The Devil in Winter (The Wallflowers)

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It quickly becomes clear, however, that Evie is a woman of hidden strength – and Sebastian desires her more than any woman he’s ever known. And then we have a shy, stuttering, abused heroine who has grown up in a family that can be described as dysfunctional. Together they deal with Evie's father's death, the abusive relatives, an assassin out to murder Evie, St. Vincent, is a larger than life character who has gained a massive fan following among romance readers, but I am sorry to say that I will not be one of the ladies who is panting after this fictional hero. Lastly, I do respect the author for making the attempt at redeeming a villainous character even though it didn't work for me.

When removed from the judgements and expectations of his friends and society he is able to find new confidence and self-identity. His debauched days are at an end as the novel starts, more due to a shortage of funds than goodwill to tell the truth, so we don't get to witness firsthand all his despicable proclivities though, if this aptly serves to make him more readily believable as a hero, the aftertaste of his rakish past is nonetheless present in the rightful suspicions surrounding him and in his ambivalent reactions to what probably are the most genuine feelings he has ever experienced in life.Kleypas did not fully accomplish that redemption (at least not in my eyes), and therefore the story as a whole ended up being something of a let-down to me. Well, after reading It Happened One Autumn and seeing how she transformed Marcus, Lord Westcliff from a stuffy, uptight arrogant know-it-all, into a sexy, to-die-for-hero, I should've had a little faith--I totally fell for St. However, as the story moved on, Sebastian began to take care of her, boosting her confidence and being her champion, there he became the true hero. So, if I do reread something in a short time after finishing it that means I really loved it (also see Bunny! There are many, many sweet moments where he cares for Evie and puts her needs before his own (footwarmers, blankets, baths, food) that are not connected to his desire for sex or money.

Sebastian realizes quickly that he desires Evie very much, but with his reputation Evie won’t do more past the consummation of the marriage. She treated herself with worth and that was what Sebastian needed from a woman, for a rake who could have any women he wanted (except for Lillian, a lesson he learned well in Autumn). My main takeaway was “damn I want to reread scandal in spring again” when I just reread it yesterday! When Evie is threatened by a vengeful enemy from the past, Sebastian vows to do whatever it takes to protect his wife .

Evie as the heroine was positively lovable, and even though I didn't feel like Sebastian was the best match for her, I liked her as an individual enough that she helped to carry a large part of the story. I have read book 1 and book 2 of the Wallflower series and although I enjoyed them, this one seems to have that Wow factor. I’ve got knots in my stomach, and constant pains in my chest, and when I see you talking to any man, I go insane with jealousy… Do as you please.

We always endeavor not to give away endings or major plot twists in either our synopses or reviews, however they may occasionally contain information which some readers might consider to be mild spoilers. Because of that, I could not understand why he had taken such extreme measures when by all accounts his charm and ravishing good looks could have gotten him almost any woman of his choosing. I was excited by the prospect of reading a book that had been so highly praised, but at the same time, all the hype made me anxious. Their connection is so strong, and essentially started from a place of helping one another… and they never stop being there for each other. What I love about this book is that the main characters come to the story without any expectations of themselves or each other.I am now recognising a familiar formula to these books where at least one of the lovers (but ideally both, at different times) will face some form of mortal peril that the other will sacrifice to rescue them from. I tried to wait to read this, and then as I mentioned in an update, determined I could just, ya know, read it again instead of delayed gratification. When it comes to Historical Romance, I've dabbled in the past with standalones but wouldn't have imagined I'd have been captivated enough to be snared by an entire series. A lot of romances have sex scenes which are pretty much unnecessary to the plot - in this book, they are done so well, and are entirely pertinent to the developing relationship; good heavens, the 'virtual' pages were steaming! O livro conta o romance entre Evie e Sebastian, ambos pais de Gabriel que, num livro posterior, virá a ser o herói de The Devil in Spring.