I wrote about the most recent book published in Elizabeth Hoyt’s Maiden Lane Series several weeks ago. I liked it so much, I decided I needed to explore this world more, so I went back and started with the first in the series.
One-Sentence Synopsis
An infamous lord asks a young woman to be his guide around the area where his mistress was murdered. For a full synopsis, see this book’s Goodreads page.
The Good Stuff
Can we talk about Lazarus’ hair? A youngish lord with silver hair was kind of amazing. I was also intrigued by the rumors of his “sexual proclivities.” And his weird physical/psychological issues with pain when he gets touched. Basically, I found Lazarus to be one of the most interesting heroes ever.
I also had fun picking out the characters for future stories in this series. And the names were fairly ridiculous but also awesome. The Makepeace siblings are named Temperance, Silence, Winter and Asa. Love it.
Things That Made Me Go Hmmm
I was a little disappointed at the tameness of the aforementioned proclivities. To be fair, the story was set in a different time, but I was hoping for something a little more risque.
The Romance Factor
Temperance and Lazarus were a great pairing. I liked their chemistry and I enjoyed that she continued to push at his pain until she could touch him without him hurting. And I appreciated that she had to work for it, that she didn’t have the magic touch that told him they were destined to be together. 4/5
The Steam Factor
Even though Lazarus wasn’t as debauched as people thought, he was still pretty sexy, as were the scenes with him and Temperance getting their groove on. Definitely blush inducing. 5/5
Final Thoughts
Full disclosure: the blurb on this book didn’t seem like something I’d like, but I loved this story and now have to read the full series…even though I’m not entirely sure how I feel about some of the future characters.
The Romance Factor 