand alone read. All the information needed to follow the story is provided to the reader. It is easy to get to know the characters and understand the plot.

Ms Evans has created two characters that are compelling. Helen is on a journey of discovery about life. Clary wants to do the very best he can in his work for the Duchess.

The secondary characters, even the villains, add a great deal of depth to this story. They help the reader understand the depth of depravity. The reader also gets a picture of the great need for places like good orphanages and people like the Duchess, Helen and Clary to help create new lives for these children.

This is a well constructed book. It is not a light and frothy story. There is a great deal of darkness which illustrates the British class system as well as what poverty did to the average person in 19th century London.

I received this book from the publisher through NetGalley. I am voluntarily writing this review and all opinions are my own.

A Dream of Redemption (The Disgraced Lords, #8) by Bronwen Evans.... This book in the Disgraced Lords series deals with some dark issues that continue in modern times... I was lucky to preview this book through #NetGalley. This is a forbidden love between Helen..a beautiful "blue stocking" and Clary a man who has pulled himself and his brother from the hell of London streets to a better life. This book has all the feels ...some are eye openers... there is a HEA and Bronwen gets you there.

I have been a fan of Bronwen Evans fora a while now, I think from the beginning of this series and I will continue to be a fan. This was the 8th in this series, and even though it is a series can be read as a standalone you will not be lost. This has some pretty sad moments, like reading about Clary and what he went thru. Clary ends up working with Helene at an orphanage and their working together became more than just helping out the orphanage, their are of different status, she is a noble, he is a lowly person but that does not stop the love train..Can't give you more my friends you need to read. And as always Enjoy!!!

As with all the Disgraced Lords series, this book is another beautiful tale of honorable men and the strong women who love them. While like the other books in the series, this is an emotional romance with a strong danger element, but this one also has much darker subject matter. This is not a light hearted romance but it is a beautiful story with some powerful messages.
Clary Homeward is not your average romance hero but I think he is one of the most admirable heroes I’ve read in a long time. Life had hurt him so many times, he held himself off from people. Everyone in his life had deceived and abused him. After the horrid things he’d done to survive, he was left with so much guilt and shame. Helen Hawkstone was like an angel to him. She was everything good and perfect in the world.
Helen was taken with Clary from the moment she saw him. He was the most beautiful man she’d ever seen. But more than that, his devotion to the orphaned children touched her. She sensed a sadness to him though. He seemed so contained. His apparent dismissal of her intrigued her and Helen was determined to know more about Clary Homeward.
I fell in love with Clary and Helen. They came from such different worlds but they were drawn to one another. They opened each others eyes to the world around them. Through her work with Clary, Helen discovered how little she’d seen of the world outside of her secure little bubble. She saw many of the horrors of the world and felt compelled to make a change. The ugliness of the world was all Clary had ever known but Helen brought hope to his life. He saw goodness and optimism in her. “From his life of darkness and sin, she was the glowing light of goodness.” He carried such guilt and shame from his past but Helen helped him to look to the future and see the wonderful man he had become. This story was a fabulous combination of romance and danger with some heartbreaking moments and powerful messages about making a change in the world.

This was easy to read and kept my interest. For such dark themes, the author had a light hand, and it didn’t feel bogged down with the weight of the despicable villains. I also appreciated how much honest and open talk there was between many of the characters.

Helen, the heroine, is a beautiful bluestocking, and she was once described as a ton diamond, who doesn’t like balls and ton events. Clarence is a secretary for Helen’s sister, who helps manage orphanages for Her Grace. He has a very sordid youth that he is ashamed of and considers himself damaged goods. Helen volunteers to check out a recently purchased orphanage in her sister’s stead, and this is what puts the h&h in close proximity to build on their hidden crushes to each other. What they discovered at the new orphanage is a deplorable situation as part of child trafficking scheme.

Overall, while a surprisingly easy read, it doesn’t stand out for me. There seemed to be some incongruity in descriptions, and I felt there were a few times when an idea or plot point presented itself without further exploration. There was also quite a bit of conflict included, and much of it was too easily remedied. This story worked OK as a standalone, but it probably would have been best to read Marisa and Maitland’s story first. I would consider reading more from this author.

*I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

From the moment Lady Helen Hawkestone sets eyes on Clary Homeward, she feels a connection. He is a good man, both caring and considerate. Helen intends to marry for love and Clary fits the mold perfectly. However, she is sure to have a challenge on her hands since there is such a difference in their stations.

