The Earl’s Forbidden Ward is the second book in Bronwyn Scott’s Ramsden Brothers series. In this one, we have the eldest Ramsden brother, Peyton, fourth Earl of Dursley, paired with Tessa, the daughter of the English ambassador to Russia who has just recently passed. Before becoming the earl, Peyton was a diplomat and sometimes spy for the crown. Lord Brimley, the man he worked for in the home office, calls him in one day, telling him of a secret list of Russian revolutionaries that Tessa’s father was purported to be compiling before he died. They think that Tessa may be in possession of it now, and that Russians loyal to the Czar may be coming after her. Since she and her sisters are now alone in the world and possibly in need of protection, and the home office needs a way to search her home without raising suspicions, Peyton’s former boss comes up with the scheme of creating a false codicil to her father’s will, naming Peyton as Tessa’s and her sisters’ guardian. With his Aunt Lily’s help, Peyton looks after all the girls, while giving Tessa her season and also looking for the purported documents that could help to avert a war. The more time they spend together, the closer they become, until Peyton starts to have real feelings for Tessa, and she feels the same. But with the Russians hot on the trail of the list, too, they both could be in danger. Not to mention, with Tessa being a mere diplomat’s daughter and not of aristocratic blood, she feels she might not be the right match for an earl, and if she learns the truth about Peyton’s deception, she might not forgive him for lying to her.

Tessa lost her mother nearly a decade earlier when she died shortly after the birth of Tessa’s youngest sister. As she grew up, Tessa became indispensable to her father, acting as his hostess at diplomatic functions, so she’s well versed on the politics of diplomacy. She has spent most of her life in Russia, so moving back to England with her sisters in tow after their father’s death has been a bit of a shock. She’s an independent-minded young woman, though, who is determined to finish raising her sisters in a way that would have made her parents proud. When Sergei, an old friend from Russia who had designs on marrying Tessa and who she once had a crush on, shows up in London with some other Russian diplomats, it’s like having a taste of the country she used to call home. Then, out of the blue, Peyton, a complete stranger shows up at her door, claiming that her father added a codicil to his will, naming him their guardian. Tessa is immediately suspicious, but when the paperwork seems to be in order, she feels she has no choice but to comply. Peyton and his aunt are insistent upon giving Tessa the season she never had. Although that was never a priority for her, she can’t deny that she enjoys attending the balls and parties on her handsome new guardian’s arm and soon they become lovers as well. After her house is ransacked, though, Tessa knows something isn’t right. Peyton eventually confesses about the list, so that they can search for it together, and also about the danger possibly posed by Sergei and his comrades. Tessa can scarcely believe her old friend could be so duplicitous, but her instincts tell her to trust Peyton. As they make inroads on their search, an attempt is made on Peyton’s life and he later disappears, leaving Tessa to save the day. I like that Tessa is a smart cookie who figures out a lot on her own. She’s pretty logical and not particularly reactionary, which was nice, too. I also enjoyed the twist ending where she comes to Peyton’s rescue, but instead of running headlong into danger like some romance heroines might, she does so in a smart way.

Peyton has never given his heart to anyone and instead has simply been playing the rake. When his old boss in the diplomatic corps asks for his help, he’s a bit reluctant to take on four wards, but feeling that his duty to country must come first, he agrees in hopes of finding the supposed list to avert a war. When he discovers how comely the eldest Branscombe daughter is, though, he thinks it might not be so bad after all, except that she turns out to be a bit of a firecracker. It’s not easy convincing her of the fake codicil, nor is the independent miss particularly amenable to the measures he puts in place to try to suss out the list and to keep her and her sisters safe. However, after her house is broken into and trashed, she starts to see reason, especially after he confesses a part of what’s going on. Along the way, Peyton starts to have real feelings for Tessa, and after they become lovers, he immediately offers marriage, even though she initially turns him down. Gradually the Russians’ plan unravels, but even after the danger has passed, Tessa doesn’t entirely feel worthy of marrying a peer and when she learns that Peyton deceived her all along, he definitely has some explaining to do. I liked Peyton and thought he was a good hero. He might not have been too keen on having wards, but he treats Tessa and her sisters very well, playing the big brother to the younger ones. He’s also a real gentleman for offering marriage and for doing his best to put Tessa’s concerns about wedding him to rest.

It’s been a number of years since I read the first Ramsden Brothers book, so I barely remembered it at all. However, it turned out to not be an issue. Peyton’s younger brother, Paine, and his wife, Julia, (Notorious Rake, Innocent Lady) appeared, but they don’t play big enough roles that I needed much of a recap. Peyton’s other brother, Crispin, plays a little larger role, and his is the last book of the series, Untamed Rogue, Scandalous Mistress. I finished The Earl’s Forbidden Ward with somewhat mixed feelings. The earlier parts of the book weren’t always holding my attention well. Not having a strong knowledge of Russian history, the political bits about Russia somewhat confused me, but luckily they were mostly covered in a few pages. I also felt like the setup for the story wasn’t as strong as it could have been, and that Peyton and Tessa’s characterizations could have gone a little deeper. Despite Tessa being a virgin, there is zero pain for her during their first love scene, which just wasn’t believable to me. Their relationship, at first, felt more lusty than loving to me, but I admit that the emotional connection did improve as the story continued. Once some more exciting things started to happen, I became more engaged as well. All those events led to a pretty well-done denouement that I enjoyed. So I’d say that the story started a bit weaker, more in the three-star range, but ended stronger, more in the four-star range, which is why I settled on 3.5 stars. Both Peyton and Tessa were good characters who didn’t rub me the wrong way. Although their story wasn’t perfect, it was very readable and not bad, so overall, this was a pretty good read. ( )

Tessa Branscombe knows how to navigate some foreign courts, her father having brought her to many during her life, the last one was Russia and there her father died. She's now in London and trying to deal with the complicated politics that is London, while someone is watching her. Now she has an unexpected guardian in Peyton Ramsden, Earl of Dursley, who has ulterior motives too.

The intrigue aspect was a bit weak, except where she helps him, but overall it was quite an enjoyable read. ( )