Oh Hadleigh you had so much to learn in this story and you came up to the mark. Penny Penhurst is the widow of a traitor trying to find a place for herself now that her husband is dead and she has nothing but a child to care for, she didn't need Hadleigh to stomp in and pay for everything and assume that she would be fine with it all. The dressing down she gives Hadleigh was enjoyable and the solutions they had to put in place were satisfying. It's a good story to wrap up the series and I really enjoyed the read. ( )

Another FABULOUS addition to what's been a wonderful series. Ms. Heath gives us another potential couple to adore, while gathering the pairings of the past for what could be the trial of the century. There are pasts to overcome and futures to consider, inner demons to face and hard truths to admit, love to be found and forevers to reach for...and you get a front row seat to it all. You'll smile with the highs, feel your heart clench at the lows, but all the while you'll hold out hope for the two to see through all that's standing in their way and finally reach that happy ending.


**ebook received for review; opinions are my own ( )

This was an excellent conclusion to the King's Elite series. "The Boss" is in custody and it is up to Lord Hadleigh as Crown Prosecutor to build a watertight case for conviction. Hadleigh is well known for his meticulous and thorough preparations, and his unemotional prosecutions. The book opens at the trial of Lord Penhurst, who was captured in the first book of the series. Lady Penny Penhurst is on the witness stand, and Hadleigh can't help being moved by her courage. Haunted by what she endured both before and after her husband's capture, Hadleigh takes steps to help her secretly.

Penny endured three years of hell at the hands of her physically and mentally abusive husband. With her husband's estates and funds confiscated by the Crown, Penny is left with nothing but her determination to start a new life. It is harder than she expected, but she intends to stand on her own two feet. When she finds out that Hadleigh has been helping her on the sly, she is furious and reads him the riot act.

I loved the development of the relationship between Hadleigh and Penny. Overall, it is an emotional rollercoaster with both of them having to face the demons of their pasts before they can move on to a happy future. Hadleigh is a fixer. He is compelled to right wrongs when he sees them, which is why he is so outstanding as a prosecutor. He is consumed by guilt over what happened to Penny and feels partially responsible for it. Partly driven by his feelings of not having been able to help his mother, it helped him to know that he was helping someone who suffered as she had. Penny was furious at his interference. Having been controlled and manipulated by one man, she was not going to allow another one any control over her life. I loved the way she laid out her objections in a manner that Hadleigh could understand, and how it opened his eyes to the consequences of his actions.

But Hadleigh still isn't able to let go of his need to help. The perfect solution falls into his hands when he offers his country estate as a place to prepare witnesses for the upcoming trial. The house was closed for a decade, so he offers the job of housekeeper to Penny. This gives her the employment she craves and Hadleigh the satisfaction of helping her. But there are also consequences to his actions. Hadleigh avoided the house for years because of the memories he associates with it, memories he is now forced to confront. I ached for him as those memories frequently overwhelmed him.

The interactions between Penny and Hadleigh were fantastic. Penny refuses to be a victim and has no trouble standing up to Hadleigh when she feels that he oversteps. Hadleigh isn't a man who feels he is always right and can see the error of his ways when they are pointed out to him. It takes him a while to realize that there is more to his need to help Penny than just reparations for the past. I liked seeing them slowly get to know each other. There were some heartwarming scenes of Hadleigh with Penny's son, as she sees a different side to him. There were also some intensely emotional scenes, such as when she breaks through the walls he erected around his memories of his mother. At the same time, the attraction between them continues to grow. Penny is reluctant to trust herself after her disaster of a marriage, while Hadleigh is ready to have it all. I loved his understanding of her feelings and his willingness to be patient while she works through them. The epilogue was fantastic and perfect for this series. I loved seeing the extended length of time passed and where they all are in their lives.

The secondary characters were all people from the earlier books. I loved Clarissa and Seb's support of Penny and laughed out loud when Seb confronted Hadleigh over his clandestine efforts to help Penny. Seb is caught between a rock and a hard place as he wants to help Penny but also understands Hadleigh's actions. When the action moved to the country house, I loved seeing Jessamine again. The instant friendship between her and Penny was great, helped along by their shared experiences. The Dowager Lady Flint and Harriet were both a riot with their uncensored comments and advice. Flint, Gray, and Seb were all willing participants in giving Hadleigh a hard time over his relationship with Penny. ( )

My first time reading Virginia Heath was this past April when I read The Disgraceful Lord Gray . I really enjoyed the writing and the slow burn romance so when I had a chance to read another installment in the King’s Elite series I jumped at the chance. The Determined Lord Hadleigh is book 4 and the final one in the series but reads fine as a stand alone.
In this last installment Lord Tristan Hadleigh member of the King’s Elite, is a barrister who is working as prosecutor on the case against a smuggling ring. All the smugglers are now standing trial including Penny Penhurst’s husband, Viscount Penhurst. Penny has been called as witness. When Lord Hadleigh sees her on the witness stand he is instantly drawn to her beauty and her bravery.

