Thief of Shadows by Elizabeth Hoyt (Maiden Lane #4)

Genres: Adult, Historical Fiction, Romance
Smut-O-Meter: 8 out of 10
My Rating: 5 out of 5

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A masked man...

Winter Makepeace lives a double life. By day he's the stoic headmaster of a home for foundling children. But the night brings out a darker side of Winter. As the moon rises, so does the Ghost of St. Giles-protector, judge, fugitive. When the Ghost, beaten and wounded, is rescued by a beautiful aristocrat, Winter has no idea that his two worlds are about to collide.

A dangerous woman...

Lady Isabel Beckinhall enjoys nothing more than a challenge. Yet when she's asked to tutor the Home's dour manager in the ways of society-flirtation, double-entendres, and scandalous liaisons-Isabel can't help wondering why his eyes seem so familiar-and his lips so tempting.

A passion neither could deny...

During the day Isabel and Winter engage in a battle of wills. At night their passions are revealed... But when little girls start disappearing from St. Giles, Winter must avenge them. For that he might have to sacrifice everything-the Home, Isabel... and his life.

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Oh! This is definitely my favourite in the series so far. My goodness! It was a bit uncomfortable at first reading about Temperance and Silence's brother. Like the first time reading about Meghan's little brother in The Lost Prince, but worse (or better, depending on how you look at it) since there is sex in this one.

But it wasn't even about the sex. It never really is in these books for me. It is just like an accent to the story. The gravy but not the meat. But in this one I hardly even remember the sex. It was actually pretty awkward because Winter was a virgin, but it is his passion in their daily interactions that I will always remember. When

she first rescued him, during their tutors lessons, when they met again at the opera. Oh my goodness, the heat was just burning off of them! There were so many scenes where my heart was beating so hard that I was feeling a little light-headed. Including the final chapter, of course. That was such an amazing scene. *happy sigh*

And I love Winter. He ended up being so complex. He is my new favourite hero of the series, as well as this being my favourite book. Mickey was my previous favourite, but now I think it goes Winter, Mickey, Caire, Griffin. Not that there is anything wrong with Griffin, but the others are just spectacular. Although I have nothing against Isabel, my favourite heroine would still be Hero or Silence.

I have now caught up to the one book in this series I read last year, Lord of Darkness. But I will be re-reading it to keep continuity. Plus, I may enjoy it more now that I know so much more about these people. I am very much looking forward to it even if I am tempted to jump to Duke of Midnight. Each book ends with an epilogue that tells you who will be featured in the next book, and when I finished Lord of Darkness it left me wanting to read Duke of Midnight so badly! But it wasn't released yet at the time, and I thought I should read the first 4 book first before moving forward. And now I am almost done and I am so excited and anxious at the same time!

"She was tired of waiting for him to acknowledge who he was. Tired of donning a false mask of gaiety when she was so much more—felt so much more—beneath. No one had ever noticed her mask. No one but him. If he couldn't or wouldn't make the first move, then damn it, she would.” 

Notorious Pleasures by Elizabeth Hoyt (Maiden Lane #2)

Genres: Adult, Historical Fiction, Romance
Smut-O-Meter: 7 out of 10
My Rating: 4 out of 5

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Their lives were perfect . . .
Lady Hero Batten, the beautiful sister of the Duke of Wakefield, has everything a woman could want, including the perfect fiancé. True, the Marquis of Mandeville is a trifle dull and has no sense of humor, but that doesn't bother Hero. Until she meets his notorious brother . . .

Until they met each other.
Lord Griffin Reading is far from perfect - and he likes it that way. How he spends his days is a mystery, but all of London knows he engages in the worst sorts of drunken revelry at night. Hero takes an instant dislike to him, and Griffin thinks that Hero, with her charities and faultless manners, is much too impeccable for society, let alone his brother. Yet their near-constant battle of wits soon sparks desire - desire that causes their carefully constructed worlds to come tumbling down. As Hero's wedding nears, and Griffin's enemies lay plans to end their dreams forever, can two imperfect people find perfect true love?

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This is another great addition to this series. I think I am going to try to binge read this series. I dont do that often. The only other series I have binge read is the New Species series by Laurann Dohner. I find I love the series where each book is about a different couple who you have already gotten to know well. Some series follow couples who we only saw in one scene or something. But in this series we know them a lot better than that by the time they get their own book, and it really encourages me to keep reading and to get there for the characters that I have already grown to know. The same goes for New Species.

I did find some trouble feeling attached to the characters at first. I felt that their relationship was a bit rushed in the beginning, and I was bothered by the fact that Hero was already engaged. But the book was long enough that as time passed it all came together well. I was even happy for Thomas and Levinia despite hating him for hitting Hero.

I enjoyed Hero. It was interesting to see that the heroine was the more jaded one than the hero for once. Usually it is the other way around in historicals. Even though Griffin was still the rake, he had no problem admitting he loved Hero once it happened.

