Lucien, the Duke of Blackheath’s story starts with the ending of the third novel, THE DEFIANT ONE, but from the heroine’s point of view. And what a beginning it is! I honestly felt the anticipation written. My heart pounded as author stretched and strained the moment to a point that my heart pounded. I also worried that the author would match him with some naïve yet interesting female, but when she gave him femme fatale like Eva, I rejoiced!

Eva de la Mouriére, a beautiful, intelligent and much too dangerous American spy with ties to Marie Antoinette and Benjamin Franklin in France, was an extraordinary character chosen to rein in Lucien and bring him to heel. She was one female, I thought, perfect for the task and an equal match for him. Once we get a glimpse of her past and get to know her inner workings, we can’t help but like her (despite some awful decisions she makes). Their games and fascination with each other was fun to anticipate and witness.

Eva’s character has been burned and rejected by males in her life too many times and using them for their weaknesses is what she’s good at. To trust a male, to let one ‘in’ will take more than a sexual encounter and consequences of it, and certainly more than saying ‘I will’.

It will take a tragedy for both of these people to finally accept each others faults and admit that love comes to one regardless of one’s wants or needs.

We are by now very familiar with the hero of this story, but let me be clear, we do NOT know him. Yes, he is aloof, master manipulator and in control of his emotions as well as the destinies of his siblings, but that does not a man make. As the author takes us deeper into Lucien's psyche and bares his soul to us, we finally understand the reasons behind his obsession behind the decisions he makes, especially the last one in regards to his little sister and her future. His latest attempt at manipulating the destiny of his last sibling left without a significant other backfires with such consequences that will reverberate through this family for months. This time, playing God could cost Lucien not just his own life, but something he even values more, his sister’s love and respect. Speaking of, this would be the only complaint I have about this book. I wish the author would have dedicated a full story to Nerissa and Perry. They both deserved full story and I think it’s never too late to tell it.

Talk about fireworks! The end to de Montforte series is one dramatic finish that is NOT to be missed!

This fourth and last installment to the series does not disappoint, and the wait for this eagerly anticipating story of the Machiavellian Lucien was worth it.

If you’ve read my previous three reviews of this series, you’ll no doubt know what is coming next. If you guessed my Five Quills, you would be right. Now that I’m done reading all four books, asked which one is my favorite, I’d have a hard time choosing one. All four are vastly different as their respective characters and all four are amazing reads. I highly recommend them all and if you decide to read them, please read them all at once like I did. It gave me the feeling of an epic story, of reading a Saga de Montforte.

Melanie for RCJR eZine

*Book provided by the author. ( )

I scarfed these down like candy. Harmon's de Montforte brothers are each delicious, and every book is better than the last. Unfortunately, most are out of print, but if you see them in the used bookstore, definitely grab a copy. "The Wicked One" is still available and stands alone very well. ( )