Clary has come a long way to get where he is today, and he cannot allow it all to be taken away. He has his younger brother to think about as well as himself. It is clear Helen cares for him, but Clary tries to deny the attraction. Clary works for Helen's sister overseeing some of the city's orphanages. When Helen steps into her sister's place to help Clary, he is not exactly thrilled. Even less so when they discover the orphanage's missing children are being sold or abused by the prior caretaker. Clary wants Helen to have no part in it, but she continues to help. Spending so much time around her, Clary cannot help but fall for Helen, Is she right in believing there could be more for them? Can he take that risk?

Reviewed via NetGalley. Author Bronwen Evans DISGRACED LORDS series is one of my favorites. Each story holds it's own and has carved a place in my heart and on my keeper shelf. It currently consists of eight novels. The most recent addition, A DREAM OF REDEMPTION, is the best book in the series! I have held a place for Clary in my heart since meeting him in A WHISPER OF DESIRE, Helen's sister Marisa's story. Clary is beaten, but not broken. His past is a lot to overcome and he still suffers from it, which is plain to see in his everyday life. I loved Clary's strength and compassion from the beginning. He would do anything to protect the ones he loves and does. I am so glad he finally gets his own HEA. He so deserved it. Helen is the healing balm to his scarred soul. Sweet and innocent, but strong and steady when she needs to be. A DREAM OF REDEMPTION is a beautiful heart-touching read!

A Dream Of Redemption by Bronwen Evans is a drama-filled historical romance. Ms. Evans has delivered another well-written book. The characters are phenomenal. Lady Helen is a member of the ton. Clary grew up in a male/male brothel. Helen and Clary's story is packed with drama, suspense, action, humor and sizzle. I enjoyed reading every page of A Dream Of Redemption and look forward to reading more from Bronwen Evans in the future. A Dream Of Redemption is book 8 of The Disgraced Lords Series but can be read as a standalone. This is a complete book, not a cliff-hanger.

I voluntarily read an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

This is a lovely historical romance about two people from two very different backgrounds brought together by fate and other people. Lady Helen is the sister of an Earl and sister in law of a Duke. Clary is the personal secretary to Lady Helen’s sister, a duchess.
One might think it’s going to be a simple romantic trope about wanting someone unattainable, from another class in a time and place when people would have found such choices unacceptable, and that is part of this tale, but only part.
Clary has a dark past which he has risen above, with the help of others. Even with his rise into a respectable position in society,he still harbors fear that his past could become public knowledge and harm those about whom he cares. He is forced to work closely with Lady Helen on a project that has risks, and he feels he must protect her, not only from the inherent dangers of their work, but also from his desire for her.
Lady Helen is not the usual vapid, self absorbed debutante. She cares little for social events, gossip, and balls, but does care deeply for her family, and for Clary.
As the plot becomes filled with action and intrigue, can the two protect each other not only from the dangers around them but from what they face should they succumb to their feelings for each other?
This is a great story, and it is a definite page turner. The plot was fast paced, it resonates with present times, and the heat between the two main characters captivating. The additional characters were well written, especially Marissa and Simon, and the HEA well done.
I highly recommend this book to romance readers who like some excitement with their romance.

Growing Up. Learning our past does not determine our future. Redemption. An emotional story of two people who are very different in society but who know what it is like to be pulled down emotionally. This heart-rendering tale is not a light read and brings to light the plight of orphans and the people who should care for them. Seeing how the situation changes the lives of the hero and heroine and their journey to happiness is worth the read. It was great to see some of the Libertine Scholars. The Disgraced Lords is a fantastic series that makes you think and care.

I’m not sure how I feel about this book, it’s well written and has an interesting theme, the rescue of orphans from barbarous orphanages. The h is the sister of a Duke, and is attracted to the young man who works as her friends/sisters? (I can’t remember) secretary in management of her charity, purchasing and improving orphanages. I can believe that far, and even to the acquisition of the latest orpanage. I can believe their mutual attraction, but the rest became less believable. Most unbelievable is the affair that ensued. The sexual encounters were not of a nature one would expect from a virtuous English unmarried Lady. When that happens I begin to skip over said passages. And it’s obvious the passages are merely to insert sexual scenarios. I’ve read this entire series and the sexual content escalates with each book, and has really become overwhelming. If you prefer such a book, it’s a good story for you.