THREE WEEKS WITH LADY X by Eloisa James
Series: Desperate Duchesses by the Numbers, #1
Publication Date: March 25th 2014 by Avon
Summary: Having made a fortune, Thorn Dautry, the powerful bastard son of a duke, decides that he needs a wife. But to marry a lady, Thorn must acquire a gleaming, civilized façade, the specialty of Lady Xenobia India.
Exquisite, head-strong, and independent, India vows to make Thorn marriageable in just three weeks.
But neither Thorn nor India anticipate the forbidden passion that explodes between them.
Thorn will stop at nothing to make India his. Failure is not an option.
But there is only one thing that will make India his—the one thing Thorn can’t afford to lose…
His fierce and lawless heart.
Heroine: India is definitely a memorable heroine. For starters, she’s an interior designer, a very uncommon career path of the time. Left without a dowry after her parents’ untimely death, India established her career and made her own fortune. She’s a self-made woman, but she’s aware that she isn’t perfect and has a lot more to learn.
Hero: I really enjoyed This Duchess of Mine, a book from the Desperate Duchesses series that introduced us to Thorn (a.k.a. Juby/Tobias) as a child. Years later, he finally gets his own book and a shot at true love. Of course, like any other bastard in the romance genre, Thorn has his usual issues of undermining his own self-worth.
Supporting Cast: One of my favorite characters in the book is Rose, Thorn’s young ward. She is such a precocious six-year-old! I love that she is able to outwit adults more than twice her age.
Plot: India has three weeks to transform a house and turn the son of a duke marriageable. Thorn had bought the house to remodel in hopes to impress the family of Laetitia Rainsford, a beautiful young debut from a respectable family. To me, it just sounds like the makings of a slightly forbidden romance that I will whole-heartedly enjoy. The next three weeks involves lots of unresolved sexual tension between Thorn and India. My pages kept on turning…
Romance: Thorn and India had chemistry from the very beginning of the book, which is probably what made the book so enjoyable. Within their very first encounter, I was already rooting for their happily ever after.
Love Potion Strength:
– Exceeds Expectations
Three Weeks with Lady X is a great start to the spin-off of the Desperate Duchesses series. Eloisa James continues to write steamy romances with lots of banter and wit.
