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Dangerous to Know
by Mary Jo Putney
Excellent Novel and Novella - Separated at Birth
In the reissue of The
Diabolical Baron Jason Kincaid, the nineteenth Baron Radford, decides
it is time to acquire a wife. He fell in love once in his youth, only
to have his young love run away with a military man. In a heartless bet
with his friend he chooses the shy, young and innocent Caroline
Hanscombe's name out of a hat and decides to meet her at Almacks. He
courts and then asks for Caroline's hand in marriage. Although Caroline
is not in love with Jason, she is forced to accept the handsome, yet
seemingly cold man for the money he can bring her aunt and uncle who
have been caring for her for so many years. Caroline has lived with
only the love of her beloved widowed Aunt Jessica, where she takes
refuge in her home whenever she can in order to use her piano and
compose the beautiful music she loves to write and play. It is only
when Caroline writes and plays her music that she truly feels alive,
and when she is whisked off to Jason's country estate, she feels even
more alone, realizing he does not truly love her, and that she will
have to live in a cold, loveless marriage. There she meets his new
neighbor, Richard Davenport. Richard is the heir to the neighboring
estate, but does not want to accept the title, as his mother and father
were cut and estranged from the family when they married and ran away
years ago. He arrives at the estate disguised as a custodian, and while
spending time there comes across Caroline in the well-equipped music
room. The handsome Richard also loves music and he and Caroline form a
bond that soon grows to love. When Caroline's Aunt Jessica shows up at
the Radford estate for a visit in preparation for the upcoming wedding,
it is discovered that she is the young beauty that Jason loved and lost
so many years ago. They both discover the love they once lost, but
concern over Caroline's feelings keep them apart once more. The story
develops and twists as the couples struggle with their relationships
and true loves. It all comes to a shocking conclusion at the engagement
ball when the couples realize they are all in love with the wrong, but
then the right people. The shock of this discovery, together with the
true identity of Richard culminates in an unsolved mystery and
treacherous plot by one of Richard's relatives. A true love story,
excellently written, of love once lost and won again.
In the western novella, Mad, Bad, and Dangerous the young, beautiful,
pregnant widow Elizabeth Holden discovers the handsome prisoner she
helps save from abuse in the streets of a small Texas town is the man
convicted of shooting and killing her abusive husband. When she brings
Andrew Kane dinner and is locked in the room with him where he is held
prisoner, a fight breaks out and she cannot leave. They talk and
discover a connection to each other, as they both have been used and
abused by the Holden family. Liza hears his story and learns about his
family in England and his land and ranch, The Lazy K. Soon the
attraction they had to each other from first sight grows to desire and
they experience a moment of passion before Kane is taken to hang and
she is go live with the Holden family in a prison of her own, as they
only want Liza for the baby. The story itself has a strange twist and
surprise ending, and is an excellent short story, but would seem to be
even better if extended to a longer story and book of its own. Also,
this western romance novella doesn't seem to fit with the regency The
Diabolical Baron. Both stories, excellent in their own right, seem to
suffer a bit under the different title of Dangerous to Know.
Publisher: Penguin
Group (January 2007)
Reviewed
by Beverly,
Beverly Romance Books
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