This is Derek Knight’s story and it is a roller coaster ride. I like Derek he is one of those men that is driven to be better than others. He is honorable, loyal, and longing to find a woman to love him for whom he is. I think that his mother did him a great disservice by always telling him that he would have to be better than anyone else and earn more money than others if he ever wanted to marry. I am sure that he could have found anyone if that was what he truly wanted and they could have lived well on whatever profession Derek wanted to take up. Derek is a little bit of a daredevil and he loves horses so I guess it is no surprise that he became a cavalry officer in India. India is where so many Englishman made their fortunes. I also like that Derek is conservative with his spending. He is responsible and levelheaded about finances which were rare for the upper class during this time. Derek is a very caring and compassionate person. It shows in the way he deals with Matthew, his nephew by marriage. It was interesting to which Derek work out the problem of the missing money for the Army’s funding. Ms. Foley also did a good job of keeping the reader guessing about who the real bad guy was.

Lily Balfour is a different kind of heroine. She isn't the virginal miss that so many stories are written about. She has been betrayed and ruined by an unscrupulous man, a married man at that. She was still just a child and I would love to take her mother out and read her the riot act for the way she treated Lily over the incident. In fact Lily’s mother is one of the women that is miserable with her lot in life and is determined to make everyone else miserable as well. I didn't like Lily’s mother in the least. Back to Lily though, it was enjoyable watching the change Lily goes through with Derek. She becomes and confident and loving young woman as they grow closer and closer. She takes chances she probably never contemplated before. Her breaking into Edward’s, her suitor at the beginning of the story, house trying to find proof of what Derek has told her is quite brave, a little stupid but brave none the less. She also shows her ingenuity when she escapes her prison in Edward’s house, fools the guard dog set to watch and then saves Derek from a burning stable. I had to cheer when she finally stood up to her mother and told her off. I like Lily a great deal.

This is a wonderful story of two people wanting to find love and thinking that they never will. Neither is prepared for the attraction they have for each other and the stumble along trying to find their footing. There are funny parts of this story and there are sad parts. Both of these people have been through a great deal. They are both emotionally wounded. It was nice seeing Derek being so patient with Lily when she gets upset. It was great to see Lily understand Derek enough to be able to read his emotions and needs instead of flying off the handle when he bumbles along at times. This is a great read and a great example of the historical romance genre. ( )

When her grandfather dies and Lily Balfour hears gossip at how far her family has fallen, she begins to despair. She, her mother, her aunt, and her slightly strange cousin Pamela live in a dilapidated Tudor mansion, poor as dirt since her father died in India when she was a little girl. Some say the Balfour clan is cursed. Lily throws off that idea and decides to head to London to find a rich husband before it’s too late. In London she comes across Major Derek Knight, a war veteran from India waiting for money from his men and taking the opportunity to seduce as many women as possible while he’s there. Lily has already found a willing mate, a rich but slightly stupid man willing to infuse his low class status with Lily’s blue blood. She is irresistably attracted to Derek but must put him out of her mind for the sake of her family, at least until Derek suspects her husband-to-be of corruption. Exposing that plot will put both of them in danger of losing their lives and perhaps their hearts as well.

Oh, Gaelen Foley. I loved your books so much when I was young. Where has the spark gone, I ask? It must be true that The Spice Trilogy, of which this is the second book, is not up to your usual standards, because while I enjoyed this book, it was lacking the magic. The magic that makes me fall in love with your characters and want to read your books again and again.

I’m not sure where this went wrong. I certainly felt the sparks between the main characters and I did think they comported themselves well in their budding relationship. I loved that Lily’s cousin Pamela wrote novels and that her mother disapproved; I loved the idea of the collapsing Tudor mansion. I think my problem with this novel was the two main characters. Even though Lily is poor, she is still a fairly typical romance novel heroine. Gorgeous, submissive, the usual. She has a secret, but it’s not original or interesting, and doesn’t matter at all when she confesses it to the hero. Derek is big, manly, obsessed with war, the usual. He’s the reformed rake and while I love reformed rake stories, this one wasn’t working for me, possibly because despite the gorgeous women on his arm and in his bed, he never changes much. Their love story didn’t sweep me away.

As I said, this one’s lacking the magic. I loved Gaelen Foley because her romances always seemed a little darker than normal. One of the earlier ones had a rape scene, one featured a female bandit, and so on. This one is just a little ordinary. I think its only redeeming feature is the fact that Lily’s betrothed isn’t actually a bad man, just a desperate one. He was fairly interesting, but not enough to save this one from the “average” shelf. I enjoyed it, but it’s not converting anyone to the genre.

For a truly charming story of poor girl needs to marry rich man, go with How to Marry a Marquis by Julia Quinn. ( )

The second story in the ongoing series about the Knight Clan, this is the story of Lily Balfour and her relationship with Derek Knight. Derek is using his fame and looks to cut a swathe through the ladies of London, but his fun is interruped by a meeting with Lily, he's very attracted. She's attracted too but she has a problem, her family home, crumbling and decrepid it needs an injection of cash. While Derek is attractive, as a second son he couldn't have the money to sustain it.

It's a fun read, the two characters are fun and witty and interesting and I enjoyed the story about them. Occasionally the story shows strains around the edges but overall it's a good read. Recommended. ( )