Another Hoyt Masterpiece. Thief of Shadows is the fourth book in Hoyt’s Maiden Lane series. It tells the story of Winter Makepeace and Lady Isabel Beckinhall. If you haven’t read the other books — don’t read this one first. Not because the story isn’t self contained. It definitely is. But there are things revealed in this book that are secrets in the first three books. The romance between Winter and Isabel is hot and yet sweet and deep. Both characters have secrets. What Hoyt does in a magnificent fashion is layer her characters. They are never stereotypes. They are memorable and bigger than life and thus impossible to forget. I’ve read all her books multiple times because I continue to think about the characters and the language that Hoyt uses is compelling and lyrical. I highly recommend Thief of Shadows and any and all of Hoyt’s Maiden Lane books.

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Who Can Resist a Not So Good Pirate? The third book in the Maiden Lane series does not disappoint. The story of Silence Hollingbrook and Charming Mickey O’Connor is a definite treat. For me one of the most interesting parts of the story is how we learn that the night when Mickey “ruined” Silence by having her spend the night with him (even though nothing happened) changed not only Silence’s life, but also Mickey’s. I always enjoy how Hoyt has characters develop and evolve though her books. I also really enjoy how her Maiden Lane series uses the characters throughout all the books. The incident from book one of the series, spawns this story. While one does not need to read all the books, there is certainly a more layered and interesting storyline being developed throughout all the books. That being said, I hope that Hoyt will give us an update on Mickey and Silence in a future Maiden Lane novel.

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Story of a Sinner and a Saint. One thing I love about Elizabeth Hoyt’s books is how she takes characters who are not always loveable and attractive at first to a reader and then through the story brings the reader to care deeply about the characters and their happiness. She also has a way of taking characters that appear to be opposites and then has them struggling with a similar problem in different ways. Wicked Intentions is the story of Temperance and Caire; she is a “saint” who hides a dark secret and he is a “sinner” who hides a vulnerable and caring soul. These two tormented people learn to accept and love one another. I’ve now read this book three times and I love it more and more as Hoyt contiues to add to her Maiden Lane world. I never give five stars for a book I read only once. I reserve my five stars for books that I consider compelling re-reads. Hoyt is building a whole world of interesting, compelling characters who interact with one another. While one can read any book apart from the others, the real depth of her storytelling is in the accumulated stories that she is telling.