Malster Park, England

The Marchioness of Falsead has invited all of the friends to a house party at the family home, Malster Park. Her son, Justin Reeve Netherwood, Earl of Kempthorn, or Thorn as he is known by his family, is taking in all of the activities around him.

Thorn’s identical twin brother, Gideon, for whom the party is being held, seems to be missing so his mother asks Thorn to find him and get him back to the guests. We discovers him in a small sailboard with Miss Olivia Lydall, age 19, daughter of Lord Dewick who owns land that borders on Malster Park. Thorn, Gideon, and Olivia all played together as children. As Gideon and Olivia are returning to shore, the boat capsizes and all three of them get wet as Thorn has to rescue Olivia.

Olivia’s father, Lord Dewick, is preparing to marry Lady Grisdale, a 35-year-old widow. The woman has inserted herself in Olivia’s life helping to guide her to find a husband when, in truth, she just wants Olivia out of the house. Olivia is angry at the woman’s interference.

Thorn is a rather staid and strict man who has at times found fault with Olivia which angers her. Even though Gideon is the one who appears to be courting her, she can’t help but be drawn to Thorn.

I became quite confused at times trying to figure out who all the characters were and their background. Unfortunately, this is one of those books that needs a warning on the front telling readers that they must read the earlier books in the series or they will be totally lost as I was. I honestly did not enjoy this story at all.

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

Thanks St. Martin's Press and netgalley for this ARC.

Screwball antics, heartfelt friendships, and a dose of much needed reality make a awesome historical romance. The journey to love for this couple will keep you on your toes til the end, but it's worth it.

Loved it! This was the first time I have read a book by Alexandra Hawkins and i can't wait to read more. I thoroughly enjoyed it and was captivated from the beginning to the end. This was entertaining and oh so hot! A full story with great details. The authors detailed descriptive narrative places the reader firmly in England during the regency era.

I really liked Thorn and Olivia so much, they were interesting characters. Their chemistry was delicious and provided many great scenes of intrigue, drama and angst. I loved how their interactions heated their desires as they refused to give in to their true feelings. Thorn's deceptions of acting like he was his twin was exciting and seductive. Loved the secondary characters as well.

An amazing well written storyline with excellent characters. The passionate and entertaining interludes between Thorn and Olivia is like no other. The twists and turns that the story takes makes it all the more captivating. Loved it!

I voluntarily agreed to read an ARC and post an honest review.

Miss Olivia Lyndall has lived next door to twins Justin Reeve Netherwood, Earl of Kempthorn and his brother Gideon all her life. Justin aka Thorn has always ignored her until now, he’s always considered Olivia nothing more than a nuisance to be ignored. Miss Olivia Lyndall has always found Justin aka Thorn to be too serious so she befriends his twin Gideon and ignored him. She has the reputation of being wild and reckless in her youth and when she needs advice for a romantic conflict and seeks out Gideon for advice. Thorn believes that Olivia has plans to trap Gideon into marriage, he fears his brother Gideon and Olivia and are getting to close and in an effort to steer Olivia away from Gideon, Thorn pretends to be his brother. The whole situation backfires when Thorn finds himself falling in love when he’s is drawn to Olivia’s spirit and passion. How does he get Olivia to love him, Thorn, and not the brother she thinks him to be. What a tangled mess a love built on lies and deceit.
I received an ARC copy from Net Galley in exchanged for my honest review and opinion

3.5 stars*****
I started off not liking this book very much at all -- mostly because I didn't like Thorne, the hero. However, as I read more and got to understand him a little better, I began to like the book more and more. I never did come to understand why he held himself so aloof from everyone. He came from a very loving home and his twin brother was a very caring, open young man, so I am only left to imagine what drove his being so distant from everyone. I can only assume that as the heir, he was treated differently by his parents, servants, friends, etc. and that made him feel different and that more was expected of him. Not sure, but it would have been nice to have at least a few hints about that in his past.

Another thing that bugged me about the book was that there really hadn't been any research done on forms of address. I am reading an advanced copy of the book, so I hope this will be corrected before it is actually released. An example -- Gideon (Thorne's brother) is constantly referred to as MISTER when he is the second son of a marquess and should be referred to as Lord Gideon. Another thing -- why would the families of a marquess and a duke travel into London for the season on a stagecoach? Wouldn't they have their own traveling coaches, their own drivers and travel on their own schedule? Another - another thing - why would no one care that Olivia was running all over the place, opening their townhouse, etc. and not be accompanied by a maid, etc.

I liked Olivia, the heroine, pretty well. She was intelligent and feisty and very caring. She even tried to like the witch who was intent on becoming her step-mother. I liked that Olivia didn't take any guff from the neighbor who had her sights set on marrying Thorne - even though he didn't even like her.

There is a bit of a twist there at the end that I found pretty wild. I'll not spoil things by telling you what it is, but it is hard to believe given the way the ton likes to gossip and mind each others business. I'm sure that they knew of the connection.

I did come to like the book, the hero, the heroine and the story as I got further into it. I know all of my whining at the beginning of this review sounds like I hated it, but I really didn't. It is just that those things really bugged me because if you are going to write for a time period, it should be accurate to that period.

One thing that would have really improved the book is the addition of an epilogue. The story just ends. It would be nice to have a visit with Olivia and Thorne in about a year and see that they actually did get married, are happy and are maybe expecting a child.

"I requested and received this book from the author/publisher at no cost to me and volunteered to read it; my review is my honest opinion and given without any influence by the author or publisher."

This was a very good read by one of my favorite authors. The story line was excellent with lots of thrilling romance. Ms Hawkins has done an exceptional regency characters with thoughts and feelings of their own.
I liked Justin and Gideon who were twins but have different personalities. Justin being the older and an Earl takes things a bit seriously plus he acts proper. Gideon is the more rakish man who loves to play and drink. They both when younger use to switch places to confuse people, but one woman could always tell them apart.
Olivia is sometimes wary of Justin who she can't stand and prefers Gideon who is her confidant still,
She seems like a confident person who tries Justin's patience at times. He can't help but want to see what makes her tick. So he acts like his brother and steels a kiss from her. Olivia trembles with unknown feelings of desire which has never happened before.
Justin and Olivia become closer in dealing with each other. Their love story is full of funny quips and longing which turns the tables on both of them. Who can imagine how opposites attract to a happy ever after.
This one is a winner for me because I love historical romance and look forward for more from this author.
I appreciate Net Galley for this ARC title in which I gave an honest review.