Always the Mistress by Emily E K Murdoch
Always the mistress and never the bride – and it never bothered her until now…
Miss Emma Tilbury is notorious, and that’s just the way she likes it. As mistress to the rich and famous, she’s never short of cash or invitations – but after reaching thirty, a shock rejection makes her think again. Perhaps it’s time to look for another protector.
Abraham Fitzclarence – Fitz to his friends – believes in love and has had his eye for years on Miss Emma Tilbury. Forbidden fruit, delectable and sweet, he’s astonished when she takes a shine to him – and his heart is quickly lost despite all his attempts to remain aloof.
Emma needs a protector but Fitz intrigues her. Perhaps this is a man she could truly care for – as long as she doesn’t lose her heart. She’s determined to keep their relationship just business. He’s ready to leave all that behind her. There’s no end of pleasure at night but in the morning there’s nothing but disappointment.
Will Emma open her heart – and could Fitz be the one to do so? Or will her past follow her and prevent a happily ever after?
- File Name:always-the-mistress-by-emily-e-k-murdoch.epub
- Original Title:Always the Mistress (Never the Bride Book 11)
- Creator:Emily E K Murdoch
- Language:en
- Identifier:MOBI-ASIN:B08VZLSCCV
- Publisher:Dragonblade Publishing, Inc.
- Date:2021-03-01T16:00:00+00:00
- Subject:Fiction,Historical,romance
- File Size:244.522 KB
Table of Content
- 1. Title Page
- 2. Copyright Page
- 3. Publisher’s Note
- 4. Additional Dragonblade books by Author Emily E K Murdoch
- 5. Table of Contents
- 6. Chapter One
- 7. Chapter Two
- 8. Chapter Three
- 9. Chapter Four
- 10. Chapter Five
- 11. Chapter Six
- 12. Chapter Seven
- 13. Chapter Eight
- 14. Chapter Nine
- 15. Chapter Ten
- 16. Chapter Eleven
- 17. Chapter Twelve
- 18. Chapter Thirteen
- 19. Chapter Fourteen
- 20. Chapter Fifteen
- 21. Chapter Sixteen
- 22. Chapter Seventeen
- 23. Chapter Eighteen
- 24. Chapter Nineteen
- 25. Epilogue
- 26. About Emily E K Murdoch
Always the Mistress, Book 11 of the Always the Bride series, was about Miss Emma Tilbury, former mistress of the Earl of Marnmouth, and Lord Abraham "Fitz" Fitzclarence, Viscount Braedon. Having spent almost seven years as the mistress to the Earl of Marnmouth and then set aside two years ago, Emma had fallen on hard times. No longer under the safety of a "Protector", she had been forced to fend for herself. Fitz, who had been interested in Emma for several years, longed to convince her to leave her mistress years behind her and give love between them a chance. Uncertain how to approach her, though, he just bided his time and kept his mouth closed. Emma's character never made sense in this series. While many books I've read about courtesans becoming wives, none of them had been such pathetic characters...or lifelong courtesans. Most had only been part of that lifestyle for a short time and then found love. None had been "cast aside" by their protector and then found love with another lord. Nor had any of them been "welcomed" into polite society the way Emma had supposedly been. No lord in his right mind would have flaunted his mistress so blatantly either. This whole idea wreaked of desperation on the part of the main female character, and she was not above seeking a married man to become her protector. That the author would use the male characters from love matches in her previous books of the series as possible protectors for Emma was quite tasteless on her part. First, she had each lord find a love match...and now offered them up as someone who might be open to taking on a mistress? Not very well done on the part of the author...at all. Emma was also more focused on greed than she was in finding a love match...as most mistresses of the time were as that was, of course, how they made their living. So for her to become the main character in a romance novel just didn't make sense. She was too jaded for the part. The pathetic attitude of the main male character was unacceptable as well. Sure, many lords interchanged mistresses, but for one to moon over another man's mistress for years and then want to marry her when she was cast off? Braedon's character was made out to be some simpering, weak-minded, uncouth lord who was always in the wrong when amongst his friends. The author had painted him in a bad light throughout the series, and she did him no good turn by portraying him as such a pitiful man who had waited in the wings for another man's scraps. While attending a card party, Emma was on the prowl for a new protector. Hoping to get her claws into at least an earl, she hit on every one of her former lover's friends...most of who had already found love matches in previous stories. When she spotted Braeden across the room, she was a bit disappointed that he was a mere viscount, yet she believed him to be "worth a little practice". She was intent on using him to line her pockets until someone better came along...and nothing more. She was extremely manipulative, bent on pushing Braedon into doing whatever she wanted. Emma, nearly five years older than Braedon, and was definitely quite a bit more experienced, had no problem using him. Emma used the word that described herself perfectly...a leech, and that's what she was, and not in a good way at all. She didn't think well of Braedon at all. Whenever he stepped in and saved her from one scrape or another, she repeatedly thought things like, "she had never seen him in such a way" or she had "never considered him an intelligent man". So she was believing him to be a dunce and used him to her advantage. Disgusting. There was too much fluff in this story. It really didn't have to be as long as it was. Introspection has its place, but when it takes up several chapters in a row, that goes beyond the pale. It was boring, brash, and poorly done. The more one read, the worse the book got. There were a lot of things that were not era-appropriate. The verbiage was too modern, as were ideas, actions, and other aspects of the story. Yes, definitely the worst book of the series, with only one to go, and that's saying something as I have not liked just about every single volume in this series. There were one or two exceptions, but this was an atrocity. It did not earn even a one-star rating. There was just too much wrong with this story.
In this era blue blooded noblemen cannot actually marry a known mistress. It would scandalized the ton. Their children and close relations will be shunned in polite society..