Got halfway through and couldn't take the hero's gaslighting of the heroine anymore. Ugh. ( )

A so-so start to a new series by best seller Foley. I think I liked the idea of this book better than the actual book. The characters just didn't work for me and there was too much of an info dump giving the history of the group. It just didn't work for me as much as the third book in the series did (although I will probably read the rest of the series since again, it's a good idea). ( )

aphne just wants to raise funds for her orphanage, visit her friends, and go to the occasional ball. She's not particularly interested in getting married, especially not to a self centered rake who proposes just because they would look so good together! And certainly not to please her harpy of a stepmother who just wants her to move out.

Max Rotherstone was sold to the Order as a boy to pay off his father's gambling debts and insure a dowery for his younger sister. He hated his father for it, but feels that as the new Marquess, it's his duty to restore the family's good name. And he'd really like to have a family, he's even had his solicitor investigating potential brides! While he doesn't like the idea of having to lie to his wife, and hates that he will one day have to send his sons to train with the Order, Max's job as a member of the Order of St. Michael must remain secret. The order of St. Michael was established to fight the Promethians, a group who seeks to unite the world under one power - their power. (Yes, it's very dramatic, go ahead and snicker).

Daphne first sees Max under less than ideal circumstances and she doesn't wish to marry him when he proposes. She hates that her father has agreed to the marriage without consulting her. There are several little tirades along this line, and it really makes her seem selfish. Her father lost a lot of money in the market collapse, and it costs a lot of money to keep Daphne in the latest fashions. Her stepmother is high strung, but to be fair, she was a navy captain's widow who is not entirely comfortable with her new social position and remembers what it was like to be so poor they couldn't afford food. She is terrified of that happening again.

Daphne really does like Max, there's just something off about him, but she does marry him. Poor Max, if he wanted to keep his secret, he shouldn't have married such a smart woman.

Ok, yes, there is a lot to laugh about with the secret societies and what not (there was even an "Oh, Max"/"Oh, Daphne" exchange) but I enjoyed this book. Foley's writing style and her characters had me hooked. The banter between Daphne and Max was great, and I really felt for Max. He truly felt abandoned by his family, sold off, and he wanted to ensure that this would never happen to his children. Daphne's anger at her father was very historically inaccurate, but I guess that's beside the point. The explanations about the Promethians and the Order got a bit long winded, but the idea is pretty cool. The sub-plots have me invested in the outcomes for their friends and the fellow-spy-thought-dead-but-actually-tortured-to-amnesia Drake.

Verdict:
Corny as it may seem, this was an entertaining read and I actually bought the sequel, My Dangerous Duke, right after finishing My Wicked Marquess. It's everything a romance novel is supposed to be - fun, adventurous, and lurv. ( )

The characters were very intriguing at the beginning of the novel but the plot was uneven and their development was lacking. The heroine decides to marry the hero much too quickly, especially given all the reservations she expressed not more than a chapter earlier. Much of the plot had this type of uneven timing. Additionally, a large portion of the book was spent setting up the series. It felt like we had chapters that didn't feature the hero or heroine in order to set up the next few books. I'm getting more and more frustrated with authors who "dump" the entire series content in the first book, hurting the pacing and the enjoyment of future books if you start with one later in the series.

Overall a decent read but a lot of plot and character holes that frustrated me. I'm glad I picked this up on PaperbackSwap instead of buying it, I'll probably do the same with the next one (and hope for a better outcome). ( )

In this we meet The Marques of Rotherstone, a man with a reputation and secrets and Daphne Starling, a woman starting to build a reputation (which is mostly not her fault). Two secret societies vying for power and freedom and a lot of glances across a crowded room.

It's a fun read, I enjoyed it but there's nothing exceptional here. The characters are married by half-way through the book and have to resolve some issues before they can be truly happy. ( )