Back blurb:
There were quite a few things which bothered me here. First of all, Emma was very definitely Too Stupid to Live. Yes, she holds her own in some scenes (even saves herself near the end of the book), but many of her actions were classic TSTL (when she jumps out of the coach outside Gaetan's because she's heard a gunshot, even though she's promised not to move, anyone? And the whole "holding the hero at gunpoint" at the beginning shows a terrible lack of clear thinking). Anyway, couldn't stand the twit. Whenever she went on and on about what character X in one of E.W. Austen's book would do, I wanted to smack her. Incidentally, I guessed about the E.W. Austen thing the first time I saw it mentioned."Only a fool acted on emotion, but that was exactly what the Marquess of Andover had done when he allowed a mysterious beauty to lure him to her home. No sooner had he decided she was the most appealing female he had ever met than the young lady drew a pistol and demanded he confess to the abduction of her missing cousin.
As a confirmed spinster who had handled her family�s affairs for years, Emma Wakefield felt she was more than equal to the task of apprehending her cousin�s kidnapper. But when the Marquess escaped from her cellar and appeared in her bedroom insisting that he would find the true culprit, Emma knew the tables had turned. For the first time, her life was quite out of control, and unless she could resist his potent sensuality, this adventure promised to become deliciously...Dangerous."
Other bothersome stuff: First, how they told everyone things which could have ruined Emma, like her having kidnapped Sebastian and thrown him in the cellar. Everyone and his mother knew that. A little discretion, please! Also, I was bothered by how very un-worried Charlotte's mother was about her daughter's kidnapping by known white slavers. She seemed more worried about Emma's love life than about her daughter's fate. Unbelievable.
My reaction to the suspense subplot was mixed. On one hand, I found one of the villains way over-the-top evil and immoral. On the other, the resolution of the plot and the unveiling of the second villain surprised me. Dier had planted many clues pointing to someone else (did she cheat here? I would have to reread this to be sure, and I'm not going to do that), so I never guessed.
What I did like was the character of Sebastian. I really like straigh-laced heros who become obsessed by the heroine, and Sebastian was a goodie. And I did feel these two were nice together, though I kind of pitied Sebastian by the end of the book, for having to spend the rest of his life with this nitwit!