June 25, 2012
Lady Alexandra Morley is in financial trouble, and tall, broad-shouldered, notoriously brilliant Phineas “Finn” Burke is the only one who can help. Her fortune is tied up in a machine works, and she hopes the famous scientist will give her information she can pass along to the failing company. Finn is wary of the dazzling widow’s reputation for recklessness and seduction, while Alexandra’s previous marriage taught her to protect her independence. In the remote countryside of 1890 Tuscany, Finn and Alexandra explore their mutual attraction as they work together on Finn’s automobile invention. Their love affair unfolds against the backdrop of early automobile history, as enthusiasts all over Europe prepare for a race to show off their horseless carriages. Alexandra and Finn’s friends provide an entertaining diversion (and setup for a sequel) as the main romance develops.
Starred review from August 1, 2012
Concerned with his old friends' dissolute lifestyle and wanting to be in Rome for an upcoming horseless carriage exhibition and race, inventor Phineas (Finn) Burke coerces them into going with him to Italy for a year of study and healthier living at a remote Tuscan castle. Unfortunately for Finn, the attractive, maddening Lady Alexandra Morley and her two companions have leased the very same castle. His idyllic vision goes up in smoke as six lives collide spectacularly with passionate sparks, lively banter, and flashes of humor. A heroine in need of funds and a hero determined to validate his invention are pitted against each other in a gently magical story--complete with cursed castle and mysterious inhabitants--that beautifully sets the stage for the next adventure in the series. VERDICT The charming plot, enlightening historical detail, breathtaking sensuality, and unusual 1890s Tuscan setting take a backseat to the exquisite characterizations, clever dialog, and addictive prose that make this exceptional debut stand apart. Fans will be anxious for the rest of the trilogy (A Gentleman Never Tells, Nov. 2012; A Duke Never Yields, Feb. 2013). Gray lives in the Northeast.
Copyright 2012 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
Starred review from August 1, 2012
The world might believe that Lady Alexandra Morley is a wealthy widow, but all she actually has to her name is her late husband's title and some 20,000 shares of worthless stock in the Manchester Machine Company. Alexandra might have successfully convinced cousin Lilibet Somerton and her friend Abigail Harewood that a yearlong intellectual sabbatical in Italy is exactly what the ladies need, but the reality is Alexandra needs a placepreferably a very inexpensive onewhere she can plot her return to British society. The Castel Sant'Agata seems the perfect place for the ladies. Until Alexandra discovers that scientist Phineas Finn Burke, his friend Lord Wallingford, and his brother Lord Penhallow, have taken out a year's lease on the very same Tuscan castle for their own year of scholarly seclusion. Buoyed by an abundance of deliciously tart wit, spiced with a generous amount of incendiary sexual chemistry, gifted with a setting right out of Enchanted April, and graced with a cast of captivating characters, Gray's impeccably crafted debut romance (which gracefully tips its literary cap to Shakespeare) is a complete triumph.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)