I am very excited to read Silence's story, and I am really curious who the Ghost of St. Giles is. I learned from reading Lord of Darkness that there is more than one. For awhile in book 1 and 2 I thought it was Winter, but he honestly seemed confused about it at the end of this one. It could still end up being him later. I shall see soon enough if I continue to power through this series.

“I think that its our very differences that make us a perfect match. You'd die of boredom with Thomas within a year. If I found a lady with a temper similar to mine, we'd tear each other apart within months. You and I, though, we're like bread and butter.

"Bread and butter. The bread provides stability for the butter; the butter gives taste to the bread. Together they're perfect."

Her eye brows drew together. "I'm the bread, aren't I?"

"Sometimes. And sometimes I'm the bread and you're the butter. But we go together--you understand that, don't you?”

Wicked Intentions by Elizabeth Hoyt (Maiden Lane #1)

Genres: Adult, Historical Fiction, Romance
Smut-O-Meter: 10 out of 10
My Rating: 4 out of 5

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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.

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I was not expecting such a complicated story. All the Elizabeth Hoyt novels I have read in the past were more simple and mostly focused on the romance. They were still amazing stories. But this one focused a great deal on the murders in St. Giles, on the foundling home, and on Caire's complicated character.

Caire was such a tortured character that I felt like I was reading a book by Anne Stuart or Sherrilyn Kenyon instead. Elizabeth Hoyt's Princes were never that tortured and I loved it. Tortured heroes are my absolutely favourite type of leading man. Throughout the book people kept saying he was notorious for his "unusual bedsport" or his "sexual perversions" and it kept making me nervous because I hate BDSM, but more

specifically I hate S&M. So I was extremely relieved that we eventually found out that he prefers the B&D aspect of it, not the S&M. That's not so bad, plus it was fairly tame. But maybe for some that's still bad, so just a warning. 

I dont know why Caire's preferences would be anyone's business or how society knew about it, but everyone had a stick up their butt back then. I felt so sorry for Temperance who was led to believe there was something wrong with her because she enjoyed sex, and her husband had told her that women who sought out sex were to be pitied. And poor Silence, she couldnt even kiss her husband good morning because in the light of day that would be considered wanton. Blech, how I have come to hate that word.

I plan to jump right into book 2, Notorious Pleasures. I have already read book 5 as an ARC a while back and I cant wait to fill in all the blanks in between. Once I catch up I will have to reread Lord of Darkness.

"He realized that what hurt this woman hurt him as well, that what made her bleed caused a hemorrhage of pain within his soul."

Lord of Darkness by Elizabeth Hoyt (Maiden Lane #5)

Genres: Adult, Historical Fiction, Romance
Smut-O-Meter: 7 out of 10
My Rating: 4 out of 5

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When Strangers In The Night

He lives in the shadows. As the mysterious masked avenger known as the Ghost of St. Giles, Godric St. John's only goal is to protect the innocent of London. Until the night he confronts a fearless young lady pointing a pistol at his head—and realizes she is his wife.

Become Lovers...

Lady Margaret Reading has vowed to kill the Ghost of St. Giles—the man who murdered her one true love. Returning to London, and to the man she hasn't seen since their wedding day, Margaret does not recognize the man behind the mask. Fierce, commanding, and dangerous, the notorious Ghost of St. Giles is everything she feared he would be—and so much more.

Desire Is The Ultimate Danger

When passion flares, these two intimate strangers can't keep from revealing more of themselves than they had ever planned. But when Margaret learns the truth—that the Ghost is her husband—the game is up and the players must surrender...to the temptation that could destroy them both.

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This is my third Elizabeth Hoyt, but my first from Maiden Lane. It was somewhat different for me, since the hero and heroine were already married when the story began. They had been married for 2 years but lived separately because it was a marriage of convenience that had been arranged by her brother, and neither of them had any interesting in having a real marriage. But when Margaret travels to London and stays with her husband for awhile they got to know each other better than they ever thought they would, or ever thought they would want to.

I really enjoy Elizabeth Hoyt's writing and her characters, as usual. She is likely my favourite author of historical romance so far, although I haven't read many. I really enjoyed the story involving the Ghost of St. Giles. These stories don't always have so much action. I am really interested to get the story I missed in the rest of the series. 

 

What really annoyed me was the way Margaret was always thinking of her former lover who had died. Three quarters of the way through the book she is clearly in love with Godric, but she is still being selfish and stupid, and begging him to put himself in danger for her sense of revenge. And he does it to make her happy, because he can admit to himself that he is in love with her. Of course she comes around once he does what she asked and she realizes how worried about him she was. Luckily he was okay and she came around. Better late than never. 

I am really excited to read Wicked Intentions now. I already had it on my to-read list, but hadnt gotten around to it. Now I will be making it a priority.

"This act would damn his very soul but for Megs it was worth it.For Meggie he would walk the fires of hell."