Lady Celine Wexham seems the model British subject. French by birth but enjoying life in 1813 as a widowed English countess, she is in the unique position of being able to help those in need--or to spy for the notorious Napoleon Bonaparte. When Rees Phillips of the British Foreign Office is sent to pose as the countess's butler and discover where her true loyalties lie, he is confident he will uncover the truth. But the longer he is in her fashionable townhouse in London's West End, the more his staunch loyalty to the Crown begins to waver as he falls under Lady Wexham's spell. Will he find the proof he needs? And if she is a spy after all, will he do the right thing?
Ruth Axtell deftly creates a world where black and white burst into a confusion of colors and no one is who they seem. Readers will be hooked from the very first scene to the final page.
I have been looking forward to reading something from [a:Ruth Axtell|6460381|Ruth Axtell|http://www.goodreads.com/assets/nophoto/nophoto-F-50x66-2a9d702c2a0f483c9f7dd119cc28a9a7.jpg], aka [a:Ruth Axtell Morren|476401|Ruth Axtell Morren|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1330132663p2/476401.jpg] for a while ever since I kept seeing such beautiful covers on mass market imprints. I'm delighted that she is now writing for publishers like Howard and Revell Books. Revell has another great read in this author and I hope for more to come. I did not know what to expect with this story except romance and that was definitely there as well as some fun suspense all set in the background of an English regency. Trying to figure out characters' motives and sides in the war between France and Napoleon was an interest keeper and I enjoyed coming back to this novel every time I had to put it down for life events. I truly enjoyed the characters and while I'm not ecstatic about the novel, without a doubt I will be willing to go back for future novels as well as backlist from Ruth. She knows how to tell a story. While it's a century earlier, this one would also appeal to Downton Abbey-esque fans with an Upstairs/Downstairs dynamic and feeling as well.
*Thanks to Revell Books for providing a copy for review.*
posted: http://creativemadnessmama.com/blog/2013/03/07/moonlight-masquerade-by-ruth-axtell/
Reading updates
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Started reading
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6 March, 2013:
Finished reading
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6 March, 2013:
Reviewed