Between the Devil and Desire (Scoundrels of St. James #2) by Lorraine Heath

tw: child abuse, pedophilia
I just recently discovered Lorraine Heath and I LOVE her writing style and her characters!
They're all so practical, so devoid of needless drama, it's refreshing!
Let me start with what I loved about this story.
The characters were perfectly fleshed out, completely developed. They felt real, they acted like actual people, I was honestly rooting for them.
Very straightforward communication between the characters. There was no drama as you usually see from the characters simply not talking to each other like adults. I wish all books took this route...
The relationships, not only the one between Jack and Olivia, but especially the one between Jack and Henry, were lovely. It's so nice to get to read a HR where the 'hero' takes his time to bond with others instead of just ambling about in pursuit of the lady's favour.
The writing style: perfect!
What I mostly disliked about this story was its implausibility.
Olivia is all that is moral and proper. She wouldn't be seen without mourning attire so soon after her husband's death. Society has its eyes on her, and it's her duty to behave appropriately, not only for her sake but for the sake of her son's future.
Yet a notorious owner of a gaming hell/brothel, who is not only single but also a commoner moves into her house (which became his, to be fair) and we only get one brief mention of how she doesn't need to worry about living with him because she's a widow?
No. She does need to worry about it! It was simply not done!
There was also the mystery, which I deduced as soon as the will was read, even though I kind of hoped my guess wouldn't be right...
Don't let my complaints drive you away from this book. I think I'm being overly critical. I've given higher ratings to less deserving books, it's just that Heath is so skilled that when something doesn't work it draws attention next to the brilliance of the rest of her work...
Anyway, I do recommend this book, so if you fancy the summary go ahead and read it!
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