| From RomanceJunkies.com Historical
The library of the late Sir Thomas Tartleton of Wiltshire is about to be auctioned off. Mr. Sotheby’s catalog proclaimed that the Burgundy Book of Hours, a devotional work, is the most precious item in Tartleton’s collection. Cain, the Marquis of Chase, agrees with Mr. Sotheby’s description, but it should belong to his family. At the age of eleven, Cain discovered that his family owned this book, but he was not allowed to touch it. In the weeks following Tartleton’s last visit to his home, Cain’s father, already irritable, became unglued, which culminated in Cain’s expulsion from his home. Since the age of sixteen, he has barely spoken to his mother, and he hasn’t been allowed to see his sister at all. If he could reclaim the book and find out how Tartleton managed to obtain it, he might win back his family. To accomplish this, he needs a knowledgeable bookseller to consult and act for him. A fellow collector advises him to contact J. C. Merton.
Juliana Cassandra Merton owns the J. C. Merton bookstore. Her late husband Joseph bought the store with her money. However, some of their patrons deserted her after her husband died. She grew up with the man she believed to be her Grandfather Fitterbourne, though he never admitted their relationship to her. At a young age, she found the book Romeo and Juliet, which had an inscription inside signed Cassandra. Juliana is sure Cassandra was her mother, but she is not sure how to prove it. She wants to buy the Fitterbourne Shakespeares, which should have been hers, but they ended up in Tartleton’s library. To buy them, she needs to make more money in the next week than she has made all year. Since a man once made overtures to her in the store, she now hides her beauty under ugly clothes and she hides her glorious hair under a cap.
Trying to retrieve a coin, which rolled under the counter, Juliana is prostrate on the floor, when she hears someone walk in the door. Seeing the customer, Cain, scrutinize her from head to toe, she knows he sees past her disguise. Though she has had no experience with them, she knows he is a rake. After finding that she is J.C. Merton and that she has an extensive knowledge of books and Tartleton, he hires her. Her days at the auction with him are filled with the most excitement she has ever had. The sparks between them fly, especially when she tries to dissuade Cain from buying the Romeo and Juliet book, which she wants. Instead, she decides to show him a flashier, red book, Aretino’s Dialogues, which she figures will suit him better, though she has never seen it before. As she turns the pages in front of him, she describes the binding, the engraving…anything to keep from looking at the unexpected erotic pictures. The titillating pictures make the room seem more stifling for the two of them, as well as heating up their imaginations. However, when Cain later discovers the Romeo and Juliet book in her bookstore, they know someone is out to get her. Why is someone out to get her? Can he keep her safe? Can they put the book back without anyone catching them?
THE WILD MARQUIS is a delightfully sensual and humorous historical romance. Cain reacts to his reputation in society by making disparaging remarks about himself, giving credence to his father’s opinion of him, though Juliana sees through his ruse. Juliana has dealt all her life with the fact that she is illegitimate, though she longs for the proof that her mother was married when she was born. Though she loves Cain, she believes that he should marry someone in society, since she has not been able to prove that she is legitimate. Cain cannot imagine marrying anyone else. In addition, Cain deals with the problems inside his own family. Filled with secrets, mystery, romance, sizzling love scenes, witty, realistic dialogue, an imaginative plot and charismatic characters, this lighthearted story is captivating. A riveting novel, I hated to see it end. Do not miss THE WILD MARQUIS. It is a keeper!
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