Heartless

Heartless, by Mary Balogh
Grade: B-

Lucas Kendrick reluctantly comes back to England after ten years of exile in
France; now Duke of Harndon since his brother's death, he recoils at the idea of
becoming reacquainted with a family that rejected him, and marrying is simply
out of the question, even though bringing back his Duchess to Bowden Abbey is
part of his duty. Bitter and cynical, he has stopped believing in love since his
older brother destroyed his happiness, and yet his wedding to Anna Marlowe,
barely one week after their first encounter, could easily turn into a
love-match.

Anna Marlowe thought she would remain a spinster
for the rest of her life. Years of self-sacrifice to take care of her family
brought her to the age of twenty-five without the chance to find a husband;
besides, it becomes quickly clear that a man of her past made sure in a most
dreadful way that she could never marry. But her attraction to the handsome Duke
of Harndon leads her to marriage before she could weigh the consequences.

After a duel with his brother, Lucas is forced to flee his home and family. He lives in Paris for 10 years and has vowed never to love anyone ever again. He hardens his heart against family, friends and lovers.

After his older brother dies he comes back home to tend to the family. His mother and his widowed sister in law are fighting over the home. They are both the dowager duchess, but neither has the right to be mistress of the house. Lucas' uncle convinces him to marry, and Lucas agrees that it would be a good idea to place a true Dutches in the family home.

Lucas is set up with, and marries Anna. He thinks she is the perfect woman to be his dutches. Anna has a secret though. She is being stalked & blackmailed by a man from her past. Lucas also has a secret..his widowed sister in law, Henrietta, was once going to be his wife. Henrietta is still in love with Lucas, and Lucas is concerned that being around her will awaken old feelings. Henrietta is a sneaky bitch, and that is all I am saying about her.

I have to admit that after the first few chapters I wasn't sure I wanted to continue reading. The hero really turned me off. He wears rouge, a beauty patch, sniffs snuff (ew), he uses a fan, and dresses better than the heroine. The author actually pays more attention to the hero's clothing that she did to the heroine. After all that he is still supposed to be all manly (even though he is just an inch or two taller than the heroine)
I didn't buy it. My gaydar was going off a mile minute.

Anyway, it was about 250 pages into the book before I started liking Lucas. He is very passionate, and when he does finally let himself love his wife, he loves with his whole being.

I am glad that I decided to finish reading it. I'll probably read it again in the future.