The heroine Garrett Gibson jumped off the page for me. I've been looking forward to her story since she first appeared in Marrying Winterbourne. I love the idea of a brilliant woman being able to have it all: career and love. She wasn't a traditional romance heroine, and she saved the hero a couple of times. The scene where she stands on a street corner, blowing her whistle in hopes that her champion will show up was heart breaking.

Ethan Ransom was also an interesting character: being a bastard son who had a host of talents that he acquired through believable means (like apprenticing as a locksmith instead of just being naturally brilliant which is such a stale trait among romance heroes). His reluctance to acknowledge his heritage felt genuine. I didn't have many problems with him.

I guess I was most disappointed by the stakes of the plot. If both policing agencies are corrupt, then both Dr. Gibson and Ethan should've been in a lot more danger than they seemed to be. As it was, I didn’t really feel the danger. Couple that with an anticlimactic confrontation between the pair and the arch villain, and this case fell a little flat. While I know, because it’s a romance, that the couple will survive this and live happily ever after, I want the illusion of that vision in jeopardy. Here, I never really felt that. There was some tension out at Eversby Priory where Ethan and Garrett hid and the thugs found them, but that was it.

The other drawback to this book was that, for the first time, Kleypas’s style of description was distracting. There were large paragraphs thrown into the book to give historical detail but none of it added any value to the story. It seriously pulled me out of the story, even though I LOVE historical details! This was just too much, and it slowed down the story.

Despite this drawback, this is still a worthwhile read for anyone who loves historical romances with a hint of danger and a truly unconventional heroine. This book is a lot of fun and full of poignant moments.
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Garrett was a wonderfully well-rounded heroine. She was determined and strong while still being open to lust and love. I do love a bit of a tortured hero but not so tortured that he mistreats the heroine. I would let Ethan follow me home any night of the week! Definitely worth a re-read. I will have to go back and read the other Ravenel stories. I love Lisa Kleypas. ( )

Cute, but Devil in Winter still tops my Lisa Kleypas list. ( )

Per me la Kleypas è la garanzia di leggere sempre storie avvincenti e ben scritte e anche questa volta non si smentisce con questa serie che mi è piaciuta tantissimo, dalla prima riga del primo libro fino all’ultima dell’ultimo.
Protagonisti Garrett Gibson l’unica donna medico dell’Inghilterra ed Ethan Ransom un ex detective di Scotlnad Yard dal passato misterioso e … imprevedibile. Una bellissima coppia ben assortita e un susseguirsi di avvenimenti con quel pizzico di suspense che rende il tutto ancor più accattivante.
Bellissimo e imperdibile.
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So far of the series, this has been my least favourite. I’m not keen on thriller type romances so with the main character being a spy I knew this wouldn’t be my cup of tea. It’s still a decent read though. ( )