FINAL DECISION: Intellectually satisfying with damaged hero and heroine that find happiness together and a secondary romance. The only negative is that I didn’t feel a great emotional connection between the hero and heroine until the last quarter of the book, but I liked the story anyway and it ended on a high note.

THE STORY: Abigail Pinehurst just wants to work to build a life for herself and her sister, but she is under the thumb of a man who wants her to spy on his cousin, Guy Neville, Earl of Argyle. The kind man she ends up meeting hides a secret that could threaten his ability to keep control of his estate and his life. The two begin a romance, but Abigail has secrets of her own that threaten any chance at happiness the two might have.

OPINION: This book begins with two characters who had very bad childhoods and both have secrets which could destroy the lives they have built. Abigail comes to Guy’s estate willing to rat him out because she is concerned about her own future. But she is a good person and quickly she has a conflict because she likes Guy and yet she is supposed to be working to destroy him. I found her admirable. She has managed to make a life for herself after horrible abuse. I also really liked that although she knows that society views her past as shameful, she has managed to have good relationships with men and also to build something valuable for herself.

Guy is also self-made. He was abused by his father because Guy was unable to learn to read. His disability is something that he has learned to deal with having become a military hero. At his kind older brother’s death, Guy unexpectedly becomes the earl and all his feelings of lack of worth overwhelm him. Worse, his cousin is sniffing around trying to find out anything he can use to take control of the estate.

These two characters find their worth with one another and with their friends and family.

My complaint is that the heavy emotional work between these characters doesn’t take place until late in the book when their romance seems doomed. At the beginning of the book felt a bit emotionally disconnected for these characters. I didn’t really get why these two wanted to be together other than sexual attraction — which was fine for that but Guy’s immediate emotional attachment didn’t feel right to me.

But by the end of the book, everything felt emotionally right between these two. The resolution of the serious problem keeping them apart felt contrived and too convenient, but since I don’t care about the plot as much as the characters, it was fine.

WORTH MENTIONING: This book has a secondary romance that I enjoyed very much.

CONNECTED BOOKS: ATTRACTED TO THE EARL is the third book in the Imperfect Lords series. While the books have connecting characters, this book can easily be read as a standalone as the romance is self-contained.

STAR RATING: I give this book 4 stars.

NOTE: I received an eARC of this book via Netgalley. I was not required to write a review or to write a positive review. All opinions contained herein are my own.