Friday, September 11, 2015

Blog Tour Review & Giveaway - - Luck Be a Lady

Luck Be a Lady
By Meredith Duran
Publisher: Pocket Books
Release Date: August 25, 2015


Catherine Everleigh and Nick O’Shea were introduced in Meredith Duran’s Lady Be Good. In Luck Be a Lady, they are the lead characters. The most important thing in Catherine’s life is her family’s auction house. Her most cherished childhood memories involve her father’s teaching her the skills employed in maintaining the reputation of Everleigh’s and his pride in her ability to evaluate accurately the items acquired for auction. As an adult, her devotion to Everleigh’s is all-consuming.

But for her, Everleigh’s was everything. Their father’s legacy. Her sacred birthright. Everleigh’s made her who she was – which was not merely a spinster, the “Ice Queen” that rude wits had dubbed her. She was a person of business. An expert in the field of fine arts. A learned professional, regardless of her sex.

Her brother Peter lacks Catherine’s knowledge and integrity; he sees the auction house only as a means to his goal of gaining political power. Catherine knows he is embezzling funds from Everleigh’s to finance his political ambitions. He even threatens to sell the business, but there is little she can do to stop him. She is also wary of his scheme to arrange a marriage for her that will benefit him. Desperate to prevent Peter’s destroying the business she loves, she approaches Nick O’Shea for help. During their conversation, she proposes a marriage of convenience.

Nick O’Shea knows what it is to have nothing, to be nothing in the eyes of those with money and power. He learned at an early age the connection between money and power, and he set his sights on acquiring both. He wasn’t overly particular about how he achieved his goal, but he is powerful enough now to be more businessman than crime lord. He can be ruthless or benevolent as the situation demands, and he is clever enough to know that his power must extend beyond Whitechapel if he is to protect his interests there. As he tells Catherine, “It helps to hold the markers of the men who make the laws.”

The marriage offers mutual benefits, but these benefits are not the usual gains of money or status. Catherine knows that news of her marriage to the notorious Nick O’Shea will damage her brother’s political career, and she offers him her pledge to keep the marriage secret in exchange for control of Everleigh’s and his vote on the Municipal Board of Works. The latter will give Nick the votes he needs to protect his buildings. Initially Catherine’s focus is solidly on protecting the auction house, but Nick has been fascinated by Catherine since his niece secured a position as an Everleigh Girl. Marriage deepens his fascination, and as Catherine discovers Nick is far more than the uneducated ruffian she thought him to be, she struggles to maintain her Ice Queen detachment. But however strong the attraction grows, can it ever be enough to bridge the gulf of social class and experience that separates them?

Once again Meredith Duran gives readers romance with a difference. Cross-class romances are standard fare in romance fiction, but most involve a hero marrying below his class. Romances in which the heroine marries down are less common. Even rarer are such romances in which the higher class protagonist is not an aristocrat. Catherine is not a debutante reared to find a husband with the highest title. Her father started training her to appreciate and evaluate the items that came into the auction house and to see Everleigh’s partnership with artists as service to art before she was seven. Fully aware of her intelligence and committed to her role as a businesswoman, Catherine prefers to remain unmarried.

Despite the fact that by birth and experience Catherine and Nick inhabit different worlds, they are alike in their fierce preservation of the facades they have erected. The facades may be different—hers cold and smoothly polished and his raw power and rough edges—but the images serve to protect their vulnerabilities and preserve them from intimacy. Nick is less isolated and more self-aware than Catherine, and he wants to make Catherine aware of the passionate woman he sees in her. The barriers between them crumble gradually and convincingly. They are both intelligent, complex characters, and watching them fall in love is wonderful, rewarding reading.

In addition to the layered characterization and a compelling central relationship, Luck Be a Lady also includes some delightfully comic scenes. Exchanges between Nick and Catherine prove Duran can do banter with the best in the genre, and the twenty-four-page marriage contract is worth several giggles on its own. But the highlights are the wedding and consummation scenes. The wedding is unique, and the consummation scene manages to combine humor and sizzle. I also found the ending completely satisfying, an increasingly rare experience even with books I like. In other words, this one is a full bells-and-whistles, five-neon-stars recommendation. It’s on my Best of 2015 list.

Luck Be a Lady can be read as a standalone, but I highly recommend that you read it with Lady Be Good. The two books were released on consecutive months for good reason. If you love historical romance, you owe it to yourself to read Meredith Duran. She is among the very best. This pair of books is a great place to start, and then you can move to her backlist.


~Janga

 

Have you discovered Meredith Duran's books yet?

Do you have a favorite?

Do you enjoy cross-class romances?

One person who leaves a comment on today's post will receive the following three autographed books by Meredith Duran: Fool Me Twice, Lady Be Good, and Luck Be A Lady. (U.S./Canada only)
 


ABOUT THE AUTHOR: MEREDITH DURAN is the author of eight previous novels, including The Duke of Shadows (winner of the Gather.com First Chapters Romance Writing Competition); Wicked Becomes You (included on the Woman’s World List of Best Beach Reads for Summer 2010), and the USA TODAY bestseller Fool Me Twice. She blames Anne Boleyn for sparking her lifelong obsession with British history, and for convincing her that princely love is no prize if it doesn’t come with a happily-ever-after. She enjoys collecting old etiquette manuals, guidebooks to nineteenth-century London, and travelogues by intrepid Victorian women. Visit her at MeredithDuran.com, or catch up with her on Twitter: @meredithduran and Facebook: AuthorMeredithDuran.




