Lady Beware (A Novel of the Company of Rogues)

Lady Beware by Jo Beverley (2007)

Pages: 413

ISBN: 978-0451221490

Description: For generations, the Cave family has been marked by scandal, madness, and violence. But after earning a reputation for bravery and loyalty in the army, Horatio Cave, the new Viscount Darien, has come home to charm London society and restore the family name. He means to start with lovely Lady Thea Debenham.

The magnetism between Thea and Lord Darien is immediate-and enraptured Thea knows this is no innocent flirtation. But can she trust the dark, sexy "Vile Viscount"? Even if she can convince herself, she may not be able to convince her family, particularily her brother, Dare-the most dashing member of the Company of Rogues-that Horatio does not deserve the cursed Cave reputation...

Review: The start of this book is intertwined with the previous book, To Rescue A Rogue. We begin at the engagement ball for Dare and Lady Mara. We follow Dare's sister Thea as she is attempting to change gowns due to an unfortunate incident with a glass of wine. Thea meets a most interesting man in the hall... a man who blackmails her to announce an engagement or he will refuse to aid her brother. Being the good sister that she is (and also enjoying the kisses of this stranger) she reluctantly agrees. After getting to know Lord Darien, she begins to see that there is more to him and begins to truly have feelings for him. However, there are many things that get in their way. She has a rather loose cousin and there is all the bad history of the Cave family that gets in their way. With a shaky start, this is one love that strives to survive.

I began this story with high hopes that perhaps I should not have had. A good chunk of this book takes place during the previous book, To Rescue A Rogue. We see some of the same things happen, but from a different perspective. I really didn't care much for the character of Thea. I found her to be a spoiled little miss for a chunk of the book. While Darien was somewhat a cad, he really did have good intentions and I have to say that I liked him. I think there is just too much extra drama packed into these (Rogue series) books that is unnecessary. It just feels to me like Beverley is trying to add pages to her book.

Score: 2.5 out of 5