WICKED INTENTIONS by Elizabeth Hoyt
Series: Maiden Lane, #1
Publication Date: August 1st 2010 by Grand Central Publishing
Summary: A MAN CONTROLLED BY HIS DESIRES . . .
Infamous for his wild, sensual needs, Lazarus Huntington, Lord Caire, is searching for a savage killer in St. Giles, London’s most notorious slum. Widowed Temperance Dews knows St. Giles like the back of her hand-she’s spent a lifetime caring for its inhabitants at the foundling home her family established. Now that home is at risk . . .
A WOMAN HAUNTED BY HER PAST . . .
Caire makes a simple offer-in return for Temperance’s help navigating the perilous alleys of St. Giles, he will introduce her to London’s high society so that she can find a benefactor for the home. But Temperance may not be the innocent she seems, and what begins as cold calculation soon falls prey to a passion that neither can control-one that may well destroy them both.
A BARGAIN NEITHER COULD REFUSE
Heroine: I really quite liked Temperance’s character in WICKED INTENTIONS by Elizabeth Hoyt because she represents more than just a heroine. She represents the group of women out there who are just suppressing their sexuality. In WICKED INTENTIONS, Temperance comes to realize, Hey, there’s nothing wrong with being a sexual creature! Well, okay, this is the 19th century and people will probably argue with that, but from a modern perspective, I thought this was fantastic. Temperance portrayed the message that it’s alright to feel sexy and it’s part of being a woman. Go, Temperance!
Hero: Huh. One thing I found weird about Lazarus Huntington, A.K.A. Lord Caire is his *thing* about people touching him. So he feels pain when people touch his bare skin. What? Is this some medical condition I have never heard of? Or is he just psychologically wired to think that it is painful when people touch him? I’m sorry. I totally understand his trust issues when it comes to people loving him. Yeah, he has abandonment issues (typical hero weakness). But I really could not wrap my head around the fact that it hurts when people touch him. Um, okay.
Supporting Cast: I liked the role that Lady Caire, Lazarus’s mother, played in WICKED INTENTIONS and I wished we could have seen a little bit more of her. I would have loved to seen a little bit more interaction between Lady Caire and Temperance. Furthermore, I can’t wait to read about Winter! He is so far the most interesting of the Dews and I look forward to reading his book. I really like how dedicated and passionate he is about the orphanage and it will be interesting to see how he will handle a bit of romance.
Plot: I didn’t find the plot of WICKED INTENTIONS to be all that interesting. Temperance Dews needs to find a patron. Lord Caire needs to solve a mystery – except that he doesn’t really care about the person who was murdered. I think the most interesting part of WICKED INTENTIONS by Elizabeth Hoyt is trying to piece together who on earth the Ghost of St. Giles is. Based on what I already know from the second book, Notorious Pleasures, I can basically sum up that I know nothing more than I originally did. This is one recurring plot line that I will eagerly keep my eyes out for in the future books.
Romance: The romance, chemistry, sexy parts all lived up to my Elizabeth Hoyt standards – meaning that it was perfect. But one thing I was not prepared for was the bondage. I guess this just isn’t something that makes an appearance in the regency novels that I read, so I was just a little bit surprised. So if you’re picking this one up, be warned.
Love Potion Strength:
– Acceptable
Unfortunately, I did not enjoy WICKED INTENTIONS as much as I enjoyed the second book of the series, Notorious Pleasures. However, I’m glad I read the book for it gave me a lot of background knowledge regarding the characters that I previously missed out on. I still hope to read the rest of the Maiden Lane series and more of Elizabeth Hoyt’s writing.
I haven’t picked up any other of her books besides Notorious Pleasures, so I’m still on the fence about whether to try this one. I feel that Temperance’ll be fun to read about, but I like my historical romances to have substance to their plot. Hmm… we’ll see. Thanks for the review, Cialina!