To Rescue a Rogue

In 1815 during the pivotal Battle of Waterloo, Lord Darius ¿Dare¿ Debenham is critically injured and rushed from the front. To dull his severe pain and help him heal, he receives medication, but finds out over time way he had way too much laudanum as he become addicted to the opiate. Now two years later, he fights his craving for the drug every moment he is awake. As he struggles to control his addiction and accusation that he cowardly fled the battlefield, family friend Lady Mara St. Bride wants the return of the old Dare that she secretly loved. She will do what it takes to persuade him that he can contain the demons and still live a fruitful fulfilling life in the light instead of humiliatingly hiding in the shadows. As Mara does anything and everything including touring London with a blanket and her undies and enlisting the other eleven Rogues, the last of them dares to think he can return to life with the love of Mara as his impetus. --- This is a fantastic finale to the superior Regency romantic suspense series, the Rogues. Mara is a courageous heroine risking her reputation and much more for the man she loves while the return of the other eleven of the Dirty Dozen provides a homecoming feel to the plot. However this story belongs to Dare as he struggles with everyday life having no dreams or aspirations for even tomorrow until Mara kicks his butt and heart into first gear. As has been the case throughout this exemplary saga, Jo Beverly writes an outstanding historical romance. --- Harriet Klausner

o Rescue a Rogue was my delve back into the world of Romance. I haven't read a Romance novel since I was about 17 so I was skeptical, but I picked this up while on vacation from there leave a book take a book stash. I was instantly hooked. In this story line, apparently a continuation of a long series of books about a group of men called the Rogues and their interactions with their various spouses. This story was about Mara a young lady spending time in London. Here she meets up with her brother's friend Dare (one of the Rogues) and he helps her out of a very sticky situation, the type you can only get into in 1800's London. As the story progresses you discover that Dare has been wounded in Waterloo and is currently battling to overcome an Opium addiction. Intertwined in the this love story is a bit of drama plus the intertwining of the other Rogues from the previous series books. What I liked most about this book was that it was different from the Romance books I read in the past, this was more about the story versus burning loins. Now don't get me wrong, there is always a time and a place for burning loins, but it was a great story. One of the other aspects that I liked most was that I felt the books was very historically accurate for the time and I loved looking at London through the eyes of 18 year old Mara. I enjoyed this book so much that I am going to go back and read a few more in thier series.

Jo Beverley is obviously a great writer (hence all those accolades for being a great writer) and I am thrilled to have found this book. I'll admit I read mostly historical romances of the Regency era where there is a duke as hero and a sweet, feisty, innocent young virgin as the heroine, both of whom learn about themselves on their journey to LOVE. In To Rescue A Rogue, the hero wasn't a duke (he was the third son of a duke), but he was admirable. He fought an opium addiction. Of course, it wasn't *his* fault he was addicted; he was held captive and fed the stuff until he became addicted, don't you know. And the heroine, while a sweet young virgin, was wise beyond her years and had an inner strength that matched that of the hero's. I absolutely loved both characters. I loved the way the plot kept thickening. It started out mostly about the heroine trying to get the hero to fall in love with her, but conflict began to arise because of all the trials (mostly surrounding the hero's past) they had to face. There was another plot thread which put the heroine's life in danger, and that thread was tied very neatly by the author into the conflict surrounding the hero's past. I can't wait to read the other books in this series and I'll probably read this one again.

I never read a full page to page romance book before. I was so glad that this was the first book I picked up! I had a great experience reading the relationship these to character's had. The amazing connection from their first meeting and how they over came the real meaning of committment. I never knew that these types of book could be so enjoyable as well as well written. I'm so a fan of Jo Beverley. I can't wait to read the rest of the series. It's trully a break from those text books!