Friday, August 14, 2015

Julie Anne Long - It Happened One Midnight

More than one beautiful woman’s hopes have been dashed on the rocky shoals of Jonathan Redmond’s heart. With his riveting good looks and Redmond wealth and power, the world is his oyster—until an ultimatum from his father and a chilling gypsy prophesy send him hurtling headlong toward a fate he’ll do anything to avoid: matrimony.
Intoxicating, elusive Thomasina de Ballesteros has the bloods of London at her feet. But none of them knows the real Tommy—the one with a shocking pedigree, a few too many secrets, and a healthy scorn for rakes like Jonathan.
She is everything Jonathan never wanted. But on one fateful midnight, he’s drawn into Tommy's world of risk, danger…and a desire he’d never dreamed possible. And suddenly he’s re-thinking everything...including the possibility that succumbing to prophesy might just mean surrendering to love.


Comment: This the 8th story in the PennyRoyal Green series and once again, I was marveled by how amazing it was. Since the second book, which has been my absolute favorite so far (it still is), I was looking for another installment that could captivate me as easily and this one managed to do it.
 
This is the story of Jonathan Redmond, the youngest Redmond sibling. He has been living with the curse of the gipsy's prediction he would father tem children but Jonathan doesn't feel such a thing could happen to him. He wants to prove to his father instead that he is able to live on his own, to become rich with his own investments and intelligence.
Thomasina de Ballesteros is a young woman whose reputation makes her one of the most sought women of the entertaining scene in London. However, Thomasine hides a secret agenda and she has one goal, to help as much children as she can from abuse and practically slavery at the hands of their "employers".
When these two meet one midnight, it seems only a battle of wits could happen but the more they know each other, the more in common they find...
 
I did love this story, it's wonderfully presented and to be honest, I devoured it. I couldn't put it down and I've taken probably less than 24h to read it, even if not in a continuous time. I enjoyed reading this story and sometimes that experience is so much more worthy than books we read but can't say we enjoyed. There's a lot to be told about entertaining...
 
As always, the story itself was quite amazing and I had a great time reading about Jonathan's and Thomasina's battles in their respective goals.
Jonathan seemed a very put together person, slightly different from the young man we've met in the first books. Of course, the focus being on and about him helps us in seeing him as someone more like a grown up, but I liked the type of person he is, I liked seeing his personality and how he thought for himself and how brave and decent he acted on behalf of those below him in society but who are still human beings. I do love when the heroes act like decent people.
Thomasina is someone who gets misunderstood for sure, but I think her practical moves and actions have a good reason of being and I especially liked how her act in society didn't make her someone feisty and exaggerated. It was good to see how caring and worried she was about others.
 
The main romance felt very easy but strong. The author did it and made it look like they had to be destined for one another but not to the point where it was inevitable. They simply fit together. I liked how each moment between them didn't seem rushed or handy, I particularly liked how they fell in love and how important they became to each other.
The plot isn't over the top, I liked the subjects dealt with in it, Jonathan's need to prove to his father he could make his own living, Thomasina's need to help others, the whole works of a society that seems to prefer a certain status quo but overlooks reality.
I especially loved the end where Jonathan tells some truths to his father and how the epilogue shows us a scene where we hope for what is to come in the final three books.
The second book remains my favorite though. Somehow that other story felt more passionate in a way.
 
In a book where we got to know and like the protagonists, care about other beloved charters and wish for good things to happen, the HEA does let us see how perfect a story can be told simply but well.
Grade: 9/10

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