A Reader's Opinion: SPLENDOR by Shehanne Moore
A READER'S OPINION
SPLENDOR is irresistible! SPLENDOR by talented author Shehanne Moore was the perfect read for me right when I needed it! I had so much fun reading this story because it featured a heroine who has to disguise herself as a man. I simply cannot resist a Regency historical romance when the main character has to cross-dress to win her point. SPLENDOR tells the story of Splendor Malachi who out of necessity, has to win a chess tournament to pay her family's debts. Since only men are allowed to play this game, she is determined to win . . . but she must be dressed as a man. Can she really fool the other players? It's at this tournament where she meets her opponent, Kendall, a famous rake. The moment they meet, a strange feeling is in the air, one neither of them can resist! Why is Kendall attracted to this young man? There's plenty of fun and some scenes had me giggle! This is a story of lies, secrets, sex, love, and misunderstandings. The heroine is bold and determined, which makes this story interesting to follow. Splendor and Kendall's journey together will be filled with plenty of surprises and romance. SPLENDOR is the second story in Ms. Moore's London Jewel Thieves series, and I will definitely watch for her third story! This book brings you back to an era where women had to cross-dress as men if they wanted to succeed and compete with them!
Rating: 4 1/2 Stars | Content Rating: 5 Hearts | Reviewed by: Nicole Laverdure
BOOK SYNOPSIS
The only thing he hates more than losing at chess is marriage... For Splendor, former servant to London's premiere jewel thieves, pretending to be someone else is all in a day's work. So when she learns of a chess tournament—a men's chess tournament—with a ten thousand pound prize, pretending to be a man is the obvious move. The money will be enough to set her fiancé up in his own business so they can finally marry, and more importantly, it'll pay off her bills and keep her out of debtor's prison. But she doesn't plan on her opponent, the rakish Kendall Winterborne, Earl Stillmore, being a sore loser—and a drunken one, at that. But before she can collect her prize, she finds herself facing the most merciless man in London across a pair of dueling pistols at dawn. Chess may be Splendor's game, but she's never fired a pistol before. And dressed as a man with ill-fitting shoes on the slippery grass and borrowed glasses that make it hard to see, she's certain she's finally tipped her own king. Bitter divorcee Kendall Winterborne, Earl Stillmore, is the ton's most ruthless heartbreaker. And he's got three pet peeves: kitchen maids, marriage...and losing. So when he realizes the "man" opposite him has entered the chess tournament under false pretenses, he's in the perfect position to extort the little chit. But that's before the exasperating woman begins to slip beneath his skin, and soon all he can think about is slipping beneath her skirts. But the confounded woman is engaged to someone else, and worse—she's nothing but a former kitchen maid, just like the one that lured his father into the marriage that ruined the family name. And his ex-wife taught him more than he cared to know about why marriage was the worst kind of checkmate of all...
Genre: Regency Romance | Pub Date: May 18, 2017 | Publisher: Etopia Press
Format Read: E-Book | Source: Provided by the author or publisher
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