Told by everyone, including his father, he is slow-witted, Lord John Mitchell is willing to do almost anything to avoid helping run the family estate or care for his orphaned nephew. His lifelong battle learning to read and write has convinced him his father is right.
After the death of her husband in the Crimean War, Vivienne Ravenhill needs financial stability for her son and herself.
When Lord John’s father suddenly dies, he is thrown into taking on the estate and the family’s mill. Are John’s learning disabilities something he can overcome in order to handle this responsibility?
Will Vivienne find a place in his home...and his heart?
An interesting look at tackling dyslexia in 1855.
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Jennifer Conner's Redemption for a Rogue is the fourth book in her Regimental Heroes series and like the others deals with former soldiers carrying the scars of war and loss. Though there's a visit from a character from a previous book this stands on its own quite nicely. Considering how enjoyable this book was though I don't see why you wouldn't want to read the others. With these damaged heroes being so sexy it's easy to get drawn into their lives and hope for their HEA.
Lord John has always been made to feel stupid, first by his father and then by every teacher, but it's dyslexia that affects him. Since his father expects so little of him he's gone out of his way to act the deadbeat son. With the death of his brother he soon has no choice but to take control. Seeing him struggle with no support brought a tear to my eye. I felt his frustration and admired how hard he kept working to succeed. Most heroes would've been belligerent to others out of frustration but as a testament to his kind heart I never really saw him do that. He persevered and made his own happiness by going with his heart and mind's choices, not what society deemed best.
Vivienne Ravenhill is a widow who did what she had to to make ends meet. She immediately went to work after the death of her soldier husband showing no signs of weakness. She's strong, loyal, and truly kindhearted. After knowing John for such a short period of time she immediately knew what afflicted him and set about to help him. Despite their class differences the long nights of working together felt natural and showed their burgeoning relationship's sweet development.
The inclusion of children can sometimes throw off a romance and act as a distraction. The two boys in this story though were actually likable and helped cement that feeling of family. We don't see much of Lord John's father but his beliefs had a big impact on the hero and had me disliking him from the first moment he came on the scene. Through Vivienne's love John overcomes years of belittling and their sweet kisses lead to a very satisfying sexual interlude late in the story.
With its short length you'd not expect such a fully fleshed-out story but I became fully immersed in the storyline and these character's outcomes. With its unique less than perfect hero and strong-willed heroine I was rooting for a HEA every step of the way and plan on reading the other books in this series to discover even more delectable heroes to root for.
My rating for this is a B+
*I received this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.
A B+...That's a good grade at my school (where I work). Thanks for sharing your thoughts, joder.
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