November 2017 Book of the Month Giveaway
December 20, 2017 01:27 PM Posted by juliannadouglas
For the month of November, I had only one five-star read. It was actually a re-read of an old favorite from an author I’ve long admired. In fact, when I started reading regularly again ten years ago after a long absence from it, this author was the first one I picked up and this book was among some of the first of hers that I read. Despite being a tad bit frustrated with the heroine, the hero was yummy and the story was an intense, angsty, romantic one that gave me all kinds of feels, just the way I like them. Not to mention, I basically got two romances for the price of one, which made it even better. This is definitely a book that I could read again and again.
As a little girl, Aline befriended an orphaned servant boy who worked on her family’s estate. They grew up together and by the time they were teenagers, they’d fallen madly in love. Although Aline knows she’s expected marry someone of her own social class, she can’t help entertaining fantasies of being with McKenna. But when her cold-hearted father finds out about their dalliance, he threatens to ruin McKenna and prevent him from ever finding gainful employment again. To save her one true love, Aline strikes a bargain with her father: she will send McKenna away in such a way that he won’t return in exchange for her father finding him another job. Then she tells McKenna that she never loved him and was only toying with him, even though it was like stabbing a knife through her own heart to do it. Not long after McKenna left, Aline suffered a kitchen accident that left her legs badly scarred from burns, nearly killing her, and she never married because of it. So when McKenna returns, her love for him still burns bright, although she believes that he’ll reject her if he knows the truth of her deformity. I liked Aline for her selflessness in trying to save McKenna, and for allowing herself to enjoy his attentions when he came back. I understood her reservations, but when she was ready to send him away again rather than tell him the truth, she did frustrate me bit. However, I grudgingly admit that her actions set up a great emotion-laden ending that I loved.
McKenna was content to simply be a servant and share in the fantasy of one day being with Aline, until she ripped his heart out by sending him away. After that he became driven, trying to purge his demons with hard work, even though Aline haunted him at every turn. McKenna moved to America where he chanced to meet the eldest son of a wealthy family and after saving his life, they went into business together. Twelve years later, McKenna is now a very wealthy man, and when business takes him back to England, he can’t resist visiting the estate of his old employer, this time as a valued guest. Except business isn’t the only thing on his mind. He has every intention of seducing Aline and then leaving her to get revenge. He just didn’t expect the magical connection between them to still be there or to realize that he still loves this woman who refuses to let him be anything more than her paramour. McKenna begins the story as a sweet, unjaded boy, but he comes back a cynical, brooding man. A couple of times, he made me doubt his feelings with his assertions that he only wanted revenge, but I could still see through the anger and frustration seething inside him to find glimmers of the sweet boy he once was. Despite what he says, his feelings for Aline come through loud and clear in his actions. He's a tender, passionate lover, he can be a romantic with the right incentive, and he didn't disappoint with his reaction when Aline finally confessed all at the end.
This is truly a magical story. I love reunion romances, as well as heroes and heroines who are childhood sweethearts or who are from opposite sides of the tracks, so this book hit the spot for me in more ways than one. Aline and Mckenna were a match made in heaven, and I'm so glad they finally worked out their issues and got together. After all they'd been through, they certainly deserved it. The pot was only sweetened by an equally steamy secondary romance between McKenna’s business partner, Gideon, and Aline’s younger sister, Olivia, which captured my imagination just as much as the main romance did. It's a wonderful story all the way around that I hope to revisit again in the future. That’s why I’m naming Lisa Kleypas’ Again the Magic as my November Book of the Month. If you enjoy second-chance historical romance filled with tenderness, angst, drama, and plenty of steam, then you should definitely give this book a try. Keep reading to learn how you can win a copy for your own library.
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Cover Blurb- She gave him her innocence… Now McKenna has made his fortune, and he has returned—more boldly handsome and more mesmerizing than before. |
His ruthless plan is to take revenge on the woman who shattered his dreams of love. But the magic between them burns as bright as ever. And now he must decide whether to let vengeance take its toll…or risk everything for his first, and only, love.
Read my complete review of Again the Magic.
Giveaway
If you would like to win a copy of Again the Magic to see how wonderful it is for yourself, just enter the Rafflecopter giveaway below. One lucky winner will receive their choice of an eBook or print copy of the book. If the winner chooses an eBook, I will gift it to them via the eBook retailer of their choice (Amazon or B & N). If the winner chooses a print copy, I will have it mailed directly to them via Amazon. Good luck!
International Entrants: You are welcome to enter my contest, but please note that not all eBooks are available in all countries due to copyright restrictions. If this is the case, Amazon does offer an option to trade for a gift card (I'm not sure about B & N). If you choose print, I can mail it to you via the Amazon website that services your country, pending availability and cost. Otherwise I will mail it to you via U. S. Amazon's standard international shipping, but it may take up to 6-8 weeks to arrive, and I may not have the capability of tracking the package.
Categories: Book of the Month, Giveaways
Tags: Lisa Kleypas
