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The Sins of Lord Lockwood Rules for the Reckless Meredith Duran 9781501139048 Books

Download As PDF : The Sins of Lord Lockwood Rules for the Reckless Meredith Duran 9781501139048 Books

The Sins of Lord Lockwood Rules for the Reckless Meredith Duran 9781501139048 Books

This is a "wow" of a book. Full of angst, pain, anguish, hatred and self-hatred, shame, fear, guilt and regret. A story that has you thinking "if only he/she had..." or "why didn't he/she...", all the while knowing that Duran used all these human fears, mistakes, omissions, misinterpretations and misunderstandings to allow this story its full impact.

In 1857 Liam Devaliant, Lord Lockwood, is handsome and charming but in need of funds. Anna, Countess of Forth, needs to marry so that she has full control over her Scottish island and its management. When they meet, they agree to a marriage of convenience, with a contract drawn up to allow each their own freedom and autonomy. What Liam and Anna hadn't counted on was falling in love. But as they approach their wedding day, neither reveals his or her feelings to the other. So they say their vows still believing the other party is only interested in that marriage of convenience between friends, not a love match.

Anna had grown up accustomed to being "left". Her father left her in the care of aunts. She was shuffled around from family to family as a girl. In Duran's words, "She had perfected the skill of being left..." and so "designed a marriage that would guarantee that [she] was left." When on their wedding night they quarrel and Liam goes out to cool off but never returns, Anna goes back to Scotland to hide. She'd been left again. She asks no questions about his whereabouts because, well, he obviously wanted to and meant to leave her.

But that wasn't at all the case. Liam had been abducted, thanks to his devious, jealous, greedy cousin Stephen who arranges for him to be taken away to New South Wales as a convict. There he is tortured and brutalized for over 3 years. When in 1861 he finally makes his way back to London, he does not contact Anna. One even gets the idea he would prefer not to see her again. Liam is a changed man. His brutal treatment has left him with PTSD, a fear that he is going mad, not a moment of peace, and a fierce, obsessive desire for revenge. He distracts himself with drink, drugs, loud parties and somewhat violent activities (one boxing scene is particularly affecting), and feels fear and shame about his new, perhaps-mad, violent self and scarred body and mind.

When Anna learns of his return, she's off to London, full of anger and resentment that he had never contacted her in all the years of his absence nor let her know of his return. Ignorant of what had really happened to him, she remains resentful and angry for much of the story, until she finally learns the truth. Then is when the guilt hits her: "He had not abandoned her. And she had wasted four years embroidering hateful fictions of him, when instead...she should have been searching for him. Raising the alarm and crying for justice. She had failed him."

What a heartwrenching, heartbreaking, sad, frustrating, complex, complicated, difficult reunion and eventual reconciliation there is to be found in these pages. But it must be read, not talked about. Their path to an HEA is not an easy one. This may be the most damaged hero I've ever encountered in historical romance and Duran does an excellent job of creating him in all his complexity. And he is paired with a formidable heroine, just the woman he needs to help him work through all his trauma and damage.

Duran's writing is so masterful that the reader can feel this couple's pain and anguish. This is not an easy read, but it's an excellent one. And if you can make it through all the heartbreak and torment, you'll be rewarded at the end with an epilogue that warms your heart and lets you know that their struggle was worth it all.


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The Sins of Lord Lockwood Rules for the Reckless Meredith Duran 9781501139048 Books Reviews

