29 July 2011

The Year of Living Scandalously. (Short Review.)

Author: Julia London.
Genre: Historical-Romance.
Source: Nook Book.
Rating: 3 out of 5.
Book one in The Secrets of Hadley Green.

Synopsis from Goodreads.com:
In 1792, the village of Hadley Green executed a man for stealing the Countess of Ashwood’s historic jewels. Fifteen years later, questions still linger. Was it a crime of greed—or of passion?
When Declan O’Connor, Earl of Donnelly, arrives at Hadley Green to meet with Lily Boudine, the new countess of Ashwood, he knows instantly that the lovely woman who welcomes him is not who she pretends to be. In an attempt to avoid an unwanted marriage, Keira Hannigan has assumed her cousin’s identity and is staying at the estate while Lily is abroad. When Declan threatens to expose her, Keira convinces him to guard her secret, then enlists him in her investigation of the missing jewels, for she now believes an innocent man was hanged.
Unable to deny the beautiful, exasperating Keira—or their simmering passion—Declan reluctantly agrees. But neither is prepared for the dangerous stranger who threatens to reveal Keira’s lies . . . and Declan knows he must protect Keira at all costs, for she is the woman who now owns his heart.

My Review:
Normally, I rave about Julia London, but this one, it just didn't really do anything for me. But that doesn't mean that I didn't see the potential for the characters and plot for the next book in this series. This one felt mostly like a "leading up to..." book. And well, honestly, I wasn't all that excited about the hero and heroine (Declan and Keira). It just felt like something was missing. I can't quite put my finger on what though, but I'm leaning towards not enough of a connection between them in the first place. Looking past all of that for a moment, this was a little funny and of course a little charming, otherwise I definitely would have put this down. (Yes, even so it being a Julia London novel. lol.)
I would actually like to see more go on between Declan and Keira, see their relationship grow more, especially since at least half of Keira's problems have gone away, at least for the time being. I also cannot wait to see what happens with Lily. Once she returned, at the end there was a very shocking surprise, and, I want to know as well as all of the characters in the story: what happened all those years ago and find out where those jewels went!
I haven't really much else to say, so I think I will just cut this one short, and hope for the better in book two. (Due out in Feb. 2012, ugh!)

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