Great action, an intriguing plot and sizzling chemistry between the hero and heroine make this a fabulous installment in the series.
Be sure and come back on December 8th when Joanna is my guest, answering all my questions!
Set in London 1819, this is the story of Séverine de Cabrillac, orphan of the French revolution and sometime spy, who devotes herself to investigating crimes in London and finding justice for those wrongly accused. She is the adopted daughter of William Doyle (from The Forbidden Rose) and sister to Justine who married Hawker (in Black Hawk).
Raoul Deverney is a half-Spaniard French aristocrat who climbs up to Sevie’s bedchamber one night to accuse her of kidnapping a young girl, a girl she knows nothing about. Later, he demands she help him find his wife’s killer and rescue his missing twelve-year-old daughter, Pilar, who he claims is his daughter only in name.
I love Bourne’s stories, every one of them, and this is no different. Like an intricately woven tapestry with small threads carefully drawn together, she brings to life London’s underbelly and the spies who work for the British Service. Now there’s a thief to add to the mix, Raoul, who only steals to gain back his family’s jewels. It’s not surprising he is attracted to the beautiful, smart and wily Sevie, who he remembers from Spain where she spied on the French. And given his many talents, they seem a perfect match.
Despite her lack of trust, she cannot fight the attraction between them and so her common sense takes a walk. Bourne adroitly develops their mutual attraction and, in the midst of it all, someone is trying to kill Sevie as she searches for Pilar. From the beginning, the reader is made aware that Pilar, disguised as a boy named “Peter”, is working for Sevie who has no knowledge the one she seeks is so close.
Secondary characters include those from earlier stories in the series (including Lazarus who knows Raoul, and Doyle and Hawker. It was wonderful to see them again. Great job Joanna!
The Spymaster series:
My Lord and Spymaster (London 1811) - 2008
The Spymaster’s Lady (France and England 1802) - 2010
The Forbidden Rose (France 1794) - 2010
The Black Hawk (Paris, beginning in 1794 (seen in flashbacks), and London 1818) – 2011
Gideon and the Den of Thieves, London 1793 (novella)
Rogue Spy (England, 1802)
Beauty Like the Night (England 1819)
Great review Regan!!
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