Sara Ramsey - Heiress Without a Cause

A disgraced son with a dark reputation, William “Ferguson” Avenel is content to live in exile–until his father dies in the scandal of the Season. With rumors of insanity swirling around them, his sisters desperately need a chaperone. Ferguson thinks he’s found the most proper woman in England–and he won’t ruin her, even if he secretly desires the passionate woman trapped beneath a spinster’s cap.
Lady Madeleine Vaillant can’t face her blighted future without making one glorious memory for herself. In disguise, on a London stage, she finds all the adoration she never felt from the ton. But when she’s nearly recognized, she will do anything to hide her identity–even setting up her actress persona as Ferguson’s mistress. She’ll take the pleasure he offers, but Madeleine won’t lose her heart in the bargain.
Every stolen kiss could lead to discovery, and Ferguson’s old enemies are determined to ruin them both. But as their dangerous passion ignites their hearts and threatens their futures, how can an heiress who dreams of freedom deny the duke who demands her love?

Comment: Another book in the pile for a long time, as it often happens I must have read something positive about it somewhere and it was enough to convince me to add it to the TBR list.

In this historical novel, we meet lady Madeleine Vaillnt, an orphan who has been raised by her aunt and her family and that, along with cousin Amelia and friend Prudence, has created a small niche of friends. The three are interested in things that usually aren't young ladies preferences but they are all getting closer to be on the shelf than the other way around and Maddie doesn't mind it, if only she could be the actress she desires. She knows a lady cannot do such a thing so she found a way to act, in disguise, so she could feel what it is like to perform for real in front of an audience.

William "Ferguson" Avanel, now the duke of Rothwell, knows he and his family are linked to scandals and he has preferred to live his life in Scotland, but he has two younger sisters who have not come out yet and he is told lady Madeleine is the right person to help him, even though she is single herself. One night he happens to discover Madeleine's secret, and this tells him there's more to her than the innocent lady she shows to others.. could it be they would be right for each other?

I think, as it happens with so many novels, there's a certain suspension of belief in order to accept certain things and here, it is the same, but I was interested nevertheless, and this turned out to be a fascinating story to follow.

Maddie is a young lady from a good family and she lost her family in France. She now lives with an aunt and has been well treated but her spirit dreams of being an actress. Since she cannot be one openly, she found a disguise and has been giving in to her dream in a theater in the less appealing area of London. However, things change when Ferguson sees her act and is as captivated as the not so aristocrat public around him. Following the basic idea which many of his peers certainly would have, he tries to meet the actress and make her his mistress.

Maddie is not convinced and believes she was successful in leaving and hiding from him, but Ferguson sees her arrive home and starts thinking who could it be that lives there, which happened to be the house where the new sponsor of his sisters also lives in. It doesn't take him long to find the truth but while this is possible, it is also extremely unlikely and only by accepting this as an artistic license can we enjoy the story line. Still, it was a good reason for why Ferguson and Maddie were spending time together and, as one can imagine, their connection quickly starts to seem too close for some people.

I don't think it's any surprise that there is thought of marriage at some point and, this being a romance, the path to it isn't easy but it's practically a given. Most of the conflict between them isn't about Maddie's activities in the end, but how each one sees a possible relationship developing. It's clear from the start they like one another and I think the author managed to add enough scenes with them interacting to convince me the romance was taking some time but was becoming an established factor and we get to have the notion other people around them would expect it of them.

I'd say the biggest hurdles were to convince people Ferguson was ready to let go of his interest in the actress to faithfully marry lady Madeleine. It was quite a blast to read about this while they both were aware of the situation and this was not a secret of only of them. Then, the biggest issue is that Ferguson is still trying to convince himself that Maddie would tire of their life there and if they lived in Scotland, where he had hidden spent most of his adult life, things could keep on being easy between them. I think this part could have been better because it felt as if the author was simply stretching out the problem...

I liked the writing style in general and putting aside some stubbornness of the characters, this was actually pleasant to read. I think some scenes, which seemed a little exaggerated, could have been toned down and nothing would be lost, but perhaps that is only my preference. I've liked Maddie and Ferguson in general and could accept most of their thinking regarding the different issues they faced. I think their romance was also a good one, but that self doubt by Ferguson closer to the end felt like a problem that didn't have to last for so long...

I'm thinking about reading the other books, which feature Maddie's cousin, and then her best friend, with also one of Ferguson's sisters (not the ones needing to come out) but probably not this year anymore. I think I can put aside some personal dislikes if the overall story is as appealing as this one.

Grade: 7/10