chymerra
Written on Nov 12, 2016
I went into this book thinking that it was going to be one of those historical romances that the heroine was a dimwit, and the hero had significant trust issues and couldn’t get over them. I was right about the hero, but oh boy, was I wrong about the heroine.
Isobel surprised me. I thought she would be one of those heroines who got into trouble and then is like, “Why is this happening to me.” The only time that happened was in the prologue when the Libertine Scholar’s enemy kidnaped her and sent on a wild carriage ride with Marisa that resulted in Marisa being seriously injured. All of the situations that she found herself in after that, she took responsibility for it.
Arend Aubury, Baron Labourd, has some pretty dark secrets and was scarred by events that had happened to him while he was in Paris and Brazil. He refused to let anyone but the Libertine Scholars close to him and forget it if it was a beautiful woman. Then he froze her out. I honestly felt awful for him when he was reliving the past, and it was refreshing to see a historical novel that dared to touch on some darker subjects in detail.
Isobel has fallen under Arend’s radar because her stepmother, Victoria, is believed to be the madwoman stalking his friends and their wives. They think that Isobel is helping her, which is the farthest thing from the truth. Isobel believes Victoria killed her father and is trying to secure a marriage that will take her away from Victoria.
It doesn’t help that every time Victoria does something, Isobel is there or has knowledge of it. Still, even with all that hanging over her head, Arend manages to become very attracted to her. He also goes as far as to propose a “fake” engagement after Isobel tells him what I outlined above. His reasoning, it would be a great way to fool Victoria and for Arend to keep a close eye on Isobel.
Yeah, that didn’t go over too well. Soon, Isobel and Arend have consummated their relationship in a stable. That leads to Arend getting struck on the head with a piece of wood and Isobel being kidnapped with her friend Evangeline’s young son Sealy. It didn’t look well for her because her information (stolen from Victoria) led his friends in the opposite direction as to where Arend was. So yeah, it’s understandable why Arend and his friends didn’t trust her. If I were in their shoes, I wouldn’t either.
The sex scenes between Arend and Isobel were unbelievably hot. Like off the page scorching hot, which is another reason why I liked this book. Isobel actively went after Arend and told him what she wanted. Something other historical romances don’t do. Either they wait until marriage or the heroine’s first time is rushed. Isobel’s wasn’t nor were all the times afterward. They were like rabbits.
I cried when Arend finally opened up about what happened to him. Isobel’s reaction was perfect and was what Arend needed.
In a way, I did feel bad for Victoria too. For something that awful to happen to a young girl, it is bound to affect her and not in a good way. She let vengeance rule her life, and she was willing to sacrifice everything to get to the son of the person she held responsible for what happened to her.
The end of the book and the prologue made me bawl. There’s a twist that took me by surprise. There is a HEA for Arend and Isobel. The author did pave the way for book seven, and I can’t wait to read it. I also am going to eventually buy the other books too because I want to read the other couple’s stories.
I would give A Night of Forever an Adult rating. There is sex. There is mild language. There is violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.
I would reread A Night of Forever. I would recommend it to family and friends.
**I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book**