Anna, Countess of Forth in her own right and Countess of Lockwood by marriage learns from the newspapers that her errant husband has reappeared in London four years after he disappeared on their wedding night. She arrives in high dudgeon, determined to discover where he's been and how he's been using her money. They had somewhat of an arranged marriage, the terms of which now cause much misunderstanding between the two. Because Liam, Earl of Lockwood was kidnapped, not off on a frivolous escapade as Anna thinks. He was sent to a penal colony in New South Wales by his cousin who covets his title. Liam doesn't know how to tell Anna any of this, finding it easier in some ways to let her believe what she wants. Frustrated by his behavior, she demands an heir so then they can be done with each other.
This is a great Victorian romance, and a book I've been waiting for as I read other books in the series. There is a lot of angst; life in New South Wales was brutal, and Liam bears many scars both literally and figuratively. It's sometimes hard to read because of this, and his subsequent behavior is often cruel to Anna as a result. She's a strong woman and holds her own especially as she comes to understand more of what's really happened over the last four years. This is one of those books that you get and stay up all night reading (true story).
There are a number of contemporary HR authors who are competent, a few that are good and then a handful who can write, are clever, can deliver a heart-gripping ratio of angst and romance, while rolling out a story that has sufficient elements of surprise and difference. And then there is Duran, who stands on the shoulders of even that few.
There seems little point in reiterating the details of Liam and Anna’s story, except to add my voice to those already listed here in affirming that Duran has created another winner. And that her seque between the present and the past is as well crafted as in previous stories. And that, as usual, her female lead is impressive. Duran deftly presents Anna as a mix of self-confidence, impressive intellect and a desire to be treated “equally” - while, at the same time, limited by the protective armour she has created to cope with childhood abandonments, as well as the female insecurities forced by that era.
Liam is another character with layer upon layer, all of them interesting. Most impressive is how Duran makes convincing his transition from the privileged and handsome lady-killer and dilettante from before the abduction to the man tormented by self-disgust and rage and fear of madness as he relentlessly pursues revenge. And yes, he is now a violent man, capable of killing, but, on balance, more sinned against than the sinner implied in the title of this story.
I felt only one mild reservation with The Sins of Lord Lockwood Duran skirts implausibility when Liam does not make any move to contact Anna to inform her he is alive as soon as he can. And not even eight months after his return to London. (I wondered how he managed to spend so much on turning his London home into a glittering showpiece without her lawyers contacting her - or even a friend. The newspaper announcement seemed out of place.) However, this slight stumble was soon swamped by more significant and positive scenes. (On reflection, maybe this omission is a sin? If not, it is definitely a cruelty.)
Fans have had a long wait to discover Liam and Anna’s tale. Well done to Duran for doing more than justice to their story.
Highly recommended five stars.
This is a "wow" of a book. Full of angst, pain, anguish, hatred and self-hatred, shame, fear, guilt and regret. A story that has you thinking "if only he/she had..." or "why didn't he/she...", all the while knowing that Duran used all these human fears, mistakes, omissions, misinterpretations and misunderstandings to allow this story its full impact.

In 1857 Liam Devaliant, Lord Lockwood, is handsome and charming but in need of funds. Anna, Countess of Forth, needs to marry so that she has full control over her Scottish island and its management. When they meet, they agree to a marriage of convenience, with a contract drawn up to allow each their own freedom and autonomy. What Liam and Anna hadn't counted on was falling in love. But as they approach their wedding day, neither reveals his or her feelings to the other. So they say their vows still believing the other party is only interested in that marriage of convenience between friends, not a love match.

Anna had grown up accustomed to being "left". Her father left her in the care of aunts. She was shuffled around from family to family as a girl. In Duran's words, "She had perfected the skill of being left..." and so "designed a marriage that would guarantee that [she] was left." When on their wedding night they quarrel and Liam goes out to cool off but never returns, Anna goes back to Scotland to hide. She'd been left again. She asks no questions about his whereabouts because, well, he obviously wanted to and meant to leave her.

But that wasn't at all the case. Liam had been abducted, thanks to his devious, jealous, greedy cousin Stephen who arranges for him to be taken away to New South Wales as a convict. There he is tortured and brutalized for over 3 years. When in 1861 he finally makes his way back to London, he does not contact Anna. One even gets the idea he would prefer not to see her again. Liam is a changed man. His brutal treatment has left him with PTSD, a fear that he is going mad, not a moment of peace, and a fierce, obsessive desire for revenge. He distracts himself with drink, drugs, loud parties and somewhat violent activities (one boxing scene is particularly affecting), and feels fear and shame about his new, perhaps-mad, violent self and scarred body and mind.

When Anna learns of his return, she's off to London, full of anger and resentment that he had never contacted her in all the years of his absence nor let her know of his return. Ignorant of what had really happened to him, she remains resentful and angry for much of the story, until she finally learns the truth. Then is when the guilt hits her "He had not abandoned her. And she had wasted four years embroidering hateful fictions of him, when instead...she should have been searching for him. Raising the alarm and crying for justice. She had failed him."

What a heartwrenching, heartbreaking, sad, frustrating, complex, complicated, difficult reunion and eventual reconciliation there is to be found in these pages. But it must be read, not talked about. Their path to an HEA is not an easy one. This may be the most damaged hero I've ever encountered in historical romance and Duran does an excellent job of creating him in all his complexity. And he is paired with a formidable heroine, just the woman he needs to help him work through all his trauma and damage.

Duran's writing is so masterful that the reader can feel this couple's pain and anguish. This is not an easy read, but it's an excellent one. And if you can make it through all the heartbreak and torment, you'll be rewarded at the end with an epilogue that warms your heart and lets you know that their struggle was worth it all.