USA Today bestselling author Jennifer Haymore puts a sexy spin on Cinderella in . . .
Beatrice Reece, Lady Fenwick, has retired from polite society. Everyone knows her late husband treated her abominably, and she simply cannot bear the whispers of the ton. But it’s the night of London’s premier masquerade ball-and Beatrice’s one chance to revel in anonymity. She hopes no one will recognize her beneath her mask, not even the sinfully sexy stranger across the room who holds her captive in his gaze . . .
Andrew Sinclair would know beautiful Beatrice anywhere from the gentle sway of her hips, the richness of her hair, and the lushness of her body. When he asks her to dance, the attraction is instant and all-consuming. The only woman he’s ever truly wanted is finally in his arms. But when the clock strikes twelve, will this one reckless night fade into the morning light?
I’ve read at least one of Haymore’s House of Trent stories – His for Christmas, which I really enjoyed – and I found this one to be just as good. Not having read the rest of the series, I don’t feel like it really impacted things that much … except, the history of Beatrice’s husband was likely expanded on in at least one of the stories. I don’t think that it really made any difference in how much I understood and enjoyed this one, but I’m sure it would have provided more detail.
One Night with an Earl is short but well put together. By the time it was done I felt like I understood the characters and was rooting for them to get their happy ending, which doesn’t always happen in books that run around 100 pages. Haymore does a fantastic job of giving her readers the history they need to believe that the two could fall for each other so quickly, without creating any sluggishness in the current happenings.
I really enjoyed how, because it was short, we get to concentrate on Beatrice and Drew. We are hand in hand with them as they move from the initial attraction to deeper feelings. Beatrice is understandably reluctant to trust herself with another man and Drew is insightful enough to get that, and to move slowly with her. It’s sweet, tender and heartwarming to see them slowly get past her guard.
From what I’ve seen with His for Christmas and One Night with an Earl, I think that Haymore is definitely going on my permanent TBR pile. Luckily she’s got a decent booklist to keep me occupied until the next book releases.