 BLOG TOUR

8/24       HEROES & HEARTBREAKERS
8/25       TWO CLASSY CHICS
8/26       BOOKTALK WITH EILEEN
8/28       HARLEQUIN JUNKIE
8/31       LIVE TO READ
9/1         MRS LEIF’S TWO FANGS ABOUT IT
9/2         THE LOVELY BOOKS
9/3         WTF ARE YOU READING
9/4         SIMPLY ANGELA
9/5         COFFEE TIME ROMANCE
9/6         THE READING ADDICT BLOGSPOT
9/7         MARTINI TIMES
9/8         BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS
9/8         GOT FICTION
9/9         MICHELLE & LESLIE'S BOOK PICKS
9/9         FRESH FICTION
9/10       NIGHT OWL ROMANCE
9/10       THE LUSTY LITERATE
9/11       THE ROMANCE DISH
9/16       CELTIC LADY'S REVIEWS
9/18       ROMANCING RAKES
9/19       RAMBLINGS FROM THIS CHICK

10/2       ASHLEY'S BOOKSHELF







22 comments:

  1. I'm ashamed to admit that I haven't read any of Meredith Duran's books. Yet. I've only heard great things about them and do have one on my kindle.

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  2. I'm looking forward to reading both of these. I recently read--and loved--Fool Me Twice. Such a wonderful book. Thanks for the post and giveaway.

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    1. Glad to hear you enjoyed Fool Me Twice. Good luck in the giveaway!

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  3. You have some wonderful reading ahead of you, Glenda!

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    1. From everything I've heard, I do. Just last week, I FINALLY got around to reading another one of those author's I've been hearing about for ages (Tessa Dare's Castles Ever After series) and I wasn't disappointed -- except when I finished the series and there wasn't another book out yet.... ;-)

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  4. I've not read her books as yet but they do sound good and cross-class romances are a yes from me.

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  5. I have not read this author yet but have heard wonderful things about her books. Have always been a fan of cross class romance. The different perspectives of the characters make for a richer read.

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  6. I have not read your books yet.

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  7. I also have read Fool Me Twice. I love historicals with banter in them!

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  8. New author for me. I enjoyed reading the review. Definitely putting on my TBR list.

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  9. I HAVE NEVER READ ANY OF HER BOOKS. THANKS FOR TELLING ME ABOUT HER ANOTHER NEW AUTHOR TO TRY... THEY DO SOUND GOOD THO SO THEY WILL BE ON MY TBB (TO BE BOUGHT PILE)

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  10. I have actually not read any of her books yet! I also haven't read that many cross class historical romances. Great review!

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  11. I have a few of her books on my shelf and I really need to pick them up!

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  12. I actually haven't read any of her books. But they do come so highly recommended :) thanks for sharing!

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  13. I've enjoyed a few of her books, The Duke of Shadows being the first. I'll have to read Luck Be A Lady & Lady Be Good back to back. Thanks for your excellent review.
    Carol L
    Lucky4750 (at) aol (dot) com

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  14. I am familiar with Meredith Duran's name, but as yet have not read any of her novels. After reading Janga's review, I am certainly adding this book and more of Ms. Duran's to my TBR list. The plot is intriguing and the heroine sounds like a strong woman. I do like cross class novels because they prove that the characters don't have to be of the same class to have an HEA.

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  15. Meredith is a new to me author. This book looks good, great cover. I do like the cross class romances cause not matter your job, no one is better than anyone else. Thanks for the giveaway.

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  16. I just finished reading "Lady Be Good" , and really enjoyed it. I do love a book with mystery, intrigue and romance. My appetite was definitely whetted by a few things that caught my interest regarding Nick and Catherine, especially when she was knocking back the drinks at his tavern in "Lady Be Good", and I was hoping then that a romance was in the cards. I'm dying to read Nick and Catherine's story. Thank you for the chance to win.

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  17. I discovered Meredith Duran's books through Sherry Thomas' blog. At one time they shared the blogging duties.

    I really enjoyed this book. Meredith Duran always does such a great job of showing the two faces of London: the rarified atmosphere enjoyed by the aristocracy and the seedy neighborhoods inhabited by the poor. She also did a wonderful job of redeeming Catherine and Nick. They weren't too likeable in the previous book, Lady Be Good, and we learn the reasons behind that.

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  18. I've been made aware of Meredith Duran's books, but haven't had a chance to read any, so I don't have a favorite yet. I do like cross-class romance, as long as it makes sense. :D

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  19. Sadly, I have yet to read a book by Meredith Duran. But, reading the excerpt I believe I will be looking into reading her books. As soon as I am done....doing whatever this is called (I am stuck in the 80's but I am trying my hardest to break out of my bubble and jumping into 2015). I will be searching for Meredith Duran books!

    Thank you, for the preview!
    Sincerely,
    Bonny Bordeleau

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