Once her husband is found guilty and sentenced to death his estate is taken away and Penny is left to fend for herself and her toddler Freddie but society can be cruel and the odds are against her.

Hadleigh comes up with an idea, as the smuggling ring trial continues he offers the witnesses a place to stay at his large estate in Essex. This is the home he grew up in and has not visited in a long time due to the bad memories of his abusive father and the guilt he harbors. Hadleigh also offers Penny a job as a housekeeper at the estate during the course of the trial. This way she has a safe place to stay with her son, has income plus can use this as a reference for future job hunting. Win win.

As the two get to know each other and Penny gets Hadleigh to open up about his past sparks start to fly as friendship and love begin to blossom. Handsome lawyer alert.

Much of the story-line revolves around domestic abuse towards women. This is the reason Lord Hadleigh chose to be a lawyer in the first place, his mother was a victim of abuse at the hands of his father. This haunts Hadleigh who lives with much guilt thinking he could have done something to help stop the abuse.

I really enjoyed The Determined Lord Hadleigh and author Virginia Heath has become a quick favorite in the genre. This was a sweet, well-written, romantic read about two people who are trying to move on with their lives and put the past behind them. I liked both Hadleigh and Penny. He automatically wants to take care of her, but she lets him know she can take care of herself and he respects her for that. The two naturally gravitate towards each other and it was sweet seeing them get together.

Disclaimer: This review is my honest opinion. I did not receive any kind of compensation for reading and reviewing this book. I am under no obligation to write a positive review. I received my free review copy of The Determined Lord Hadleigh by Virginia Heath from Rachel’s Random Resources in exchange for my honest thoughts.
https://bookwormnai.wordpress.com/2019/07/02/the-determined-lord-hadleigh-the-ki... ( )

This is an exceptionally fine ending for this well-written, well-plotted series. The characters are all wonderful and you get to spend time with all of the earlier heroes and heroines. To make it even better, at the end, we see all of them ten years into the future and learn what has happened in their lives during that time. It is one of the best endings (book or series) I’ve read in a long time!

The King’s Elite has been pursuing a traitorous band of smugglers throughout this series. They aren’t your ordinary smugglers; they are aristocrats from the highest echelons of the Beau Monde. All sorts of goods are brought into England – liquors, laces, whatever is wanted – and they are exchanged for guns and ammunition to aid Napoleon. In the first three books, the ring members were slowly and painstaking identified and rounded up and a member of the King’s Elite found his HEA in each. This book features the Crowns Prosecutor, Viscount Tristan Hadleigh and Lady Penelope (Penny) Penhurst, widow of the traitorous Viscount Penhurst who was murdered in prison so that he couldn’t provide States Evidence. This book is slower paced than the others. There are no exciting life and death situations, etc. It is just a romantic journey between two troubled souls while preparing for the Trial of the Century.

The Crown wanted to make an exception of Viscount Penhurst, so they impeached him, reverted his title and estate to the Crown and tried him, not in the House of Lords, but as a commoner in the regular judicial system. Every day of the trial, Hadleigh watched Lady Penhurst as she stoically attended the trial. He admired her courage and dignity. He appreciated that even more when, upon cross-examination of her testimony, she willingly testified against her husband – offering much more than he’d even asked.

Lady Penhurst is now penniless, homeless, and has a young son to care for. Hadleigh can’t stand the idea of a gently bred, lovely young woman trying to exist on her own in Cheapside, so he does his best to surreptitiously help her – until she finds out. Then she peels the skin from his hide. How dare he try to control her – no matter how well-meaning he is. She has just escaped an abusive and controlling man and she will absolutely never allow anybody to have control over her again. She will manage to support herself and her son – after all, she is the daughter of merchants and she can find a way to support herself.

Lord Hadleigh has secrets himself. Something about Lady Penhurst pulls him – maybe it is because she reminds Hadleigh of his mother who was also abused. He couldn’t help his mother, but maybe he can help Lady Penhurst.

When the Crown needs to bring Lady Jessamine (Book 2 – The Uncompromising Lord Flint) to London to prepare her as a witness in the final trials of the case, Hadleigh realizes he can kill two birds with one stone. He offers his closed and boarded-up family estate to the Crown for housing the witnesses and to act as a place for the King’s Elite to work out of while they are near London. Then, he persuades his superiors to hire Lady Penhurst as the housekeeper. It is only for the few weeks before the trial, but it is an opportunity for her and her son to be safe and maybe build up a bit of a nest egg while she decides what to do next.

I absolutely adored both Lady Penhurst and Lord Hadleigh. It isn’t often that I like both main characters equally, but I did this time. They both had so many hurts buried deep inside – and each was just what the other needed in order to heal. It took them a bit to get there – especially Lady Penhurst – but it was glorious when they finally made it.

I highly recommend this book and this series. There is enough detail that you could read this as a stand-alone book, but you would be missing so very much if you don’t read the first books in the series.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. ( )