An Unlikely Alliance by Rachel Van Dyken

Synopsis:

Spoiled New York rogue Royce Mc Arthur lives a charmed life. He sees no reason to settle down, until his mother issues her decree that he must grow up, find a wife and produce some grandchildren…preferably before she dies of old age. But his choices are quite limited considering the only women of his acquaintance are ones of ill repute. Meeting the beautiful Evelyn DeJarlias at a ball gives him hope he may have found the one. Her southern blue collar outspokenness and lack of refinement draws him like a moth to a flame. Unfortunately, she does not find him nearly as endearing -- consistently refusing his lavish gifts and his attentions, she poses a challenge he simply cannot ignore.

Review:

This was a cute regency-ish novella. It actually takes place in New York, I wasn’t quite sure of the exact time frame, some of the conversations or statements seemed too modern at times. Royce is your typical rake, when he meets Evelyn he regrets his past and wants to make a change. Since the story is so short things moved along quickly (almost too quickly at times) it was a bit hard to believe he had truly changed. He admits that he gets bored with women after a month, and I wonder will he get bored with Evelyn after their whirlwind courtship. Evelyn was likable; she at least tries to resist his charms and makes him work for her affection. The two team up to figure out what is going on between their parents (her father and his mother) and I suppose a friendship grows from their time together. Overall, it was an enjoyable short story.

Content: Clean. Talk of mistresses, no detailed love scenes