A review by librovert
The Betrayal of the Blood Lily by Lauren Willig
3.0
At the end of [b:The Temptation of the Night Jasmine|3701590|The Temptation of the Night Jasmine (Pink Carnation, #5)|Lauren Willig|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1406968184s/3701590.jpg|3752586], Miss Penelope Deveraux is caught admitting to a rather salacious (though not unvirginal) encounter with Frederick Staines. After their hasty marriage, they remove to India where Staines takes up a position in Hyderabad. Charlotte and Henrietta are sure that this will help them create a happy marriage, but we can all tell from the book description that it doesn't.
Penelope is not a typical heroine for this time period. She has no patience for the strict rules of the ton and she relishes in the freedom riding a horse gives her. In contrast, Alex Reid does everything he can to appear the perfect gentleman. Snubbed for his involvement with the army in India, Reid is not generally accepted among the elite in England. I don't agree with all the choices these two make in their relationship, but I did root for them.
The spying in this novel was a bit detached from the arc thus far, but being able to read this for the first time in 2014 makes me super excited for the last of the series to be published in 2015, [b:The Lure of the Moonflower|21938183|The Lure of the Moonflower (Pink Carnation, #12)|Lauren Willig|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/book/50x75-6121bf4c1f669098041843ec9650ca19.png|41242249].
Penelope is not a typical heroine for this time period. She has no patience for the strict rules of the ton and she relishes in the freedom riding a horse gives her. In contrast, Alex Reid does everything he can to appear the perfect gentleman. Snubbed for his involvement with the army in India, Reid is not generally accepted among the elite in England. I don't agree with all the choices these two make in their relationship, but I did root for them.
The spying in this novel was a bit detached from the arc thus far, but being able to read this for the first time in 2014 makes me super excited for the last of the series to be published in 2015, [b:The Lure of the Moonflower|21938183|The Lure of the Moonflower (Pink Carnation, #12)|Lauren Willig|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/book/50x75-6121bf4c1f669098041843ec9650ca19.png|41242249].