Scandalous Heiress by Cerise DeLand
She was his ruin.
Ada Hanniford is an oddity. An American heiress, a beauty, she’s sowed her wild oats and paid the price in sly rumors. Preferring politics to promenades, gardening to waltzing, she rebuffs the toffs who would seduce her for the fun of it or propose to marry her merely for her millions.
Embracing impending spinsterhood, she’s shocked to meet a man who fascinates her with tales of his own adventures in exotic lands. She’s drawn to him, charmed by his kisses and his sense of honor.
Then one night, he braves society to save her reputation…and in the act, destroys his own.
He was her salvation.
Victor Cole is a survivor. A man who has worked diligently to overcome his lack of title and land, he has finally buried the disgrace of a wife so scandalous he had to sail thousands of miles away to wipe away her stain.
Then he meets Ada Hanniford. She’s so natural, so unique, he must court her and kiss her. But would he be wise to claim her? With each word, each sigh, he comes closer to loving her. But when the one man whom he should respect shames her, Victor cannot allow him to sully her. Rescuing her becomes his sole purpose. But to save her means he stirs scandal once more…and destroys his own bright prospects.
How can a man and woman who love each other overcome the slings and arrows of their scandalous pasts and build a life together if no one else can forget their regrettable pasts?
If you love swoon-worthy historical romance, starring endearing heroes, sassy heroines and a family of irresistible charmers, this book is for you! Buy SCANDALOUS HEIRESS to begin your journey!
- File Name:scandalous-heiress-by-cerise-deland.epub
- Original Title:Scandalous Heiress: Those Notorious Americans, Book 4
- Creator:Cerise DeLand
- Language:en
- Identifier:uuid:72ba9f8d-ebf5-4dbe-9918-3fc4319253a4
- Publisher:W. J. Power
- Date:0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00
- File Size:2.577 MB
Table of Content
- 1. Title Page
- 2. Copyright
- 3. Contents
- 4. Scandalous Heiress
- 5. Prelude I
- 6. Prelude II
- 7. Chapter 1
- 8. Chapter 2
- 9. Chapter 3
- 10. Chapter 4
- 11. Chapter 5
- 12. Chapter 6
- 13. Chapter 7
- 14. Chapter 8
- 15. Chapter 9
- 16. Chapter 10
- 17. Chapter 11
- 18. Chapter 12
- 19. Chapter 13
- 20. Chapter 14
- 21. Chapter 15
- 22. Chapter 16
- 23. Chapter 17
- 24. Chapter 18
- 25. Chapter 19
- 26. Chapter 20
- 27. Epilogue
- 28. Travels with Cerise
- 29. Those Notorious Americans Continues!
- 30. Who is Cerise DeLand?
- 31. Also by Cerise DeLand
Scandalous Heiress, Book 4 of Those Notorious Americans series, was about Miss Ada Hanniford, the third child and second daughter to the American millionaire, Mr. Killian Hanniford, and the widower Lord Victor Cole, second son of Her Grace Caroline Cole, the Duchess of Brentwood, and father to Vivienne and Deirdre Cole. Side Note: Once again, the verbiage was more modern than era-appropriate. It was way too modern to fit even the latter part of the 1800s, early 1900s. Returning from a lengthy stay in China at the beginning of a five-day house party his family was having, Victor's mother implored him to talk to his half-brother, Lord Richard Cole, the Marquess of Ridgemont, out of what she considered t be an improper marriage to an American heiress. Upon meeting Ada and her friend, Miss Esmerelda Moore, Victor assumed that his brother's choice of bride was Ada due to her beauty. When his brother arrived and declared he needed an introduction to Ada, Victor realized his mistake. However, rather than courting Esmerelda, Richard was showing way too much attention to Ada. Ada, in turn, was giving Richard the cold shoulder. Victor was determined to protect Ada from his brother's advances. With Ada and Victor each having had some form of scandal in their pasts, they both wanted to avoid anything further happening during the house party. Unfortunately, Victor's brother was set on causing a scandal...with Ada. During the five days they spent together at his family's home, Ada and Victor both realized their feelings for the other. However, when Ada learned from her friend that Victor was returning to China before Christmas, her heart broke for, though she cared for him, she knew that, if he ever asked her to go with him, she would refuse. She did not want to be that far from her family, and he did not want to stay in England. Once the house party ended, Ada returned to her family in London. I have to say, the longer the books become, the more vexing they are. 20 chapters in this story and it was a long, drawn-out...mess. It grew quite boring reading about their hit-or-miss relationship. There was a great deal of fluff throughout this book that had nothing to do with the romance that was beginning to blossom between the Hero and Heroine. The main characters in this story needed more tweaking. While they were both mature and decent characters, the main male character needed a serious head slap for the way he treated the main female character. He put her through hell when all she wanted to do...and all she DID...was to help him overcome the atrocities the befell them. It is my honest opinion that when Victor finally got his sh*t together...Ada forgave him way too fast. The angst, drama, and intrigue were all over the place in this story. The twists and turns were mind-blowing and, while the chemistry and passion were at a good level, sometimes they were just at the wrong time. The ending was, once again, cut off too soon. It just stopped...again. Definitely not a five-star book. There was just something lacking in it. Even the title didn't suit the story. It made it sound like Ada was this hellion set on turning London Society on its head without a care in the world. That's not what happened in this book.