It Started with a Scandal: Pennyroyal Green Series (Pennyroyal Green, #10)

by Julie Anne Long

Lord Philippe Lavay once took to the high seas armed with charm as lethal as his sword, and a stone-cold conviction: he'll restore his family's fortune and honor, no matter the cost. Victory is at last within reach-when a brutal attack snatches it from his grasp and lands him in Pennyroyal Green. An afternoon of bliss brings a cascade of consequences for Elise Fountain. She is shunned by her family and ousted from a job she loves, and her survival means a plummet down the social ladder to a position no woman has yet been able to keep: housekeeper to a frighteningly formidable prince. The bold and gentle Elise sees past his battered body into Philippe's barricaded heart ...and her innate sensuality ignites his blood. Now a man who thought he could never love and a woman who thought she would never again trust must fight an incendiary passion that could be the ruin of them both.

• ISBN10: 0062334824
• ISBN13: 9780062334824
• Publish Date: 9 April 2015 (first published 31 March 2015)
• Publish Status: Active
• Out of Print: 15 October 2021
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Avon Books
• Format: Paperback (US Mass Market)
• Pages: 384
• Language: English

Reviews

[Amanda]

This is apparently the weekend of Julie Anne Long, and I'm okay with that. Because Julie Anne Long makes me feel things, and that's the mark of a good story.

Even if, on the surface, I don't always like how the situation is playing out. It's like we're being toyed with, us poor readers, and it's something you resent and love, all at once.

What I liked about It Started With a Scandal is that it takes on a woman who had a child out of wedlock, and while she's sorry for the circumstances it created, she's not sorry that she has her son, and through her love and determination for him, we see Elsie's character come to life.

Philippe almost takes a backseat to Elsie in many ways -- he has his battles, but Elsie's take center stage (page?) -- because his problems are softer, more in the background. And in some ways, we only see his problems as Elsie uncovers them, bit by determined bit.

Although of the three Pennyroyal Green books I've read this week, all three featured a hero who thought he had to marry someone else. It gets a bit old, that, especially since it's not a particular favorite trope of mine. Even so, things are right in the end, and I particularly enjoyed Philippe's interactions with Elsie's son Jack and how he reacted to learning she had a son.

Lyon and Olivia's story is up after this one, and I am thoroughly looking forward to it, as it's built up throughout the entire series.